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2004-2005 Boys BasketballWeek-3 Renegade PollA USA-365.com Special Report by Mark Smith(12-7-2004) |
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2004-2005 Boys BasketballWeek-3 Renegade PollA USA-365.com Special Report by Mark Smith(12-7-2004) |
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(12-7-2004) NW Indiana looked weak when all four local team's in the 'Region Rumble' lost to teams outside the area, but that doesn't matter. What you need to do is play the top competition and when you do that, you're supposed to get beat. It's better to lose to good teams than to beat mediocre ones. Until you understand that, you can't be a good team. Bishop Noll (1-2) will take 10 losses this year but they'll be a monster in the 2A playoffs and that's the same formula that won them the 2A baseball state title.
Nothing that occurred should have changed anybody's mind about who is strong this year. If you knew about the 6-foot-7 Kasper brothers transferring into Wheeler (from Portage), you would not think they would have a losing year and they won't. Merrillville gets credit for the top nonconference schedule playing LAC contenders Andrean (1-0) and Munster (1-1), PCC favorite Boone Grove (1-1) and independent power East Chicago (3-2). What the region lacks right now is the one big showdown game that everyone wants to see. I don't think it's so much a 'down' year' in NW Indiana as it is that several teams seem relatively equal. So far.
Right now, there are more regional title contenders than there are deserters from the Bush administration.
1.) East Chicago (3-2)
EAST
CHICAGO – The Cardinals beat Clay
50-47 Friday and lost 52-42 in overtime to undefeated
Washington Saturday. That's a pretty good weekend. 6-3
E'Twan Moore (23.0 ppg.) is more productive in his sophomore
year than he was as a freshman and senior guard David
Connor (7.4) does a fine job out front. The foul shooting (71-113, 62.8%) needs
to improve. EC plays every good team in NW Indiana. Just wait. They'll get to
you.
2.) Merrillville (1-0)
MERRILLVILLE
– The Pirates looked strong against
Chesterton winning 82-70 in a game that wasn't that
close. Josh Mayo scored 20 and hit four three point baskets. The Pirates were 18
of 23 from the foul line. 6-5 center Dwayne Momon chipped in with 18 points, but
if these two teams meet in
the state tournament, the score isn't going to be in
the 70s and 80s and both sides know it.
But bad news for everybody: the Pirates seem to have a lot of usable depth. Not just sophomores and football players.
3.) Chesterton (1-2)
CHESTERTON
– The Trojans lost on the road at
Merrillville and this might have been the old rope-a-dope. They let Merrillville
slug away with the up tempo game when I can guarantee
you, as sure as Barry Bonds is jacked up
on steroids, that when these two teams meet in March, Chesterton isn't gong to
be sprinting up and down the floor.
This was a total throw-away game for coach Tom Pellar who knows he isn't going to win the DAC with a sophomore center and a freshman forward. He didn't want to show Merrillville anything.
This is another reason why the 14-game DAC double round robin is as bad an idea as 'A Clay Aiken Christmas.' Come on. Whose idea was that???
6-3, 205-pound freshman Zack Novak (18.3 ppg.) wasn't intimidated by Merrillville's speed. If they can get 6-11 Evan Schmidt going, the Trojans will be big trouble.
CROWN
POINT – The Bulldogs probably should
have defeated an undermanned LaPorte
team by more than 69-57, but LaPorte beat CP twice last season, so the Bulldogs
won't complain. 6-4 Ryan Brown and 6-5 Brian Maloney both scored 14 points
and left-handed wing Sam Henderson scored a career-high 20 against the up-tempo
Slicers, who were without two potential starters.
Spirits are as high as Ricky Williams on a three-day weekend, but the Bulldogs haven't beaten anybody at full strength yet. All judgment on CP should wait until they play road games at Lake Central and at Valparaiso this week.
5.) Gary West Side (3-1)
GARY
– How many times does Gary West Side
get to play Lew Wallace? Two of the Cougars' wins are over the defense-free
Hornets (0-3). As sure as there is no more National
Hockey League, West Side will beat LW four times this season. 6-7 Jamil Tucker
(15.5 ppg.) hasn't been pressed hard but 6-4 guard DeShawn Wright (19.2 ppg.)
has a three-pointer in every game so far. Watch the Farragut-West Side score
Thursday. The 'Side' needs better competition.
