[Southsider2k12]

http://www.nwitimes.com/sports/high-school...b3acdbeebc.html

A year ago, Drew Trost got the call and the invitation to participate in a new basketball all-star experience. But with his wife close to having the couple's first child, the Bishop Noll boys basketball coach declined.

Today, Trost will be coaching inside New Castle's gymnasium in the third annual Indiana Class Basketball All-Star Classic.

Trost and Michigan City girls coach Mike Megyese will both be coaching teams in the two-day event. There will be 19 area players competing in the junior and senior games.

Four junior games will be played today with four senior games played on Saturday.

"I was really excited about it last year but I just wasn't able to make it happen," Trost said. "But I was fortunate enough to be chosen again. A couple of my kids will be there and several other region kids, too. It's going to be a lot of fun."

This will be the second year that juniors will participate in the games that are divided up between 3A-4A players along with 1A-2A.

The junior girls from the area are Crown Point's Courtney Kvachkoff, Bowman Academy's Princess German and Merrillville's Raveen Murray.

Seven junior boys were selected, including Bowman's Stephan Hawkins and Elijah Ray, Lake Station's Rick Garcia, Noll's Ronnye Beamon and John Dodson, Michigan City's Jabbar Washington and Merrillville's Edward Seay.

"It's a great event for the junior players," Trost said. "I'm real happy that Ronnye and John will get to play and let a lot of people see them outside of our area."The senior girls include Boone Grove's Brittany Dewell, Bowman's Mariah Jordan, Chesterton's Brooke Gardner and Valparaiso's Ariana Paul.

The senior boys include Wheeler's Najee Bailey, Morgan Twp.'s Brandon Gruble, Lowell's Austin Richie and Merrillville's Brandon Clark and Jeremiah Jones.

Hanover Central junior Nick Bollenbacher will not be able to play because his Wildcats' baseball team is competing in the Class 2A state championship on Saturday.

Steve Stremming and former Indiana University star Kent Benson were talking about five years ago about how the small-school kids are often overlooked by the Indiana All-Star selection process.

So this event took place and now it's taking off. Over 190 basketball players from Indiana will compete in New Castle. Stremming said he is expecting over 50 coaches from the NCAA D-II, D-III, NAIA and JUCO levels to be in New Castle, looking for talented players.

Division I coaches are not allowed to attend the event but Stremming said 11 D-I coaches have asked for DVDs of the games so they can watch the talent.

"Kent and I thought about all the talented kids that could use a showcase like this," Stremming said.

Every game of both days will be broadcast at www.broadcastsport.net.

Stremming said that there is no cost to the players or their families. In fact, practices during the week were cut out this year because of the high cost of gas.

"This is a small little thing that started from scratch," Stremming said. "But we've seen improvements and great growth. We're doing this for the kids and we're hearing great feedback from all of them."