BOURBON — Triton High School senior Clay Yeo had already been invited to take part in two all-star games, but his latest invite was the one he was pining for. Having already taken part in the McDonald’s Michiana High School All-Star Game in Mishawaka on March 25 and preparing for Sunday’s North-South Indiana All-Star Classic in Terre Haute, there was just one more he wanted. Monday night, he received a call from Indianapolis Star Indiana All-Star Games Director Charlie Hall, who invited him to be a part of the Indiana All-Star team. “This is the one I was really waiting for,” the 6-foot-6 versatile guard said. “I was humbled to be selected to the other ones, but I think this is one of the best ones you can be selected to. I’m very thankful and it’s kind of relieving to know everything I put into it paid off.” As a senior, Yeo averaged 26.3 points, 7.9 rebounds, 2.9 assists, 1.9 blocks and 1.8 steals per game for the 20-6 Triton Trojans, who had their season end with a 55-50 loss to Borden in the Class 1A state championship game at Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. Despite helping the Trojans win four Northern State Conference titles, as well as four sectionals, two regionals and two semistates during his four years, this season’s tournament run was a bit unexpected. Ranked 10th in the 1A state poll, and having suffered a couple of tough losses in the regular season, the Trojans knocked off No. 4 Pioneer, No. 6 Lafayette Central Catholic and No. 8 Michigan City Marquette Catholic during their run to the title game. And even though he was selected as a North Junior All-Star last season, it may have been Triton’s postseason run that made him an Indiana All-Star. “The run my team and I made really did help,” he said. “There were probably a lot of people on the list to be an Indiana All-Star, and I think one of the things they look at is how far you took your team (in the postseason). Our state run this year helped me a lot with my selection to the team.” Per his conversation with Hall, the way he led his team through a tough postseason did get some attention. “He told me he came to see me play this year and thought I was a good leader and deserved to make the team,” Yeo said. Yeo is just the second Triton student-athlete to be named an Indiana All-Star and the first since Lorea Feldman in 1984. Along with the team success, Yeo’s 1,992 career points is a Triton record, as well as the new Marshall County benchmark. The Valparaiso University-bound Yeo also holds Triton’s single-game scoring record of 44 points, as well as the single-season scoring record of 675 points, which he accomplished as a junior. Triton coach Jason Groves was asked to be an assistant coach to Carmel’s Scott Heady on the all-star team, but prior committments won’t make that possible. Instead, Groves will have to settle for having coached Yeo for four highly-successful seasons at Triton. “What an amazing honor for Clay,” Groves said in a press release from the Triton Athletic Department. “He has had a remarkable season and career here at Triton. He has really worked hard throughout the years to improve himself as a player and person, and it is nice to see that hard work pay off. I am so happy for him to be called an Indiana All-Star.” The Indiana All-Star team will have two exhibition games against the Indiana Junior All-Stars on June 10 and 12, with times and locations to be released later. Those exhibitions will help the seniors prep for the showdown with the Kentucky All-Stars, which will take place on June 14 in Louisville and June 15 at Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. “It’s going to be nice to go back to Bankers Life Fieldhouse and having another chance to play there,” Yeo said. Joining Yeo on the all-star team is a collection of highly talented players, led by Indiana Mr. Basketball Zak Irvin of Hamilton Southeastern, who’ll be playing for Michigan next year. Another highly-touted player on the team is Mishawaka Marian’s Demetrius Jackson, who will be playing for Mike Brey at Notre Dame next season. Yeo and Jackson have become friends, having played on the same AAU team, and look forward to teaming up once again. “It’s going to be really fun,” Yeo said of playing with Jackson. “As soon as we heard we were both going to be All-Stars, we called each other. We’re going to have a lot of fun playing with each other again. We’re also going to be on the same team Sunday in Terre Haute, so I think we’ll be playing with each other another five or six times.” The rest of the all-star team will be comprised of Fort Wayne Northop’s Bryson Scott (Purdue), Warren Central’s Devin Davis (Indiana), Carmel’s Michael Volovic (Butler, preferred walk-on), Cathedral’s Collin Hartman (Indiana), New Haven’s V.J. Beachem (Notre Dame), Lawrence North’s Basil Smotherman (Purdue), Castle’s Blake Simmons (Evansville), Tipton’s Mike Crawford (St. Louis), Munster’s Michael Scholtman (College of William & Mary) and North Central’s Darius Latham (Indiana). With a team consisting of that many players going to major programs, Indiana’s chances of extending its nine-game winning streak against Kentucky look pretty good. Before worrying about taking down Kentucky, Yeo’s just relishing a chance to be a part of the All-Star team, which doesn’t select just anybody. “There’s a lot of good players on the team this year,” he said. “The Indiana All-Star team has produced really good players in the past also. If you look at the guys in the (NCAA) tournament this year, you had Yogi (Ferrell from Indiana University), and Glenn Robinson III in the national championship game (who played on last year’s all-star team).”
