Illinois Mr. and Ms. Basketball: The top high school players for the 2023-24 season
Wes Huett
Illinois basketball signee Morez Johnson of Harvey Thornton and Colorado State-bound Kloe Froebe of Lincoln were named Illinois Mr. and Ms. Basketball, voted on by coaches and media across the state.
Peoria players Lathan Sommerville of Richwoods and Aaliyah Guyton of Peoria High were runnerup for both awards, announced Friday by the Chicago Tribune. Metamora's Cooper Koch, an Iowa recruit, was fifth in the Mr. Basketball voting. They were trying to become the first Peoria-area players to win the awards since Shaun Livingston of Peoria High in 2004 and Tammy VanOppen of Limestone in 1992.
ALL THE NOMINEES: Mr. Basketball | Ms. Basketball
The awards — Mr. Basketball started in 1981 and Ms. Basketball in 1986 — are presented by the Chicago Tribune in conjunction with the Illinois Basketball Coaches Association. The dup will be honored at the IBCA Coach of the Year Luncheon on May 4 at CEFCU Arena on the campus of Illinois State University in Normal.
The 6-foot-9 Johnson averaged 20 points, 15 rebounds, four assists and three steals for Thornton, which went 25-9 and lost to Richwoods in a Class 3A supersectional. He was named a first-team all-stater by both the coaches and the media.
The 5-foot-9 Froebe — daughter of former Bushnell-Prairie City player Kari (Walters) Froebe — averaged 29.3 points, 6.5 rebounds, 4.8 assists and 5.2 steals in leading Lincoln to a 38-0 record and the Class 3A state championship. She was a first-team all-staters by both the coaches and media and finished runnerup to this award in 2023.
Both winners were not challenged in the voting, according to the Tribune. Johnson received 130 first-place votes and was on 89.1 percent of the 229 ballots. Sommerville was second, followed by Gianni Cobb of Homewood-Flossmoor and Angelo Ciaravino of Chicago Mount Carmel.
Froebe got first-place votes on 161 of the 208 ballots and appeared on 93.3 percent of them. Guyton was second, followed by Grace Nelson of Altamont, Alayna Kraus of Okawville and Wilmette Loyola's Aubrey Galvin.