The venue will change from the basketball hoop in the driveway to the Athletics-Recreation Center and the circumstances will alter from a pickup game to a Division-I practice, but the stakes will remain the same with family bragging rights on the line.

The Valparaiso University men’s basketball program and head coach Roger Powell Jr. have announced the addition of 6-foot-8 forward Carson Schwieger (Overland Park, Kan. / Blue Valley Southwest [Wright State / Link Year]), who will join the program for the 2024-25 season with four years of eligibility remaining. He’ll play alongside his fraternal twin brother Cooper, the reigning Missouri Valley Conference Freshman of the Year.

“We would play one-on-one a lot growing up,” Carson said. “Everyone always asks who wins; I tell them it just depends on the day. It wasn’t a whole lot of fun to play against each other because he would know what I’m going to do just by looking at me.”

While the one-on-one battles will continue during practice, the most important factor of this reunion is that the Schwieger twins will once again be something they’ve been for much of their basketball life – teammates.

“It’s going to be awesome,” Carson said. “It’s going to be a lot of fun; we play really well together. I’ve played with him my whole life. We know where each other are on the court.”

Carson redshirted during his first collegiate campaign in 2023-24 at Wright State University. The Raiders went 18-14 and 13-7 in the Horizon League.

“Redshirting was very beneficial,” Carson said. “I put on 15-20 pounds. Not playing benefited me because I was eating, lifting and getting stronger. It was also beneficial to be able to sit there and watch games. You learn a lot by being able to sit and watch. I grew both mentally and physically this past year.”

Carson and Cooper were teammates at Link Year Prep during the 2022-23 season, when Carson averaged 12.3 points, 6.5 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.8 blocks per game. He shot 49 percent for the floor and 43 percent from the 3-point arc.

“That was a fun year,” Carson said. “I still keep in touch with some of my teammates from there; we have a group chat and talk every now and then. Our prep team was so tall; we had a couple of seven footers and several kids that were 6-11, my brother was 6-9 and another big kid was 6-8. That forced me to play the 3 after playing the 5 my whole life. That helped with my ability to shoot the ball because I took a lot of 3s.”

The year at Link provided some of Carson’s favorite basketball memories.

“We would scrimmage the academy team, which had some of the highest-level recruits and players in the country, and playing them was always fun,” Carson said. “We were right there and lost on a buzzer-beater to a team of all four-star and five-star recruits.”

Before Link Year, the Schwieger brothers were high school teammates at Blue Valley Southwest in Overland Park, Kan., where Carson averaged 9.9 points and 7.2 rebounds per game as a senior, helping the Timberwolves advance to the state quarterfinals.

“I’m a solid shooter for being 6-8,” Carson said. “I’m a stretch 4, similar to Cooper. I’m definitely a better rebounder than he is; I’ll get you some more rebounds and I’m a little bit more physical than he is. I want to get better and I want to win. I want to make sure that as a team, we’re winning games. I’m not a selfish player and I try to make the right decisions when I’m out there.”

In addition to the family reunion, the opportunity to play for Valpo’s coaching staff was a key factor in Carson’s decision.

“The coaching staff was one of the main factors; I like them all,” he said. “They’ve got a lot of playing experience and they know what it’s like to win. They were a big part of the process. They made me feel wanted and you want to go where you’re wanted, so that’s why I chose Valpo.”

Like his brother, Carson is pursuing a degree in business. The twins have an older brother, who is shorter than Cooper and Carson at 6-2 and plays basketball recreationally. Their parents are very supportive of their basketball endeavors. Their stepmother Denise Guth is a Valparaiso University graduate and was part of the women’s soccer program’s first two seasons in 1993 and 1994 as a goalkeeper. Away from the court, Carson enjoys video games, hanging out with friends and going to the gym.

“Carson is 6-foot-8 and can really shoot with a big body,” Powell said. “He adds size to our program and provides a high level of character. We’re excited about his physicality and rebounding ability to go along with his team-first mentality and winning attitude. It is special to have a set of twins and continue the Schwieger legacy in our program.”