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2016 Renegade Boys Basketball Week-7 PollA USA-365.com Special Report by Mark Smith02-07-2016 |
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2016 Renegade Boys Basketball Week-7 PollA USA-365.com Special Report by Mark Smith02-07-2016 |
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| James Walters (0) and Jarius
Stevens (35) of 4A No. 3 Merrillville don't understand why they can't win the sectional next month at Crown Point. Merrillville is 17-1 after 18 games this season. (Photo by Mark Smith) |
MERRILLVILLE
(02-05-2016)
The boys season sidestepped the girls playoffs last week but the top teams
largely continued on pace.
I was disappointed to read about how some, including Griffith players, feel they
were done wrong last year by the Indiana High School Athletic Association (IHSAA)
after an on-floor fight in a game with Hammond.
The IHSAA suspended both schools' teams for the year. Griffith supporters (not the
school) went to court and got an injunction allowing the Panthers to play in the
post season. Griffith finished second in the state.
Let's repeat what should be obvious: When an incident threatens the well-being of
children, there must be action to remove the threat.
Whether Griffith or Hammond was at fault is not relevant. The IHSAA had to act.
What if there was a rematch and another incident, a possibility because both
teams were 3A and would have met in sectional play. The IHSAA would have allowed
kids to be at risk for what? Basketball?
Many forget that there were no rights violated by the IHSAA here. No one was
thrown out of school by the IHSAA. Basketball is an extra curricular activity
that is not necessary for school to function. Schools have a responsibility to
maintain safety for students. In my mind, Griffith and Hammond were both negligent by not cancelling the
remainder of the season for their basketball teams after the fight.
Zero tolerance for violence, as promoted by the IHSAA is the only logical policy
concerning extra curricular activities that turn violent.
Boys and girls don’t have a right to play basketball. It’s a privilege. Any
violent behavior, in my mind, should result in the cancelling of such
privileges.
School is about lessons learned. From the comments this week, the Panthers feel
that even though their team (not all players) was involved in the fight, that
they are somehow victims of the evil IHSAA which, as we all know, hates
Northwest Indiana.
They may not have learned the lesson.
No violence is acceptable and just saying you’re sorry is not enough to avoid
loss of privileges. The boys are all forgiven for what they did (although had
someone been permanently injured, they would not yet be forgiven). But any shade
that has been cast upon them is 100% their fault. All of them. You win, lose and
exist as a team.
You cannot say: "I didn’t run off that bench. I shouldn’t be penalized."
And as someone who has attended high school events for half a century, I think a
fight is so serious that all involved should be suspended for the season.
Whether they have a really good team or not.
Griffith’s team has played a full schedule this season without incident, which
is to their credit. But it is not more than what is expected of all high school
teams in all sports.
We live in violent times and kids must live the truth that violence has
consequences that are harsh. Victims are those injured in fights, not those who
are penalized because of them.
A team fight, no matter how brief, in an enclosed area with women and children
can not to be taken lightly.
Penalties for fights must be severe or violence remains an option for kids.
The Panthers got away with one last year and, by this week’s comments, they not
only don’t know it, they are playing the victim because of it.
There’s no fighting in basketball.
1. (4A) Merrillville (17-1)
MERRILLVILLE: The Pirates did lose to Crown Point, but they rallied with victories over Munster, Portage and Carroll (12-3). Merrillville has allowed just 53 points a game. The Pirates led LC by 18 and held on to win 50-49 last Thursday. Merrillville is 7-0 at home and the Tuesday, Feb. 23 game against Morgan Township (12-3) is their home finale. Merrillville plays only eight home games this season. Doesn’t look like it's hurting them any. The Pirates earlier topped East Chicago (12-4), Riley (15-4) and Hamilton Southeastern (11-7) and the loss to CP can be avenged next month at the Crown Point Sectional. Merrillville lost a couple of transfers to Andrean before the season, but I guess they had ‘too many’ good players. When they go to the bench, the Pirates reserves often get the best of ‘your’ bench. The highlight of the season so far might have been a double win over Valparaiso (13-5) and Lowell (15-4). Merrillville has five games left and they can equal the 22-win season of 2014.
