It’s not easy to distinguish between brothers Kyle and Brogan Banker based on statistics and accolades.
But Washington Township coach Scott Bowersock knows there are more differences between 6-foot-2 senior guard Kyle Banker and 5-10 sophomore guard Brogan Banker than size and age.
“Brogan has a more laid-back personality,” Bowersock said. “Kyle is more focused or lasered in, both on the court and in the classroom. Both are good players and students, but Kyle has more of a direct approach, while Brogan takes things slow and doesn’t let things bother him. Kyle’s improving in that regard, too, but it stems from the fact that he wants to win.”
With Kyle Banker, who is averaging 13.0 points, 5.7 rebounds, 4 assists and 3.3 steals, and Brogan Banker, who is averaging 13.0 points, 5.0 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 1.7 steals, winning has become commonplace for the defending Porter County Conference champion Senators (3-0, 1-0). Both players were named all-conference for a team that won 21 games last season.
But they have taken different paths to this point.
Kyle Banker, a team captain, is in his third varsity season and also excels in volleyball even as he deals with osteochondritis dissecans, a joint condition that can cause bone and cartilage to break loose. He had three surgeries for the condition as a sophomore. After the first two, he said, he had “giant holes where cartilage should be.” The third surgery allowed him to return to the sport he loves.
“I learned to rely heavily on my team and my brother,” Kyle Banker said. “I couldn’t have gotten through everything without him and my parents. I had God as well. God helped me through everything. I prayed constantly, as I do now, and that helped me through the entire thing.
“It was extremely mentally demanding and physically demanding. The pain I experienced was horrible, but it was all worth it, and I’m here today.”
Brogan Banker burst onto the scene as a freshman last season.
“I don’t look at players in terms of what grade they’re in,” Bowersock said. “I look at, ‘Can they help us?’ Brogan started on varsity with us the entire summer heading into his freshman year. Obviously, there was a lot for him to learn, and there were growing pains. But it was his competitive nature that sold me.
“Ultimately, he was very consistent and ended up leading us in scoring.”
Washington Township’s Brogan Banker, right, puts up a shot over Boone Grove’s Joey Taylor during a Porter County Conference game in Valparaiso on Friday, Dec. 5, 2025. (Kyle Telechan / Post-Tribune)
Brogan said he struggled with the size of opponents and the pace of the varsity game early last season, but his self-confidence didn’t waver. He’s aware that teams will be more prepared to face him this season, but he’s not worried about what they might throw his way.
“I’ve grown within my jump shot, and I’m working on the pull-up a lot more,” Brogan Banker said. “It’s been going in lately, so I don’t think a lot of defenses will be ready for that. I just have to play my game and do what I do. I’ve got to show that I’m the better player out there, and that no matter what they have, I’ll still outshine their defense.”
Speaking of showing who’s the better player, Brogan Banker said he also wants to prove he’s the better Banker, although he doesn’t think that affects his play.
“Since I could remember, I’ve always been pushing to be the better brother,” Brogan Banker said. “I’m always trying to be more competitive and have a step on Kyle. I always want to be better than him. It’s how siblings are.
“We have a little brother, Rigsby, who’s in sixth grade now. I love playing against him because it makes me realize he’s competitive with me like I was with Kyle. But of course I’m always trying to be the best brother out of the three.”
Washington Township’s Kyle Banker (23) lines up a shot during a Porter County Conference game against Boone Grove in Valparaiso on Friday, Dec. 5, 2025. (Kyle Telechan / Post-Tribune)
Kyle Banker feels the same way.
“We’re constantly pushing each other, fighting to see who’s better and who can win the one-on-one at home,” Kyle Banker said. “We have a huge thing about dunking, like who can get up higher, who has the higher vertical, that sort of thing.
“But at the end of the day, we’re constantly pushing each other to be better, and that definitely translates to the court.”
Where the Banker brothers and their teammates hope to win the program’s first sectional title.
“The next big leap for our program is taking that next step in the postseason,” Bowersock said. “In 90-plus years at Washington Township, we’ve never won a sectional championship.
“We’ve won conference championships since I’ve been here, but there’s two things we haven’t done yet, and that’s make a run in the postseason and win a PCC Tournament championship. Those are high on our priority list, and if we win, it’ll be because those two made a huge contribution along with some other guys.”
Noah Poser is a freelance reporter.
