It has been a while since Indiana has had a 7-foot center on its roster that had the high major talent to go with his size. In fact, Cody Zeller was the last such Hoosier in 2013.
Indiana is looking to change that in the class of 2020 with Ohio center Zach Loveday. Hailing from the small town of Gallipolis, which is nestled along the Ohio River in the southeastern part of the state, there is nothing small about Loveday.
Depending on which recruiting service you read, his height ranges from 6-foot-10 to 7-feet, but irrespective of the precise number, as only an incoming junior, the big man still may have room to grow.
There is also nothing small about the attention that he is garnering either. If you are at or near 7-feet tall and athletic, high-major schools will find you. Indiana offered Loveday in June, and several other schools have as well including Ohio State, Purdue, Louisville, Xavier, Stanford and Florida. Others are sure to follow.
The 247Sports Composite has Loveday rated as the 79th best player in the class of 2020 overall, the 13th best center, and the top player in Ohio.
Loveday played AAU basketball for the Louisville Magic in the Adidas series this spring and summer. He garnered a fair amount of attention on the circuit for his ability to knock down shots from the perimeter, and reportedly showed off some speed and handles for his size as well.
Indiana has some catching up to do as it relates to his recruitment. Loveday has already visited Purdue once and plans to return to West Lafayette again this month. He also has high praise for other area programs including Michigan, Ohio State, and Louisville.
All the being said, Loveday wants to visit Indiana. The good news is that he is at least familiar with Archie Miller from his Ohio days. He told Rivals’ Corey Evans this about IU in July:
“I haven’t been there before. I don’t know much about them there yet but I do know that Archie Miller had great success at Dayton but hopefully I will get the chance to watch them more and get down there in the fall.”
As a sophomore at Gallia Academy, Loveday averaged 17.3 points, 11.5 rebounds and 4.3 blocked shots per game. He shot 61 percent from the field overall, including, 36 percent from behind the three-point line.
Evans sees big things for Loveday as he prepares for his final two years of high school, indicating “Loveday brings plenty of value and upside to the frontcourt. He is skilled, mobile, active and productive, and can be placed within various schemes on the offensive end.”
You can watch a recent performance at the Ohio State team camp here:
You can see all of Indiana’s offers and targets in the class of 2020 and beyond here.
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