Luke Ertel is receiving even more respect from the national recruiting websites following a strong junior high school season and an outstanding summer. The Purdue commit is listed just outside the top 50 of 247Sports’ recruiting rankings for the 2026 class.
This week, 247Sports released its updated recruiting rankings for the 2026 college basketball class. Ertel, who was previously ranked No. 111 by the website, catapulted up to No. 54 in the rankings. He is now considered the No. 1 prospect from Indiana and a top-five point guard in the cycle.
When he initially committed to Purdue the summer of 2024, he was a three-star prospect. Now, he’s earned a four-star rating from the recruiting website.
During the 2024-25 campaign at Mt. Vernon, Ertel averaged 22.7 points, 4.0 assists, 6.4 rebounds, and 1.4 steals per game. He also shot 51% from the floor and 45% from three-point range. The Marauders finished the season with a 21-6 record, reaching the semi-state round of the IHSAA Boys Basketball Tournament.
Ertel’s dominance on the floor didn’t end when the high school season ended. He’s had a strong AAU run this summer with Indiana Elite and shined during the Indiana All-Star Week.
In the Indiana Junior-Senior All-Star Game, Ertel scored 36 points, the most scored by a junior player in the game’s history, per Kyle Neddenriep of The Indianapolis Star. The previous record was owned by former North Central star Eric Gordon and former Lawrence North standout Greg Oden, who both scored 29 points in the 2000s.
Gordon would go on to play college basketball at Indiana and Oden played at Ohio State. Both also played in the NBA.
Ertel also nearly recorded a triple-double in the Indiana-Kentucky All-Star Game, scoring 36 points, dishing out 13 assists and grabbing nine rebounds.
As we’ve seen in the past, recruiting rankings don’t matter in West Lafayette. Coach Matt Painter and his staff have done an excellent job of identifying talent and finding the right pieces that fit into Purdue’s system. Ertel looks like another player who could make a big impact when he suits up for the Boilermakers.
Still, the major bump in the recruiting rankings is a tip of the cap to Ertel and his impressive play during the high school season, the AAU circuit and during Indiana All-Star Week.
BOILER BANTER PODCAST: Basketball is back in West Lafayette, and Purdue Boilermakers on SI writer Dustin Schutte talks about some of the biggest takeaways from last week’s practice. CLICK HERE
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PURDUE OFFERS 4-STAR GUARD ALSTON: Purdue has extended an offer to Reese Alston, one of the top point guards in the 2027 recruiting class. He’s an explosive guard with great scoring ability. CLICK HERE
KAUFMAN-RENN EXCITED FOR CLUFF, MAYER TO JOIN: Trey Kaufman-Renn says he’s “excited” to have Oscar Cluff and Omer Mayer join the roster, even though they weren’t at practice on Monday. He explained why. CLICK HERE
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