2005 NW Indiana Sectional-Regional Class 1A & 4A Boys Basketball Preview A USA-365.com Special Report by Mark Smith (3-3-2005)

95^th Indiana State Tournament

MICHIGAN CITY - There is no more balanced regional bracket than in Class 1A this season. While the 1A Triton Regional winner might face doom at the hands of battle-tested Lafayette Central Catholic (14-6) or undefeated Tri-Central (20-0) at the semistate, there are a lot of boys who would like the chance to face that music.

In 4A, fans of 'region' powers are very confident they would take out the Concords and the Mishawakas at the Michigan City Regional. But Michiana followers see no reason why the Minutemen and Cavemen cannot knock off the best from Lake and Porter counties at that same event.

The difference is, the 1A Triton Regional champion might have short shelf life at the semistate level. The Michigan City Regional champ has at least a 50-50 chance to reach the state finals, where they would be 15-20 point underdogs against superpowers Arlington (21-0) and defending state champ Lawrence North (18-3).

But there's no guarantee that any of the Indianapolis superpowers will reach the finals. Arlington, ranked No.3 in the nation, faces North, with 7-foot All-America center Greg Oden, Friday night at the sold-out Lawrence Central Sectional.

Pike (20-1), Carmel (18-3) and either Arlington or Lawrence North will all get together in the Hinkle Fieldhouse Regional and only one of those four Top-10 teams can survive.

There is a chance that the NW Indiana survivor will won't have to face the best Indianapolis area team in the same way that Andrean was able to avoid three-time state football champ Bishop Chatard and win the 3A football title in November of 2004.

No need to be embarrassed about it. As four teams will find out this month, you need a little luck to win a state title.

CLASS 1A at Kouts (CST)

3-1-2005 (Tu) quarterfinal

Washington Township 59, Whiting 53 (2 OTs)

3-2-2005 (W) quarterfinal - 6 p.m.

River Forest (6-14) vs. Hebron (9-11)

LaCrosse (9-11) vs. Kouts (17-4)

3-4-2005 (Fri) Semifinals - 6 p.m.

Wednesday's winners meet – 6 p.m.

Washington Township (11-10) vs. Morgan Township (6-14)

CLASS 1A at Culver (EST)

3-2-2005 (W) quarterfinal - 6 p.m.

Westville (13-7) vs. Oregon-Davis (11-9)

Culver (6-14) vs. South Central (3-16)

3-4-5 (Fri) Semifinals - 6 p.m.

Wednesday's winners meet – 6 p.m.

Marquette (8-12) vs. Triton (3-17) or Argos (12-9)

CLASS 1A at Hamilton (EST)

3-1-5 (M) quarterfinal

Hamilton 65, Lakewood Park 35

(FW) Blackhawk 72, (FW) Canterbury 42

3-2-5 (W) quarterfinal - 6 p.m.

Howe Military (5-15) vs, (FW) Keystone (2-16)

Bethany Christian (4-16) vs. Elkhart Christian (8-12)

3-4-5 (Fri) Semifinals - 6 p.m.

Hamilton (4-17) vs. Blackhawk (13-8)

Wednesday's winners meet – 6 p.m.

CLASS 1A at Tri-County (EST)

3-1-5 (Tu) quarterfinal

Caston 52, North White 24

Tri-County 61, Pioneer 35

3-4-5 (Fri) Semifinals - 6 p.m.

Caston (20-1) vs. Tri-County (7-14)

West Central (14-6) vs. South Newton (9-11)

BOURBON - There are two favorites in No. 7 Kouts (17-4) and No. 3 Caston (20-1) sitting at opposite ends of the Triton regional bracket but both must play three sectional games to take the title.

Caston will have problems with West Central and Cody Mounts (13.5 ppg.), but WC is a team Caston beat by 16 points earlier. Caston's only loss is to Argos (12-9) and they have three senior starters including 6-4 Zane Olinger. Of the 21 teams Caston has played, 20 of them are 1A or 2A. That's not a strong schedule. But West Central has only played two teams above Class 2A.

