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IU Hoosier41

Source: 6'7" Nate Ritchie to join Hoosiers

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[attachment=794:ImageUploadedByBtownBanners1398702943.743930.jpg] Nate Ritchie -Preferred Walk On 6'7" - 2014 Northridge High School Middlebury, IN Not too much info out there that I've seen, but was told he should walk on to IU's team this fall. Listed as a small forward. More to come on this front. Video: #24 in Gray http://youtu.be/NZNFGCho8Hk Sent from my iPhone using BtownBanners

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"MIDDLEBURY — If you're looking for a nickname for Nate Ritchie, call him Dr. Dunk.

Elkhart Memorial, among others, will vouch for the "dunk" part after Ritchie hammered down five of those babies against the Crimson Chargers in a game a few weeks ago.

As for the "doctor" part, that's something Ritchie is aiming for down the road.

More imminently, he's aiming to lead overall No. 17-ranked Northridge to its first Class 4A boys basketball postseason title when the favored Raiders compete next week in the Elkhart Sectional at North Side Gym. Northridge (18-2) has a bye and will play in the semifinals on Friday, March 7, against the Concord/Memorial survivor.

Elkhart County Boys Career Scoring Leaders
 1. Shawn Kemp (Concord 1990)           2,134
 2. Dean Weirich (Northridge 1972)       1,823
 3. Ryne Lightfoot (NorthWood 2006)     1,673
 4. Brent Eaton (Northridge 2008)           1,564
 5. Andy Hirschy (NorthWood 1995)        1,552
 6. John Ritter (Goshen 1969)                  1,523
 7. Jamar Johnson (Concord 1990)        1,456
 8. Nate Ritchie (Northridge 2014)          1,359
 9. Derek Drews (Elkhart Central 2005)  1,358
10. Garvin Roberson (Elkhart 1970)        1,355

In the 6-foot-7 Ritchie, the Raiders feature Elkhart County's most potent scorer in eight years. He's averaging 23.8 points per game, on pace for the best figure by a county player since Ryne Lightfoot averaged 24.9 for NorthWood in 2005-06.

A versatile forward with guard range, Ritchie entered his team's regular-season finale at DeKalb shooting 60 percent on 2s, 83 percent at the line and 35 percent on 3s (16-of-26).  A year ago he was the lone underclassmen on The Elkhart Truth's All-Area first team.

But there's more to  Ritchie than basketball.

"It seems like a lot of people are surprised to find out I'm prettty smart," Ritchie said with a laugh this past week.

The senior carries a 4.2 grade point average on Northridge's weighted schedule.

While he hasn't ruled out playing professionally if that opportunity presents itself after college, Ritchie intends to major in biology and plans to follow that up by attending medical school.

"Hard to tell," Ritchie said of what area of medicine he might pursue, "because there's such a process involved, but I do want to stay close to athletics, so maybe an orthopedic surgeon or something else in orthopedics."

Ritchie has an NCAA Division I basketball scholarship offer from the University of Toledo, which he says "has a fantastic medical school," has other offers to consider and hasn't ruled out trying to walk on at a DI. He may not make his decision until after the season.

And the longer the season goes, the better.

"We've got a pretty tight team that loves each other," Ritchie said of the Raiders, who have surged ahead from their 10-12 mark of last winter, when they lost 64-57 in the Elkhart Sectional final to Warsaw.

"We can't take anyone lightly, but if we play together, we've got a chance," Ritchie said of Northridge being in the role of favorite. "The biggest thing is on the defensive end. We've got to be strong, because it seems like there's always sectional games that are 25-25 going into the fourth quarter."

Ritchie addressing the defensive end is something sure to warm Northridge coach Ronnie Thomas. By Ritchie's own admission, his defense has long lagged behind his offense, and a year ago, Thomas said it was where his star player most needed to improve.

"Nate's always had some knack for scoring," Thomas said this past week, "but he's really stepped up this year in areas like defense, rebounding, taking care of the ball. He's shown an incredible level of maturity this year. He's had a target on his back from (opposing) defenses and has handled it well. He's been a great leader, and he's found more ways to score. He's also had guys around him step up, and I think he sees how crucial that is."

Ritchie credits Thomas, a former Northridge standout center and DI player, with helping "me develop my  post game and a lot else. It's great having someone who's had his experiences to listen to."

And Ritchie credits his father, Darrel, with exposing him to basketball at a young age and being his first coach in youth leagues.

