SYRACUSE — Wawasee High School’s best scorer since Shanna Zolman signed to play basketball at Indiana University-South Bend Thursday afternoon. If not for Zolman, who still holds the Indiana state girls record of 3,085 points, senior KiLee Knafel would probably hold some school records herself. “She has a mentality of scoring and she's shown that for over four years,” Wawasee coach, and the father of Shanna Zolman, Kem Zolman said during Knafel's signing. Scoring so much, many players need to put up a lot of shots, but with Knafel shooting 45 percent from the field this season, her 24.5 points per game aren't the result of a lot of chucking. “You always watch the efficiency of a shooter,” he said. “KiLee has worked so hard and her percentage is pretty good. It's the best it's been in her four years, but that's just the result of constantly being in the gym.” Starting as a freshman, Knafel has scored 1,505 career points going into Saturday's game at Plymouth, ranking her second behind Shanna Zolman in the Wawasee record book in boys and girls basketball, but that isn't all she does for the Lady Warriors. On top of carrying the scoring load, Knafel is also averaging 6.5 rebounds and 4.2 steals for Wawasee, but she won't need to focus on excelling in everything at IUSB. “In college, I won't have to carry the load,” Knafel said. “All the girls will have different roles on the team. I'm really excited to see what it brings me.” After winning a sectional championship her sophomore season, in which she was named the Times-Union Area Player of the Year, Knafel has been Wawasee's main option on teams that have gone 13-24 the past two seasons. And with her being Wawasee's lone scoring threat, defenses have been keying on her, which can test patience. However, she's responded well to it. “She has developed more of a mental strength, which you need to have when you go out there and people are hanging on you, face-guarding you,” Zolman said. “You get impatient, and she's had to learn that.” That mental approach hasn't only helped her succeed on the court, but also off of it, which is the No. 1 thing IUSB coach Steve Bruce is looking for in a player. “My recruiting philosophy has tilted toward character-first people, followed by talent/work ethic, being second and third,” he said. “Character is always the first for me. With this young lady, that is what we got. In addition to that, she has a heart that loves basketball.” And her knack for putting the ball in the hoop is also a big plus. “When I first talked to (Zolman), he said he's only had a small handful of kids that he would characterize as pure scorers or have the scorer's mentality,” Bruce said. “She's one of them.” After getting IUSB's attention a year-and-a-half ago, Bruce says things became serious about six months ago. That interest peaked when Knafel took a visit to the campus in October, resulting in a verbal commitment. “I went to visit, and right from the beginning, I really liked it,” Knafel said. “It really caught my attention. When you're an athlete looking to go play somewhere, there's an indescribable feeling – you just know it's right. That's how I felt there.” Along with the campus atmosphere, Knafel also liked what Bruce was doing with the Lady Titans, who play in the Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference. “Coach Bruce is a great guy and I really like the way he runs his program,” she said. “I like how he does things there. Besides basketball, I'll also get an (Indiana University) degree. That really caught my attention too. But I'm really excited to be a part of their program and a part of their family.” And following her signing, Bruce was just as excited. “I'm as thrilled as I can be,” he said. “Let's just put it that way.”
