Marauders' standout is second All-Star in family, 12th All-Star from Mt. Vernon (Fortville)
Luke Ertel has earned the top individual award in Indiana high school boys' basketball.
A 6-2 guard from Mt. Vernon High School in Fortville, Ertel has been named IndyStar Indiana Mr. Basketball for 2026 in online voting of media and boys’ varsity coaches conducted by the Indiana Basketball Coaches Association and All-Star game director Mike Broughton, it was announced Thursday.
The Mr. Basketball result means Ertel will wear the No. 1 jersey for the Indiana All-Stars in their annual series with Kentucky. The Mr. Basketball award goes to the top boys’ basketball senior in the state. The Mr. Basketball and Miss Basketball awards are part of the IndyStar Indiana All-Star program that dates to 1939. The Miss Basketball award, along with the girls All-Stars, was added to the All-Star program in 1976.
Gracyn Gilliard of Center Grove was announced as the 2026 IndyStar Indiana Miss Basketball on March 13. The complete 2026 Boys' All-Star team will be announced later. The complete 2026 Girls' All-Star team was announced March 18. The 2026 boys' Junior All-Stars were announced April 1. The 2026 girls' Junior All-Stars were announced March 9.
Ertel earned the boys' top honor after being named on 207 ballots submitted to Broughton in voting that ran from March 19 to April 2. Dikembe Shaw of Crown Point was runner-up with six votes. Brady Scholl of Northridge was third with four votes, while Brennan Miller of Lawrence North and Noah Smith of Plainfield tied for fourth place with three votes each. Seven other players received one vote apiece. There were 230 votes cast overall.
A Purdue University signee, Ertel is the first Mr. Basketball winner from Mt. Vernon, the second Indiana All-Star in his family and the 12th Indiana All-Star from the Fortville-based school. He joins his brother, Michael, a 2017 MV graduate, as well as Brian Gilpin (1992), Daniel Turner (2010) and Amhad Jarrard (2022) as boys' All-Stars. Past girls' All-Stars from MV were Liz Skinner (1978), Barb Skinner (1979), Johna Goff (2000), Jessica Brown (2012), Erica Moore (2014), Sydney Shelton (2016) and Ellery Minch (2024).
Luke Ertel averged 24.5 points, 9.9 rebounds, 6.6 assists and 1.8 steals as a senior in leading the Marauders to a 28-3 record and the Class 4A state championship. He also converted 47.9 percent of his field goals (256 of 534), 39.8 percent of his 3-pointers (98 of 246) and 88.6 percent of his free throws (148 of 167) as MV also won the Homestead Invitational, Hoosier Heritage Conference, Greenfield-Central Sectional, Southport Regional and New Castle Semi-State.
For his career, he totaled an MV-record 1,756 points (21.2) as well as 659 rebounds (7.9), 432 assists (5.2) and 124 steals (1.5) for teams that posted a combined 80-27 record and won two sectionals, two regionals, one semi-state and one state title. In 83 career games, he connected on 47.6 percent from the field (571 of 1,199), 41.2 percent from distance (208 of 505) and 89.2 percent from the line (404 of 453). He owns an additional school record for season points (758 as a senior).
A 2026 Iverson Classic All-American, 2026 Gatorade Indiana Player of the Year and 2026 MaxPreps Indiana Player of the Year, Ertel averaged 13.0 points, 6.3 rebounds and 4.3 assists as a freshman, 12.2 points, 4.7 rebounds and 2.7 assists in just six games because of injury as a sophomore and 22.7 points, 6.4 rebounds and 4.0 assists as a junior. He posted three triple-doubles as a senior -- against Crown Point on Dec. 23 (16 points, 13 rebounds, 10 assists), Hamilton Southeastern on Jan. 24 (22 points, 17 rebounds, 11 assists) and New Albany on March 21 (22 points, 11 rebounds, 10 assists).
Ertel's career single-game bests are 36 points against Greenfield-Central as a junior and South Bend Saint Joseph as a senior, 17 rebounds against HSE as a senior, 13 assists against Harrison (West Lafayette) as a senior and five steals against Delta and Pendleton Heights as a senior.
In going to Purdue, Ertel is the 14th Mr. Basketball to join the Boilermakers from high school. Joe Sexson of Indianapolis Tech (1952), Wilson Eison of Gary Roosevelt (1955), Denny Brady of Lafayette Jefferson (1964), Bill Keller of Indianapolis Washington (1965), Rick Mount of Lebanon (1966), Kyle Macy of Peru (1975), Dan Palombizio of Michigan City Rogers (1981), Troy Lewis of Anderson (1984), Woody Austin of Richmond (1988), Glenn Robinson of Gary Roosevelt (1991), Caleb Swanigan of Homestead (2015), Caleb Furst of Fort Wayne Blackhawk Christian (2021) and Braden Smith of Westfield (2022) preceded Ertel on that list.
While in high school, Ertel was voted four-time IBCA All-State (2026 Senior Supreme 15, 2025 Underclass Supreme 15, 2024 and 2023 Underclass honorable mention), 2025 AP second-team All-State, 2025 IndyStar Super Team and all-tournament in the Hall of Fame Classic in December 2025. He also is a three-time all-HHC selection, a two-time first-team all-Hancock County pick with some 2026 awards yet to be announced. In addition, he won the 2026 State Farm high school 3-point contest held in conjunction with the 2026 NCAA men's Final Four and is set to play in the 2026 Iverson Classic All-American Game on May 2 in Hampton, Va.
Mr. Basketball and Miss Basketball traditionally wear No. 1 jerseys for the respective Indiana Boys All-Stars and Indiana Girls All-Stars in the annual series with Kentucky. The All-Stars will face the Indiana Junior All-Stars in an exhibition doubleheader on June 3 at Mt. Vernon. The All-Stars follow with their home-and-home doubleheaders with Kentucky -- June 5 at Lexington Catholic High School and June 6 at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.
The Indiana portion of the All-Star Games is organized and produced by the Indiana Basketball Coaches Association. The Indianapolis Star, with its IndyStar brand, is a title sponsor. Hoosier Shooting Academy is a presenting partner of All-Star Week, and Energy Systems Group is a presenting partner of the June 6 All-Star doubleheader at Gainbridge Fieldhouse.
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