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No less than 70 former Wisconsin high school basketball standouts are playing at the highest level of college basketball this winter for NCAA Division I programs. 

Sixty of those 70 players are on scholarship with the other 10 earning roster spots via the walkon route.

Receiving scholarships from schools in the Power Six -- ACC, Big East, Big 12, Big Ten, Pac 12 and SEC -- has proven to be extremely difficult for state prep players. 

For the 2023-24 campaign, a total of 15 state prep grads are playing at the Power Six level, an average of three players per year over the past five graduating classes.  

To be fair, a few former high-major players -- Jalen Johnson of Nicolet, Johnny Davis of La Crosse Central, Brandin Podziemski of St. John's Northwestern and Patrick Baldwin Jr. of Sussex Hamilton -- left college early to pursue careers in the NBA.

Still, earning scholarships and achieving at Power Six programs is reserved for a handful of elite prospects from our state each season. 

Based on last year's statistics, the most productive Power Six performers from Wisconsin include:

* 2019 Waupun graduate Marcus Domask of Illinois
Domask transferred to Illinois after four solid seasons at Southern Illinois. The 6-foot-6 wing averaged 16.7 points and 5.8 rebounds for Southern Illinois last season, and figures to be a main cog for an Illinois team hoping to crack the top four in the Big Ten.

* 2019 Westosha Central graduate Jaeden Zackery of Boston College
A returning starter for Boston College, Zackery is a potential all-ACC performer. The 6-foot-2 lead guard averaged 10.7 points and 2.7 assists as a sophomore for the Eagles last season. 

* 2020 Neenah graduate Max Klesmit of Wisconsin
A rugged 6-foot-3 guard who can contribute in multiple ways, Klesmit started for the Badgers a year ago and forms a talented and experienced backcourt along with Chucky Hepburn and Connor Essegian. Klesmit averaged 8.4 points and 2.7 rebounds last year.

* 2021 graduate Racine St. Catherine graduate Tyrese Hunter of Texas
After helping Iowa State to a Sweet 16 showing as a freshman, Hunter transferred to Big 12 rival Texas for his sophomore campaign. The athletic, quick and skilled 6-foot-0 point guard averaged 10.3 points and 3.0 assists for the Longhorns.

*2021 Nicolet graduate Kobe Johnson of USC
A big guard with skill and athleticism, the 6-foot-6 Johnson was a key performer for USC a year ago, averaging 9.2 points and 4.8 rebounds while helping the Trojans to a 22-11 record.

* 2021 Brookfield Central graduate David Joplin of Marquette
Joplin earned Sixth Man of the Year laurels in the Big East Conference after averaging 9.3 points and 3.3 rebounds for the regular-season and conference-tournament champions. Joplin proved to be deadly from outside the arc as he shot 40 percent from three-point range for the Golden Eagles.

Meanwhile, several players who excelled at the mid-major level a year ago opted to transfer to Power Six schools in the off season. 

Andrew Rohde of Brookfield Central averaged 17.1 points and 3.8 rebounds as a freshman at St. Thomas and now is playing at Virginia along with another state prep product, Wauwatosa East's Leon Bond, who was redshirted last year. 

Jackson Paveletzke of Kimberly averaged 15.1 points and 2.7 rebounds at Wofford last winter and is now playing for Iowa State along with 2023 Pewaukee graduate Milan Momcilovic.

Mid-major standouts include:

* 2018 Brookfield East graduate Patrick Cartier of Colorado State
The former NCAA Division II Hillsdale College star had a successful transition to Division I basketball last winter, averaging 12.3 points and 3.1 rebounds for the Rams.

* 2020 Sheboygan Lutheran graduate Jacob Ognacevic of Lipscomb
First-team all-Atlantic Sun Conference performer averaged 17.7 points and 4.4 rebounds as a sophomore. 

* 2021 Monroe graduate Cade Meyer of Northern Kentucky
Meyer averaged 10.9 points and 5.1 rebounds for the Phoenix last year, and then opted to transfer to Horizon League-rival Northern Kentucky after the season.

Following is a listing of NCAA Division I players who graduated from Wisconsin high schools. Please send additions to this list to wbnews@yahoo.com. 

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