Mr. Basketball award is presented annual by Hansen Anderson Basketball

HURON — Blake Ellwein of Huron has been named as the 2026 South Dakota Mr. Basketball award winner by Hansen Anderson Basketball . The 6-foot-10 senior guard and South Dakota State University recruit led Huron to a 20-4 record and the state Class AA boys basketball championship .

He made 25 of 27 free throws in the state tourney. Ellwein is the all-time leading scorer at Huron High School with 1,535 career points. He averaged 21.

5 points per game in his senior season. He is a three-time Class AA all-state selection and three-time All-Eastern South Dakota Conference player who earned all-tournament honors three times at state AA tourneys. Since the award was first presented in 1978, Ellwein is the third Huron player selected for the honor.

He joins Rod Merriam in 1980 and Eric Hall in 2004 as previous honorees for the Tigers. Other finalists included: Jackson Wadsworth of Hamlin, Samuel DeGroot of Sioux Falls Lincoln, Marvin Richard III of Pine Ridge and Will Kuhl of West Central. The award is voted on yearly by all boys basketball coaches in the state and was presented at a ceremony held Thursday, May 14, in the Huron Arena.