EAST CHICAGO: Won a big one 66-64 over 3A No. 1 Griffith, but this team carries the heavy burden of being a basketball team from East Chicago. Damien Jefferson (24.8 ppg.) and Jermaine Cousinard (17.1 ppg.) are a 1-2 punch that is not rivaled in the area. Still can't explain the season-opening loss to Gary Roosevelt (4-14). New coach Pete Trgovich probably can't either. The Cards have to win the sectional or it does not count. That’s the world EC lives in. There’s also a Saturday afternoon home game with Crown Point on Feb. 6. I’m liking that Thursday (I believe) Feb. 11 game at Lowell (14-4). The Devils like to run and gun and East Chicago thinks that’s big fun. That game is worth the price of admission.
CROWN POINT: Crown Point has proven they can defeat undefeated teams or lose to .500 teams. But this is a team you want to ride with. They have multiple (at least 3) point guards, post players and wing shooters and all are juniors or seniors. 6-foot-7 Andrew Kenneally scored 15 in last week’s win over Portage, the fifth in a row for the Bulldogs. CP topped Chesterton (9-7), Bowman Academy (9-6), LaPorte (11-6) and Boone Grove (13-2) in a nine-day span. Despite every defense designed to stop him, Grant Gelon has 65 three-point baskets in 17 games. Sasha Stefanovic (14.8 pgg.) has been a consistent scorer. Big game coming Saturday when the Bulldogs take a 2 p.m. afternoon trip at East Chicago. CP has only 10 home games in the 23-game schedule but they aren’t complaining. They host Class 4A Sectional 2.
GRIFFITH: The Panthers finally lost, 66-64 Saturday against East Chicago in the Hammond Civic Center. The Panthers then also settled for a tie of the Northwest Crossroads Conference (NCC) when they lost 54-53 to Munster. 6 of 11 from the foul line hurt the Panthers. The 14-game winning streak is believed to be the longest in school history. Griffith won 12 in a row in 2003 under coach Jack Gabor. Senior forward Tremmell Murphy did get 22 points and 11 rebounds in the Jan. 28 win over Andrean. The Feb. 23 game against Bowman Academy (12-6) looms larger as a playoff prep than a preview since Bowman is 2A and Griffith in in the 3A playoffs. The unfortunate aspect of this season is that Griffith (15-2) can't play Merrillville (17-1). Sure would like to see that one.
VALPO: The Vikings topped LaPorte 61-53 last week to improve to 7-0 at home. Valpo had four players score in double figures led by Steve Helm’s 15. The Vikings were 11 of 13 from the foul line to hold onto the lead late in the fourth quarter. Might be time to remember that this team was 18-5 last season with many of these same players. That’s 31 of 41. The Vikings host Crown Point (11-6) in a key Duneland Athletic Conference (DAC) game Friday night, Feb. 12. Valpo, CP and Merrillville are tied for the DAC lead and they all head for the Crown Point primary (uh, Sectional) next month.
LOWELL: This is a very strong team with the Cory brothers and Nick Mantis (17.1 ppg.) on the perimeter, a ‘running Red Devil’ style and good size and strength inside. John Cory (14.7 ppg.) has 37 three-point baskets in 18 games and Brandon Cory (14.1 ppg.) has 34. Lowell got 29 from Mantis, a 6-foot-4 forward, in a 73-66 victory over Munster, Lowell’s first win over Munster in 16 years. Lowell’s Friday night, Feb. 26 home finale is with Crown Point (11-6). It’s a new day when we’re having big basketball games every other week in Lowell.
GARY: Let's get real here. The addition of 6-foot-8 transfer Brandon Johnson from TF South (Lansing, Ill.) makes the Eagle significantly better. As an individual talent, Johnson may be better than anyone in NW Indiana. The Eagles are hard to rate because they play few local games. Bowman lost to Cathedral (12-5) last week. They’ve also lost to Southfield, Michigan and New Law, Missouri. Even folks who live there probably don’t know where that is. With all that said, this team will finish around .500 because the end of their schedule is tougher than a 2-dollar steak. Road games at Hammond (10-6), Chesterton (10-7), Manual (14-3) and at Griffith (15-2) on Feb. 23 will keep wins at a minimum. But Bowman is back in 2A now and nobody in 2A Sectional 33 is equipped to play with them.