Alumni Information
The 31st Annual Turkey Shootout begins at 9:00am on Thanksgiving morning. All former players and friends of the program are welcome to attend. The event’s founder, John Gorleski, will be in attendance. This is one of the many traditions that make Highland Park Basketball so special. This year’s Turkey Shootout will be held in the new Competition Gym which is located on the North end of the school. Please park in the senior parking lot.
2017-18 Giants
The Giants open the season at the St. Viator Thanksgiving Tournament. We play Evanston on Monday (11/20) at 5:30pm, Conant on Tuesday at 5:30pm, St. Viator on Friday at 3:30pm and Prospect on Saturday at Noon. The following individuals have made the commitment to carry on the HP Basketball Tradition this year.
3 / Daniel Michelon / Sr.4 / Cole Beermann / Jr.
5 / Hayden Katz / Sr.
10 / Zach Fagenholz / So.
11 / Tyler Gussis / Sr.
12 / Noah Shutan / Sr.
13 / Jacob Ephraim / Jr.
14 / Lucas Fleisher / Sr.
15 / Andrew Natinsky / Jr.
20 / Massimo Maspero / Jr.
21 / Elijah Houston / Sr.
22 / Jonny Koenig / Sr.
23 / Ethan Goldberg / Sr.
24 / Jake Lichtman / Jr.
31 / Connor Sickles / Jr.
33 / Val Oplchenski / So.
40 / Ziv Tal / Sr.
44 / Jack Greenwald / Sr.
Student Assistants / William Lipka
Cody Weiss
Video Coordinator / Matthew Koss
Feeder Basketball
The Highland Park Basketball Program welcomes six coaches to our feeder coaching staff this year, five of whom are graduates of Highland Park High School. Scott Smith (’05),Sam Harmelech (’07) and Zack Meuser (‘07) will be coaching our 8th graders, while John Whitehead (‘85), Jeff Gore (‘92) and Craig Lucci will be working with the 7th graders. Feeder practices begin the Wednesday after Thanksgiving and games start in January.
Alumni Stories
Luke Norcia (‘15) is a member of the basketball team at the University of Wisconsin Lacrosse. Lacrosse has a new coach and plays an exciting brand of basketball. You can follow Luke and the progress of the Eagles at
Luke’s backcourt mate at HP, David Sachs (’15), has transferred to UW Whitewater after spending two years at Barry University in Florida. David is off to a great start for the Warhawks who are ranked nationally. Stay informed with how David is doing by going to
2017-18 HP Coaching Staff
Varsity Staff - Paul Harris, Ross Deutsch, Brian Lukens
Sophomore Coach - Jason White
Freshman Coaches - Don McCord and Bryan Rome
Volunteer Assistant - Josh Olian
Stay Connected
-You can find our game and practice schedules on the Basketball Webpage -
-Get Thought’s for the Day and other good information on Twitter - @CoachHarris70
-Follow all HP sports teams on Twitter - @HPHS_Athletics
Special Shoutout
Special Shoutout to the Weiss and Gilberg Families. The HP Basketball Nation is always with you.
#LoveNeverEnds.