The 6-2 Darrel Ritchie was a three-year varsity player at Northridge for Irv Pratt before graduating in 1983, averaging 9.2 points as a senior.

Nate's mom is Kerri, and his sister, Hannah, is a freshman volleyball player at Northridge.

While Ritchie played "a lot of sports" as a youngster, he "pretty much" gave up the others to concentrate on basketball around eighth grade.

"I love to golf in the spring and summer," Ritchie said. "It's my get-away from everything, but it's just recreational. My focus in the summers is AAU basketball."

As for high school basketball, Ritchie's been known to show flashes of extreme excitement on the court, but those have typically been spontaneous and non-extended.

"I don't ever try to be emotional," Ritchie said. "It just comes as part of the game. I don't even know it's going on until somebody talks about it. I'm just caught up in the game and our team and trying to make big plays.""

http://www.elkharttruth.com/sports/high-school/boys-basketball/2014/03/01/Raiders-Ritchie-a-dunker-who-wants-to-be-a-doctor.html

 

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FEB 13
03:00
PM EST
UPDATE WITH 2014 F NATE RITCHIE
Trevor Andershock — Contributing Editor - NY2LASPORTS.COM

Northridge High School (Middlebury, Ind.) senior Nate Ritchie is having a great season. Behind the play of Ritchie, Northridge sits at 14-2 (both losses to Penn) on the season. They are currently ranked #16 in 4A AP poll. Here is a closer look at the wing from north central Indiana...

Ritchie is a 6-foot-6-inch small forward. He is a fantastic leaper that finishes well above the rim. His athleticism makes him a force on the offensive glass as well. Ritchie is averaging over 24 points per game through 16 games this season. He has had over 20 points in all but three games thus far this year. Ritchie passed the 1,000 career point mark earlier this season. He has been extremely efficient this season to get his points. He shoots over 80% from the free-throw line and 60% from the field. Along with his scoring, Ritchie also grabs 7 rebounds per contest.

The Northridge wing is one of the best available prospects in the state of Indiana. He has scholarship offers from the Air Force Academy and Toledo. He talks to Toledo frequently, but Air Force may not be in the picture at this moment. North Dakota State is in the picture; they have not offered yet, but Ritchie believes they might be on the verge of extending an offer.

Besides Toledo and North Dakota State, Ritchie is looking into walking on to in-state programs like Indiana, Purdue and Notre Dame. He has a 4.2 grade point average out of 4.0, so he is looking for an academic fit as well as athletic. Ritchie plans to go to medical school to be an orthopedic surgeon after his undergrad.

He is exploring all of the options available to him, and he, of course, is busy with trying to capture a Northern Lakes Conference title and then a sectional championship after the regular season. Northridge is currently leading the Northern Lakes Conference at 6-0 with three games left in conference play.

A college decision likely will not be made by Ritchie until after the season when he has time to evaluate his choices.

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Is this the same as in football where a guy is promised a scholly down the road as a preferred walk on or does the term "preferred" mean nothing substantial in bball?

 

It's always been my take (I could be wrong) that it just means he's already accepted as a walk on and doesn't have to do tryouts. Probably means he can work with the coaches like a scholly player also.

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It's always been my take (I could be wrong) that it just means he's already accepted as a walk on and doesn't have to do tryouts. Probably means he can work with the coaches like a scholly player also.

 

This is my take as well. Pretty sure that's correct.

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[quote name="Hwy 1" post="63665" timestamp="1398708830"]It's always been my take (I could be wrong) that it just means he's already accepted as a walk on and doesn't have to do tryouts. Probably means he can work with the coaches like a scholly player also.[/quote]

Yeah I think that's how it works. Dakichs kid is also preferred walk on.

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It's always been my take (I could be wrong) that it just means he's already accepted as a walk on and doesn't have to do tryouts. Probably means he can work with the coaches like a scholly player also.

 

I also kind of remember that term being used when Zeller was talking about paying his own way.  As with Hwy 1, I could be wrong.

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Anthony Anderson @AnthonyAnders11 23s

#NateRitchie @Nate_Ritchie says: "I will be attending Indiana Univ, but as of now nothing has been finalized in regards to basketball" ...

 

 

 

 

we shall see but if he wants to play as a walk on I can't imagine them turning him down. Maybe he's hoping for a scholly if the last one isn't used.

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