(La Porte County, IN) - It could be a dog fight for this year’s La Lumiere college prep boys’ basketball team if they want to be invited back to the National Championship Tournament.

 

The Lakers lost in each of their three games against nationally-ranked opponents during the La Porte Invitational Tournament January 9-11.

 

La Lumiere (13-8) went into the competition at No. 12 in the ESPN national rankings, but dropped out of the most recent top 25 after that tournament performance. However, Head Coach Pat Holmes hasn’t lost hope of being one of the eight teams invited to the Chipotle Nationals in Indianapolis on April 3-5.

 

“We got to take care of business,” he said.

 

The Lakers, who were national champions in 2017, narrowly missed receiving an invitation to the tournament last year. This year’s squad has four returning starters, including forward Jalen Haralson, who’s committed to play at Notre Dame next season. Another returning player this season, guard Darius Adams, is signed to play next year at the UConn. Guard, Melvin Bell, has committed to play at San Jose State, and forward Chuck Love, III is heading to the University of Loyola at Chicago.

 

Holmes said this year’s team had to change their gameplay after losing two seven foot players to graduation in 2024. This year, they play more of a half-court style offense, but can move the ball at a faster pace when the opportunity presents itself. He said the emphasis is still on a balanced attack and finding open shooters on offense along with solid defense.

 

“All of these guys have had great moments for us and that’s what we need to be successful.  It can’t be just one or two guys,” he said.

 

Eleven team from all over the nation took part in this year's La Porte Invitational, which featured more than 20 of the nation’s most highly recruited players. All of the games on Saturday were played before a sell-out crowd, and were broadcast on ESPN and Youtube TV.

 

La Lumiere will continue to host the competition, which returns to the Civic Auditorium, for at least the next two-years.  Holmes said the event gained national television exposure in its first few years, and is great for the school and the La Porte community.

 

“From a community perspective it's great for people to see what LaPorte has to offer.  All eyes are on us is awesome,” he said.