2008-2009 Boys Basketball 

Week-3, Top-10 Poll

A USA-365.com Special Report by Mark Smith

(12-15-2008)

MERRILLVILLE (12-15-2008) - The good news for Northwest Indiana basketball early in the season is that there seems to be new life in a few places.  It appears that one of the longest streaks of futility in Northwest Indiana may fall.  Lowell (2-1) has not had a winning season in boys basketball since 1993.  That's 15 seasons on .500 or below.  But there is quiet optimism that a trio of new players, transfer Justin Muscari, transfer Adam Richie (his dad is Lowell's new principal) and football star Brandon Grubbe, who missed all last season, can join a core of veterans off last year's 9-13 team to get the Devils a dozen wins and start rebuilding the Devils' long lost basketball tradition.

Usually, the annual South County Tournament, featuring the four Porter County Conference (PCC) teams south of Route 30 is a competitive slugfest that the locals can get into.  But its hard times down south this year.  For this year's two-day playoff (Dec. 22-23), Boone Grove (2-1) is the host.  Their only loss is to powerful Valparaiso.  They're OK.  But what about Hebron (1-4), Morgan Township (1-4) and Kouts (2-3)?  One of Kouts' wins so far is over Hebron.  What happened here?

Lew Wallace (4-1) and West Side (4-1) are off to a good start, but there is a black cloud hanging over Gary basketball this season with the imminent closing of Wirt and a planned reorganization that may leave West Side and Wallace as the ONLY two public school teams in Gary, a virtual Gary West and Gary East.  There needs to be a Gary basketball 'summit' conference.  East Chicago won't play Lew Wallace.  Nobody will play Bowman Academy.  They can't afford this.  Intra-city Gary basketball should be a lucrative series of games between cooperative, if not friendly rivals.  Basketball is their ONLY revenue sport.  The city athletic director should call EVERYBODY together at the Gary Holiday Tournament and get some agreements to play EVERYBODY.

1.  (4A) Merrillville (4-1)
 2008 (16-5), 2007 (13-9), 2006 (17-4), 2005 (18-4), 2004 (9-12)

MERRILLVILLE:  This is no surprise.  The Pirates have as tall and mobile a front line as has been seen in these parts for a couple of years.  Merrillville hasn't played a winning team yet so they really haven't proven anything and foul shooting like the 12-of-24 mess they displayed against Highland is going to keep them from being undefeated much longer.  The Pirates were surprised at LaPorte 58-55, but they bounced back to jolt Andean 70-54 behind 17 points from Darius Stevens.  But even if the Pirates can't shoot, they can put a 6-foot-6 kid on your leading scorer.  All of the first four teams Merrillville defeated this season have scored their season-low point totals against the Pirates.  They are a big team in a big kid's league.


2.  (4A) Gary West Side (4-1)
2008 (18-5), 2007 (14-7), 2006 (7-14), 2005 (19-5), 2004 (12-7)

GARY:  The 'Side' has beaten Lake Central, Lowell and Portage although it did take a three-point shot by Xavier Jones with 22 seconds left to defeat LC.  The 63-54 win over (Chicago) Farragut isn't as big this year.  Farragut, reportedly, isn't overly strong.  The 72-68 loss to Fenger (3-0) Saturday probably isn't a bad defeat, although Fenger is somewhat of an unknown quality at this point.  Jones, at 6-foot-3 and 6-foot-4 DeShawn Clay are excellent experienced guards with a ton of ability.  No NW Indiana team has a pair like them.  This is the anti-Merrillville.  The Pirates have top forwards and no experience at guard.  West Side has elite guards and small, unproven forwards.  To my knowledge, West Side has no games scheduled until they travel to Indianapolis to face undefeated Howe (5-1) on Dec. 23.


3. (4A) Munster (4-0)
2008 (16-6), 2007 (21-4),  2006 (20-4), 2005 (16-8), 2004 (20-2)

MUNSTER:  Munster has accelerated out of the starting gate winning four games by 15 points or more.  The Mustangs had allowed just 37 points a game after three victories over Hanover Central, Hammond and Morton, and they embarrassed a decent Hammond (2-1) team 74-35.  The Mustangs have always had problems at East Chicago, but they bombed the Cards 65-48 Saturday.  Brian Stolarz scored 17 and the Cards sank 18-of-22 from the foul line. 
Munster is still awaiting a major test and maybe that comes Dec. 23 at neighbor Lake Central or in January in Valparaiso (5-0).  No one in Munster's league is in their league.


4. (4A) Valparaiso (5-0)
2008 (11-14), 2007 (23-3), 2006 (21-3), 22-3 (2005)

VALAPRAISO:  There are two local teams that had losing records last season that many are high on for this year.  Valparaiso is one of them.  They have 6-foot-8 senior Hayden Humes (15.3 ppg.) in the middle and good-shooters like Andy Martin (9.2 ppg.) around him.  Valpo may lack a little in the front court in a season where the DAC is very tall and the Vikes also have just two seniors in a season where most teams have more than that.  But the Vikings are also going to bother everybody by controlling the style of play.  No one is going to rush them and no one is going to run them off the floor.  The Vikes average 67 and allow 40.  Who is 6-foot-2 soph Jerrick Suiter (12 ppg.)?  They have an edge on Munster, in part, because they have more tests on the schedule.


 5. (4A) Lake Central (1-2)
 2008 (9-12), 2007 (13-9), 2006 (7-14), 2005 (11-10)

ST. JOHN:  You have to have big people in the DAC and the Indians have a top center in 6-foot-8 Eric Summers (13.5 ppg.).  Wing guard Zak Felton is solid and I like Kyle Kaluza in the backcourt.  There is talk of good depth here, but time will tell on that one.  I was surprised that they were 0-2 before they beat Crown Point 58-41 Friday.  The losses are to Valparaiso (5-0) in overtime and Gary West Side (4-1).  LC takes on South Bend Clay (3-2) in the 'Region Rumble' and that should be a showcase for them.  This is an experienced team and this is their time.  I'm surprised anybody survives the 14-game DAC, but LC is one of the teams that could win their sectional.  This is another big team, especially on the perimeter.  No one on their schedule will beat them easily.