I think it's a relatively safe bet with Caston's size and experience, they can survive here. Caston was the 2003 Sectional champion.

At Culver, Argos (11-9) has an easy path to the finals and the Dragons have four starters off last year's sectional title team.

But Westville (12-9) has a strong 6-3 forward in Aaron McManus and the Blackhawks have won six of their last seven games.

Triton, which has played six 3A teams, is a very young team that uses two 6-3 freshmen. They'd have to beat Argos to keep them out of the finals. South Central has a 6-3 junior in Caleb Kitchell, good size and they have a deceptive record.

The Satellites have faced strong teams in Kouts and Boone Grove in the PCC and the nonconference schedule includes 4A teams LaPorte and Valparaiso.

I'd lean towards Argos especially with four other teams playing Wednesday night quarterfinals.

At Hamilton, you've got to come up with a reason No. 9 Blackhawk, the only winning team in the field, won't win. Blackhawk is led by 6-5 Phil Kelpin, a double figure scorer and 6-7 back-up center Adam Tein. They have unusual size for a 1A school and good depth. This team is a two-time defending sectional and regional champion. They won the 2004 semistate last year.

Blackhawk plays six 3A schools and schedules most of the teams in the Summit Athletic Conference (SAC). They may be at another level from the other teams here. They could win three games at Hamilton easily.

At Kouts, the home team must win three games in four days and they do not have much depth. Lead guard Johnny Selman (13 ppg.) gives the Mustangs a big edge and shooter John Lauer (14 ppg.) is a big factor. The Mustangs must go through three Porter County Conference (PCC) rivals to win the sectional and that's a major problem. I'd make the Mustangs a slight favorite but Hebron, with 5-9 shooter Caleb Biggs (15 ppg.) is on a hot streak and charging.

Triton (1A) Regional semifinals

3-12-2005 in Borboun, Ind.

Culver Sectional champion (Argos) vs. Kouts Sectional champ (Kouts)

Tri-County Sectional champ (Caston) vs. Hamilton Sectional champion (Blackhawk Christian)

BOURBON - Kouts should be very strong in the first game of the day against an Argos team that will have a large fan following as Argos is less than 15 minutes from Triton.

The PCC champion is such a small team physically and Argos has such experience (4 starters off a sectional title team in 2004) that the Dragons make step to the lead early. If Kouts wins the sectional, they will finish undefeated at home but with four road losses. But Kouts did play Boone Grove (17-4) three times at Boone and B0one is a bigger better team than Argos.

Kouts guard Johnny Selman should be able to pick up the pace against an Argos team that has not played to competition consistently.

Comparative scores are misleading but what steps out at you is that Oregon-Davis beat Argos by 13 and Kouts beat by 14. That, plus Argos' small deferential (55.7 ppg offense 53.9 ppg. - defense) is why you lean towards Kouts in this semifinal.

Blackhawk has paid the cost to be the boss with a solid schedule and Caston has bulked up on weak sisters,partially due to their league and where they are geographically. There are only two schools in Fulton County and there are only four or five schools in a 30-mile radius.

The Comets to me, are overmatched here against the size and experience of Blackhawk. Here's the biggest 'lock' of the four NW Indiana regionals. Caston will be cut faster than David Terrell once the Bears got somebody new.

In the finals, I'd like to see Kouts win for 300-win coach Marty Gaff but it is not in the cards here. In the second game of 2-games-in-one day, Kouts will lose quickness and Blackhawk will be just as tall as they were at the start of the day.

Here's where the format works against a small, quick teams and favors a larger squad. The Braves have won two consecutive sectional and regional titles. Blackhawk has six players 6-2 or taller and they scheduled only 3 1A schools all year, option to play 17 larger schools instead including Concordia, Bishop Dwenger, Snider and Bishop Luers. Kouts just dosent face teams like that and they will have to shoot and rebound very well to stay close here. The tipoff was opening night of the sectional when Blackhawk beat a decent Canterbury (10-10) team by 30 points.

If you want to see the best team win here, you're probably going to get your wish.

