Penn student, Notre Dame commit named 2023 Mr. Basketball
Current Penn student and Notre Dame commit Markus Burton was named Mr. Basketball during the Indiana High School Sports Awards Show at Butler University Wednesday night.
In addition to being the first to receive the honor at Penn, Burton is one of only three boys basketball players from St. Joseph County to receive the honor.
He follows in the footsteps of 1978 honoree David Magley of South Bend LaSalle and 1957 honoree John Coalman of South Bend Central.
“I’m humbled to be the first Mr. Basketball from Penn High School, and only the third Mr. Basketball from St. Joseph County,” Burton said. “Winning Mr. Basketball means a lot to me, knowing it’s been a long time since someone from South Bend brought Mr. Basketball back home. It means a lot to me, and I hope it means a lot to the community.”
“I especially want to thank my Mom and Dad for all of their love and support,” Burton said. “Coach (Al) Rhodes for believing in me, even as a freshman. Thank you to the Penn Coaching Staff and all of my teammates. I also want to thank the Penn community for all of the love and support.”
“Markus Burton is the best high school basketball player in Indiana!” Coach Rhodes said. “It is so fitting that he has been chosen Mr. Basketball. No other player has put in the work that he has. Great things are ahead for Markus as he heads to Notre Dame.”
Burton led the Kingsmen this season with an average scoring of 30.3 points, 5.7 rebounds, 5.1 assists and 3.6 steals per game.
He also earned the IHSAA Sportsmanship Award in the 2022-2023 season.
Burton will join the 2023 Indiana All-Star Team as they play against the Kentucky All-Stars on June 9 and participate in the All-Star contest in Indianapolis on June 10.