Gazette MVP: Brunswick's Trey Drexler exceeded the hype

Still just 18 years old and a senior at Brunswick High School, Trey Drexler already has gone through a couple recruiting processes in his young life. Now a two-time Gazette MVP in boys basketball as well as a two-time Mr. Basketball finalist, first-team All-Ohio pick, Northeast Inland District Division I Player of the Year and Greater Cleveland Conference Player of the Year, the 6-foot, 160-pound Drexler, who this season took it one step further and was named Ohio D-I Player of the Year, was offered scholarships by Akron and Kent State early in his high school career. When those programs didn't follow up much after the initial offers, Drexler decided to continue his career at D-I Indiana University Indianapolis, where his skill set should fit in well with the Jaguars' fast-paced, high-scoring style. Prior to that, when he was a talented left-handed point guard attending middle school in the Brunswick school system, a number of private high schools in Northeast Ohio inquired as to whether he might be interested in furthering his education at their institutions. Drexler went so far as to attend several shadow days at St. Edward High, but he never seriously considered going anywhere but Brunswick. "I just wanted to play with the guys I grew up with," he said. "My freshman year I played with my next-door neighbor (2023 graduate Maxx Dickinson). We grew up playing one-on-one in the cul-de-sac." The Blue Devils are certainly glad Drexler stayed home. A four-time All-Gazette choice, he helped Brunswick compile an 81-21 record over his four seasons, including the program's first back-to-back league titles in his junior and senior years. The Blue Devils also reached the regional finals his sophomore season, the district finals his junior year and the regional semifinals his senior season, when he couldn't play due to a broken left wrist. Along the way, Drexler scored 1,754 career points, which ranks second in Medina County history behind Highland's Rob Wininger, who had 1,842 from 1989-93. While it's true high school regular seasons have been expanded from 20 games in Wininger's era to 22 in Drexler's, it also is important to note Drexler missed 11 games in his high school career, including his last four. "He was one of those can't-miss kids from a young age," 30-year Brunswick coach Joe Mackey said. "He was our ball boy from third grade on. He was always around our program, so by the time he got to us he knew our terminology and how we played. "He also was good enough to attract attention from all the private schools. Him deciding to stay at home did a lot of things for us. We've become a top-five team in the area and recognized in the state. He put us on the map. He took our program from a great program to an elite program." While scoring at least 30 points in seven of the 20 games he appeared in as a senior, Drexler averaged a program-record 26.5 points, which ranks behind only Wininger (32.9 in 1992-93), Buckeye's Danny Flood (28.3 in 2021-22) and Highland's Mike Webster (26.7 in 1955-56) in county history. "It doesn't amaze me at all," close friend and fellow All-Gazette pick Sean Barnett said. "I see his work ethic every day. It's crazy to view it in person. Older people say the hardest workers always get the best results, and it's true. He's proven to everyone he's one of the best point guards in Ohio. "I've been seeing it since first grade. Teams try to pressure him when they see a point guard who's not the biggest, not very tall. Trey's very patient, then he blows right around the guy every time. They probably look at him in the layup line and think, 'We've got this.' Then after the game they say, 'I'm never going to judge a book by its cover again.'" Sleepy-eyed and relaxed off the court, Drexler averaged 14.1 points as a freshman, 17.0 as a sophomore and 20.7 as a junior before taking his game to another level as a senior, when he shot .500 from the field, .437 on 3-pointers — he was 62-for-142, with many coming from well behind the arc — and .850 at the line. He also averaged 2.9 rebounds and 3.5 assists. "We figured that out when he was in seventh grade," Mackey said when asked when he knew Drexler would start as a freshman. "I've been doing this for a long time, and he's one of those kids you don't get very often. There's other states that allow kids to play (varsity) in middle school, and he was that talented. He does so many things you can't coach. He can change speeds and he shoots it so well that it just makes him unguardable. "He had a target on his back because of not being very tall and all the attention he got. Everyone's always questioned him because of his size, but there's so much more to the game than how tall you are. He can't control that, but he controls everything else." A tireless and relentless worker, Drexler can shoot with ease from 28 feet, extend and finish at the rim with either hand, draw fouls with cagey ball handling and score in the post with an old-school, one-legged fadeaway on which he extends his other leg forward to keep defenders from getting close to him. The 6-5 Barnett has seen it all up close and personal. "Every time we play 1 v. 1, we'll tell each other Tri-C is right around the corner," said Barnett, who will continue his career at D-II Flagler College in St. Augustine, Fla. "His name for me is Baldwin Wallace and my nickname for him is Mount Union. No hate or disrespect to anyone. It's just the label we have next to each other's name when we're playing." Though Drexler missed Brunswick's final four games this season after breaking his wrist, serious thought was given to removing his cast and having him suit up for what turned out to be a regional semifinal loss to Elyria. After long discussions with parents Michael and Lisa, that idea was abandoned when doctors informed the family he could be risking surgery. "There was definitely some thought to it," Drexler said. "My parents and I sat down and talked, and my dad talked to a bunch of people who knew about the risk of playing. We eventually came to the conclusion it was best that I sit out." Drexler suffered the injury against Euclid in Brunswick's next-to-last game of the regular season. While watching his teammates practice, he took more than his share of right-handed 3-pointers on the side. While no one was guarding him and his set up took a bit longer, he was eventually making close to 60% of them. "There were a lot of sad emotions realizing four years came to an end so abruptly and suddenly without knowing it was going to be my last game," Drexler said. "But after a day of being sad, I put my mentality to how I could help our team, cheer on my guys and give them pointers." Knowing he has a lot more organized basketball to play at IU-Indy also eased the pain a bit. "If there's a so-called perfect fit, that's what it would be," he said. "It's close to what we play at Brunswick, in space, shoot a bunch of threes and you have the ability to create for others and yourself. That suits my game. "There's always going to be a 'what if' in whatever you do. There's always that thought of what we might have done (in the tournament), but what can you really do? I wasn't out there, and that's how it works sometimes, but I have so many good memories." Contact Rick Noland at (330) 721-4046 or rnoland@medina-gazette.com.