1A Triton Regional championship

(FW) Blackhawk Christian 62, Kouts 52

CLASS 4A at East Chicago (CST)

3-1-2005 (Tu) Quarterfinals

Highland 64, Lowell 45

Gary West Side 63, Lake Central 55

3-4-2005 (Fri) Semifinals - 6 p.m.

Highland (16-7) vs. Gary West Side (16-4)

East Chicago (15-5) vs. Munster (16-6)

CLASS 4A at Merrillville (CST)

3-1-2005 (Tu) Quarterfinals

Merrillville 52, Portage 29

Valparaiso 80, Hobart 54

3-4-2005 (Fri) Semifinals - 6 p.m.

Merrillville (18-3) vs. Valparaiso (19-2)

Chesterton (9-11) vs. Crown Point (12-8)

CLASS 4A at Michigan City (CST)

3-2-2005 (W) Quarterfinals

Michigan City 62, Adams 59

SB Clay 53, LaPorte 36

3-4-2005 (Fri) Semifinals - 6 p.m.

Michigan City (6-15) vs. Clay (12-9)

Riley (12-8) vs. Washington (7-13)

CLASS 4A at Elkhart Central (EST)

3-2-2005 (W) Quarterfinals

Concord 64, Elkhart Central 46

Elkhart Memorial 58, Goshen 44

3-4-2005 (Fri) Semifinals - 6 p.m.

Concord (20-1) vs. Memorial (6-15)

Mishawaka (19-2) vs. Penn (14-6)

MICHIGAN CITY - Gary West Side has played the schedule to prepare them for this tournament and it showed when they overcame a slow start to beat Lake Central 63-55.

The agility of 6-7 Jamil Tucker (25.7 ppg.), 6-4 DeShawn Wright (14.9 ppg.) and 6-5 David Bell is a lot to deal with and Highland, while athletic and well coached, is just too small and slow, comparatively speaking.

Munster is not an experienced team and for them to beat East Chicago and E'Twan Moore (20.7 ppg., 10.5 rebounds per game) is also too much to ask. The Mustangs have played 10 4A schools, EC has played 11. But EC's 4As have included No. 1 (Indiana) and No. 3 (USA) Arlington (21-0), Gary West Side (16-4) twice and the 3As have included No. 2 3A Washington (21-2).  Munster has a lot of Clarks, Calumets, Whitings and Lowells on the schedule.

Munster's sophomore lead guard Mike Bizoukas must handle the athletic EC press and he's got to trouble senior David Connor (10.7 pg, 4.1 assists per game). That's too much to ask.

In the final, the third meeting of EC and West Side. Can West Side win on EC's floor in the biggest rivalry game of the year?

I think they can but it will be close. Everything favors EC. They have the bye. They have home court. They may also have the less physical game on Friday.

But West Side is bigger and has more offense if everyone on both sides is playing at a peak. This is not a game to miss. West Side won the first one 67-65. EC won the rematch 78-71 in OT.

I like Gary West Side to win a high-scoring game.

At Merrillville, I cannot see Valparaiso, which split two Duneland Conference games with Merrillville, beating the Pirates on Merrillville's home floor.

The key is how much trouble can 6-6 guard Rob Hammel cause for 5-11 Pirate top scorer and point guard Josh Mayo (13.3 ppg, 4.2 assists)?  If the Vikings can make Mayo more of a passer than a scorer and if 6-6 Scott Martin or 6-2 Jon Moon can stay with Greg Hill (13.3 ppg.), it's hard to see where Pirate points will come from.

But Valparaiso has to get the ball up the floor and they truthfully do not have a point guard to get that done.

If the Pirates get a half dozen steals and score four or five layups, it may not matter how good Valpo's half court defense is.

This will be another spectacular game, especially if the traditionally lame Valpo fan following beefs up for one night.

I like CP to win a third meeting with Chesterton but the physical nature of the win will take a toll.

I think there is an outside shot that Crown Point could beat Merrillville, even though the Pirates have won 14 in a row from CP. But the Bulldogs will play the second game late Friday night and they will have to survive a very rough squad.

I like the Pirates to turn back two stiff challenges and reclaim the sectional championship.

