Medlock's 21 Points Power Link Academy Past Wasatch Academy, 69-62

The Chipotle Nationals came to Fishers, and Hamilton Southeastern High School served as the backdrop for exactly the kind of opening-round statement game the tournament is built around.

Link Academy (Mo.) took down Wasatch Academy (Utah), 69-62, on April 2 in the first round of the 2026 edition, advancing to the quarterfinals behind 21 points from Michigan State signee Carlos Medlock Jr. and a collective performance that held up against a Wasatch squad that shot 46 percent on the night. For Indiana coaches and recruiters who made the drive to Hamilton Southeastern, it was four days of national-level scouting compressed into one zip code, starting with this one.

Medlock, a senior point guard, finished 7-of-14 from the floor in 31 minutes, adding three rebounds, two assists, a steal and a blocked shot. His two-way impact was the through line of Link's victory: efficient scoring on one end, rim protection and off-ball discipline on the other, giving Wasatch's half-court sets nothing clean to operate against.

Junior guard Davion Thompson complemented Medlock with 17 points and four assists, while Tahj Ariza, an Oregon signee, posted 13 points and six rebounds as Link's starting five spread damage across the box score. Trent Perry, Kansas-bound and one of the program's premier interior pieces, grabbed nine rebounds to shore up the glass. Ethan Taylor, a four-star Michigan State center also on Link's roster, had a quiet night statistically, but the surrounding cast covered the gap without issue.

Link shot roughly 50 percent from the field and converted 15 of 20 free throws, a combination that gave Wasatch no credible path back once Link's lead reached 19 points. The Missouri program led for more than 29 of the game's minutes, controlling tempo and limiting Wasatch's transition opportunities on the offensive glass.

Wasatch was not overmatched. Junior County, a UConn commit, delivered 15 points, six rebounds and two steals, and junior guard Mana Winitana added 16 to keep the Utah program within range deep into the second half. But Link's depth and discipline at the stripe ultimately made the margin too wide to close.

The recruiting concentration on that court alone makes this game worth circling for any Indiana-based evaluator: Medlock to Michigan State, Perry to Kansas, Ariza to Oregon, County to UConn. Showings like Medlock's 21-point, multi-category performance are exactly what scouts use to update projections after a pressure game on national television.

Link's quarterfinal matchup against Dynamic Prep (Texas) is next in the bracket, the next significant test for a program that entered Fishers with something to prove and left the first round having proved it.