These Springfield area boys' high school basketball underclassmen showed they're next
The Springfield area is in good hands with top-tier talent all over the Ozarks once this current batch of seniors moves to the next level. The underclassmen at different schools in the area showed we're going to have good reasons to go to the gym for quite some time.
Here are the players who have already shown that they're capable of being the next batch of southwest Missouri high school basketball superstars.
Collin Clark, Greenwood, 2025
Clark has shown the capability of being one of the best players in the Ozarks since his freshman year and that continued as a sophomore.
The 6-foot-6 guard has the measurables to be a standout and his game backed it up. He averaged 19 points this season with four rebounds and 3.2 assists per game. He was a 50.7% shooter from the field and was 39.3% from beyond the arc.
Clark was half of a great duo with Nick Burri this past season. With Burri graduating, Clark will step into the starring role going forward for the Blue Jays and a jump for him would be no surprise.
Eli Govan, Parkview, 2025
Govan was touted as a breakout candidate entering his sophomore season and he lived up to it. The 6-foot-6 forward showcased that he's a great athlete who is only going to develop more into an area standout under head coach Jack Simpson.
Govan averaged 11.8 points and 7.6 rebounds per game this season on a Parkview team that was peaking toward the end of the season.
We've seen how great Simpson is with development through his first two years as an area high school coach and he did the same when he was coaching AAU ball. He knows he could have something special in Govan and he's going to try and get the most out of him.
Brenley Hagewood, Republic, 2025
Believe it or not, Ahlante Askew wasn't the leading scorer on Republic's great team this season. That title belonged to Hagewood who continued to look like a player who is going to lead the Tigers for seasons to come.
Hagewood averaged 16.1 points per game this season. He's a great shooter who knocked down 43.2% of his shots from deep and was 52.4% overall.
Tim Brown always seems to have Republic's next star developing underneath its current one. Hagewood showed he's capable of being that guy going forward.
Hudson Roberts, Ozark, 2025
After a slow start to the season, Ozark turned into the one team that no one wanted to play late in the year. A young roster going into the year developed with Roberts leading the way.
Roberts is best known in the area for being a top area baseball prospect who has already committed to Arkansas but he can hoop too. He finished the year leading the Tigers in scoring with 16.1 points per game while making 42.2% of his shots from deep and is an active defender.
The 6-foot-3 shooting guard is establishing himself as one of the best overall athletes in the area. The Tigers have to be excited about what they have in Roberts for the next two years.
Cody Voysey, Strafford, 2025
Nearly a Dominant Dozen selection, Voysey might have been the most productive underclassman this season while leading Strafford on the court.
Playing much of the season without its star player, Voysey emerged as one himself by averaging 16 points per game. He was a 51.5% shooter and knocked down an average of two 3-pointers per game.
The point guard was on our radar heading into the season and he'll be on it heading into the next two.
Amare Witham, Glendale, 2026
Word has gotten out that Witham is Springfield's next big thing as a high-scoring point guard who stood out for the Glendale Falcons this season. If he stays healthy and stays on this current trajectory, he'll be one of the area's all-time leading scorers before he's done.
Witham averaged 19.6 points per game and scored 529 total as a freshman. He knocked down 81 shots from deep this season and already stands tall as a solid 6-foot-2 combo guard with handles.
There's almost an ease to Witham's game and that's only going to get more dangerous as time goes on. He's going to be a fantastic player in the area for the next three years.
Other underclassmen who stood out
Tanner Baird, Forsyth, 2025
Bryden Baxter, Fair Grove, 2025
Ethan Brown, Rolla, 2026
Clayton Garrison, Chadwick, 2025
Bryer Guerin, Marionville, 2026
Spensar Seiger, Fair Grove, 2025
Tristan Smith, Chadwick, 2025
Wyatt D. Wheeler is a reporter and columnist with the Springfield News-Leader. You can contact him at 417-371-6987, by email at wwheeler@news-leader.com or Twitter at @WyattWheeler_NL.
This article originally appeared on Springfield News-Leader: Springfield area high school basketball top underclassmen of 2022-23