At Michigan City, nobody is having a great season but Riley, which went 13-8 against 15 4A schools including Mishawaka (19-1) and Concord (18-2), is in the best position.

Nobody has a better starting five than Michigan City, but the Wolves lost 10 in a row to end the year before an upset win over Adams Wednesday (2-5-5) night.

6-5 William Walker (15 ppg.) can be a dominant player inside and 6-3 Malachi Mitchell is a top defender. Clay has won 11 of their last 16, including a blowout of injury-riddled LaPorte Wednesday night. They have beaten Riley and Michigan City. Riley has won 8 of 11.

I don't give Washington much chance but they did beat MC 66-54 in February.

A sentimental pick would be Michigan City but Clay is the logical choice, even on MC's home floor.

In Elkhart, the showdown is on for superpowers Concord (20-1) and Mishawaka (19-2). The first meeting, on Feb. 22, was well worth the price of admission with Concord outscoring Mishawaka 21-6 in the fourth quarter to send the game to overtime before Concord guard Michael Moore (17 points, 12 assists) hit the game-winning shot in a 70-68 win.

Mishawaka, which led by 20, sank just 17 of 28 from the foul line. But Concord rallied with 12 of 29 from three-point range. To be honest, this game didn't make either side look too great. A top-10 team shouldn't ever be down 20, nor should one lose a 20-point lead.

I thought that Concord was the better team going in and I'll stick with that. The Gary Brothers, Shawntes Gary (16 ppg.) and Dariese Gary (11 ppg.) plus long range shooter Michael Moore should get the Minutemen through the title game, especially with Mishawaka needing to get by Penn (15-5) the night before.

Concord beat Penn 54-48 in February so they are very familiar with whoever they might face.

Michigan City (4A) Regional

3-12-5 - semifinals - 11 a.m. (CST)

Elkhart Central sectional champion (Concord) vs. East Chicago champion (Gary West Side)

Michigan City Sectional champ (Clay) vs. Merrillville Sectional champ (Merrillville)

MICHIGAN CITY (3-12-2005) The first semifinal will feature two of the state's most explosive offensive teams. Lake County prep followers may not know this but Concord is well-regarded for not just winning but putting on a show. 6-3 Shawntes and 6-1 Darise Gary are high-fliers and slam dunkers who are unlikely to be intimidated by West Side's attitude.

The key will be to make Shawntes Gary, a 6-3 Western Michigan recruit pull up and shoot the ball. He was just 4-of-17 against Mishawaka. Also, West Side can't let Moore (45 3s) shoot. The same is true of Tucker, a nearly unstoppable offensive player who was just 5-of-11 from the foul line against Lake Central. West Side can be erratic and emotional and they must be sharp here because they are not more athletic than Concord.

Concord is a better version of East Chicago and West Side struggled with them. I like Concord to win this semifinal in a high-scoring debilitating battle.

Merrillville won't be able to rattle Riley, which has faced top foes, but Riley has lost six times by 10 points or more so they have problems controlling the pace of the game, a Merrillville specialty. The Pirates will win by 12.

The title game will be a stress test for two very quick teams, which are well-matched size-wise. The Pirates will always challenge teams man-to-man and Concord will most certainly take that challenge.

I'm not sure this is one of Merrillville's better defensive teams. 13 of the 20 regular season foes scored 55 points or more against the Pirates and it is very hard to handle the Gary brothers one-on-one.

I don't think that Concord can play under the type of control that Merrillville can and will. The Pirates can shorten the game with the four-corner stall at the end of periods.

But Concord has too many weapons and Merrillville must score in transition. That won't happen against Concord.

Concord has played a championship schedule (Lakeland (18-3), Jimtown (20-1), Plymouth (17-3), Mishawaka (19-2), Northwood (15-5), Wawasee (15-6), Warsaw (13-7), Penn (14-7), Elkhart Memorial (13-9).

Not even Merrillville has faced that schedule and it should pay off here.

Concord 60, Merrillville 54

Copyright © 2005 USA-365.com and Meyer Multimedia Services, a division of Meyer Broadcasting Corp.  All rights reserved.
Revised: March 03, 2005 .