6. (3A) Lew Wallace (4-1)
2008 (13-11), 2007 (5-17), 2006 (4-17), 2005 (5-17)

GARY:  Nobody is a better promoter of their team than LW's Renaldo Thomas, but I'm trying to stay off the bandwagon.  This team has size, speed and experience led by 6-foot-5 senior Damion McGee (17.4 ppg.).  Senior center Sean Tarver is more of a forward, but he's also 6-foot-7.  The Hornets have a lot of depth and no one is more enthusiastic than Thomas.  But this was an awful shooting team last year.  Maybe they're better now.  But in the season opening win over Carver, LW was 21-of-43 from the line.  That's no good.  They did have a winning record last year.  They also need to stop playing Chicago teams (all five wins so far are over Illinois teams) and play some of the 3A schools they could face in the playoffs.  No team will be more fun to watch than Wallace if you can find them.  The Hornets make a rare Indiana appearance at the Gary Holiday Tournament on Dec. 26.


7.  (2A) BOONE GROVE (2-1)
 2008 (12-10), 2007 (11-12), 2006 (18-6), 2005 (19-7)

PORTER TOWNSHIP:  It's a little bit of a surprise that Boone had to rally to beat Kankakee Valley 59-55 Friday.  The Wolves traditionally start slow because their pre-Christmas schedule isn't exciting.  Boone needs to dominate the South County Tourney on their home floor, but that will be tough against rivals.  6-foot-5 Ryan Reynolds (14 ppg.) is off to a good start and 6-foot-3 Wayland Roach (8 ppg.), last year's leading scorer, seems likely to produce more points in the weeks to come.  Boone lost the season opener to Valparaiso 76-41, but again,  they should lose to Valparaiso (5-0).  This should be a higher scoring team than they have been through three games (through out the 78 points against Washington Township), but we don't know much here.  Boone only plays six games before the first of the year.


8.  (2A) Wheeler (3-0)
 2008 (16-6), 2007 (17-6), 2006 (19-6), 2005 (16-5)

UNION TOWNSHIP:  Wheeler plays seven games before the first of the year, so you won't know much about them until they take on 1A power Rockville (23-4) at Valparaiso University on New Year's Day.  Bearcat victories so far have been over Hebron, Lake Station and River Forest, three teams with losing records.  So far, no one is bothering Andrew Rudakis (25 ppg.) and Peter Todorovic (15 ppg.), but nobody at Hebron, LS or River Forest is going to stop them.  The Dec. 23 game at Marquette (5-1) is intriguing and the 2A Bearcats do have three 4A teams lined up in February.  On second look, this schedule is not as bad as it has been in the past.


9.  (4A) CROWN POINT (3-1)
 2008 (17-7),  (12-9), 2006 (9-13), 2005 (13-9)

CROWN POINT:  CP is where they should be in this poll, despite the 17-point loss at Lake Central last Friday.  There are going to be games where the Bulldogs do not score much because they have boys who are starting for the first time.  The key to development for the Bulldogs is in the front court where they need to involve the center tandem of 6-foot-9 Nate Akers and Jared Smoot, something that involves several factors.  If CP gets impact inside, offensively and defensively, everyone else on the floor will have an easier time.  But let me say this again.  Crown Point is on the 15-game plan.  The goal is to be good in the final five games of the season, not necessarily now.


 10.  (4A) LaPorte (1-3)
 2008 (8-13), (9-13), 2006 (12-13), 2005 (8-14), 2004 (21-4)

LaPORTE:  The Slicers showed what they could do in a 58-55 upset of Merrillville.  Dustin DeMuth (15 ppg.) and Terry Beane (10 ppg.) have led the scoring in the early going.  In the early going, 6-foot-4 three-year stater Rich Leslie (6.7 ppg.) has not shot well, but he did have 12 against the Pirates so it's coming.  There is too much experience here for this team to not have a winning record, but keep in mind the 'DAC curse'.  All of the teams in the DAC except for Lake Central are funneled into the Michigan City Sectional.  It isn't important how you fare the first time around for the second time around because you WILL see somebody three times.


 On the outside looking in...


(2A) HANOVER CENTRAL (2-3)
 2008 (11-11), (9-11), 2006 (6-14), 2005 (6-15)

CEDAR LAKE:  They aren't a Top-10 team, but look close at the record.  HC has lost to Crown Point (3-1), Munster (4-0) and Calumet (3-0), all bigger schools that should beat them right now.  And HC had Calumet beaten and lost 88-84 in double overtime.  There is new blood here in the person of 5-foot-11 freshman guard Nick Bollenbacher, who scored 35 against Calumet and had 17 last Friday in a 67-48 win over Washington Township.  Second year coach Rod Bollenbacher has formed a formidable starting team with 5-foot-7 soph Zach Rush, who had 23 against Hebron.  The 'Wonder Boys' might not be ready for Munster yet, but they're good enough to take pressure off 6-foot-3 Jordan Rizo, Hanover's inside-outside threat.  There is a lot of depth and there will be more later on when 6-foot-3 soph guard Lewis Norman (a transfer from Chicago Mt. Carmel) fits in and 6-foot-4 Adam Jackson gets back off the injury list in time for January's PCC tournament.  Are they better than up-and-coming neighbor Lowell (2-1)?  We may find out the night of Jan. 3 in Cedar Lake.


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Revised: January 05, 2009 .