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IllustrateD volume 25, issue 1 67 f he first set foot on a basketball court, even when he was a 15-year-old playing against seniors in the summer. On this day, Weatherford turned he tables. The immediate response: Gordon shoved Weather- ford in the second half of a game Indi- ana Elite won com- fortably and drew a tech. The feeling lin- gered. After that tour- nament, Gordon dropped Weather- ford on Twitter and Instagram, maybe the ultimate sign these days of a bridge burned be- tween two teenag- ers. "I guess they weren't friends any- more," Fox joked. H a m i l t o n Heights coach Chad Ballenger recalls a game from last high school season in which Noblesville won the opening tip before Weatherford jammed his man up so aggressively immediately there- after that he drew a shove and offensive SWINGING FOR THE FENCES With Ryan Cline and Grant Weatherford committed for its 2015 class, Purdue now sets its sights squarely on two of the top senior-to- be prospects in the country: Caleb Swanigan and Jalen Brunson. If the Boilermakers' remain- ing targets were to be prioritized, Swanigan would undoubtedly top the list, as the five-star post from Fort Wayne Homestead has been a Boilermaker target since he was an eighth-grader and remained so after he re- classified from the 2016 class and moved up a year. Ranked 20th nationally by Rivals.com, Swanigan has offers from just about ev- eryone, including Michigan State, Kansas, Kentucky, Arizona, UCLA and Connecticut, but Purdue has a long-standing relationship with the 6-foot-8, 260-pounder and a history of featuring such players prominently. "They were one of the first schools to re- cruit me and they have definitely been there for a long time," Swanigan said in July. "I've been there because my high school has been to their (team camp) tournament they have in June. That was definitely good, to get that (offer). "I'm real close with Coach (Jack) Owens and Coach (Matt) Painter is a good guy. I definitely see that as a program I could go to and it's not too far from home. It's a good program." Purdue just added a point guard in Weath- erford but has recruited Brunson longer than anyone and will see its efforts through to the end. Those efforts have paid off in the form of Purdue securing one of the Chicago point guard's coveted official visits. Brunson, who's ranked 15th in the 2015 class by Rivals.com, will be at Purdue the weekend of Sept. 27. "Coach Painter is a great guy," Brunson said. "He was my first offer. He's been there for a while and recruited me well and he's always been honest with me. I love him for that." Brunson, who lives in Chicago but grew up in Philadelphia, will also officially vis- it Illinois, Michigan State, Villanova and Temple. Connecticut, Michigan and Kansas made Brunson's final list of eight in May but did not get official visits. Brunson is believed to be the only oth- er guard Purdue will continue to recruit, with multi-year target Glynn Watson being among those it'll cease its pursuit of. Purdue will have a robust list of big men it'll recruit. In addition to Swanigan, it has offers out to 7-foot-6 Senegal native Tacko Fall and Massachusetts top-100 center Josh Sharma. Fall has narrowed his list to eight schools: Florida, Florida State, Georgetown, Geor- gia Tech, Purdue, Stanford, Vanderbilt and Wake Forest. Stanford, Wisconsin and Boston College top Sharma's list. Purdue, on paper, has three scholarships to offer for 2015, but center A.J. Hammons' NBA prospects are one factor that could make that number a fluid one. — Brian Neubert