Why doesn't West Side play Andrean or Bishop Noll?
6.) Valparaiso (3-0)
VALPARAISO
– Every year, it is written that
Valpo has nothing coming back. Every year they win.
Lake Central got smoked out
70-54 last week as 6-8 John Hanselman, who did not play until he was a senior (Ahh,
the Good Old days!!) laid down 14 points with eight rebounds and three blocked
shots.
6-2 Jon Moon (19.0 ppg.) is firing for as many points every week as Peyton Manning. How about that foul shooting? 46 of 57 (80.7%) No. 1 in NW Indiana. Let's not put them in the state finals just yet, though. Valpo plays at Portage Friday (Dec. 10), home against Clay (Dec. 11) and home against Crown Point on Dec. 14.
By Wednesday morning we'll know if they're lean, mean or just green.
MERRILLVILLE
– Andrean's 6-7 Luke Harangody
scored 43 points with 20 rebounds and four blocked shots against Bishop Noll. I
know Noll doesn't have anybody taller than 6-3 but it's hard to score 43 against
the JV. It will be interesting to see how Harangody
plays this week. That's how a bad back works. You can be fine one day and not
fine the next.
Obviously, the 59ers, who gave up 57 points to Noll guards Greg Jones (26) and Sam Watts (31), have to do a little better job defensively. A big test this weekend. Rejuvenated Griffith (2-1) Friday and crosstown rival Merrillville (1-0) Saturday night. The 59ers just need to play somebody good and Merrillville will take care of that. There's plenty of time to get everything right.
8.) Lake Central (1-1)
ST.
JOHN – Okay, so they got downsized by
Valparaiso. Everybody knew that was a possibility. Senior guard David Hoffmaster
(17.5 pg.) is off to a good start. Valpo puts some
good 'D' on long range shooter Brett Summers who was held without a 3-point
basket and limited to eight points. LC will have
problems against big post players all season. 6-3 junior Adam Short (18.5 ppg.)
scored a career high 22 points last week. This is an all-hit weekend for the
Indians, hosting Crown Point (2-0) Friday and East Chicago (3-2) Saturday before
traveling to Chesterton Tuesday. That sounds like a
weekend in Afghanistan.
9.) LaPorte (1-1)
LaPORTE
– LaPorte lost to CP but beat New
Prairie. They played without guard Troy Tonagel and
6-8 center Josh Corey. This team will get a lot better. If the listed heights
are correct (and they rarely are) LaPorte has four players 6-4 or taller. 5-10
soph guard Airrence Shark (13.5 ppg.) is not 100% after a football injury. But
they led Crown Point by one with six minutes to play. Good luck hosting
Merrillville this week. That's not a way to get well. The Slicers have won 19 of
their last 21 at home.
10.) Portage (2-1)
PORTAGE
– Portage looked
bad at Michigan City, getting toasted 56-40 . It could have been a one-night
thing but the road, which features games with Valparaiso (3-0) Friday and
LaPorte next Tuesday (Dec. 14) could get long here if things aren't right.
Portage is a little small up front for the DAC. 6-3 Buster Battreal is at 15.3
points per game but he needs scoring help and 5-9 speedster Milt Rivera is still
out with a football injury. There's not a lot of difference between Portage and
Highland but Highland will play weak LAC competition while Portage will take on
stronger DAC teams. You are what you are, but you can't be what you want to be
unless you play who you want to play. Follow me.
OUTSIDERS...
Outsider No. 1 - Boone Grove (1-1)
PORTER
TOWNSHIP - This is going to be a very
good year for Boone. They rolled up the rug on Washington
Township 59-42 last Friday with Danny Borys (24.0 ppg.) scoring 27. Boone has
made 43-of-56 (75.0%) free throws after two games. They've got to get shooter
Jake Pivarnik going. The only loss is to Valparaiso (3-0) 61-48. Does it worry
me that Boone has scored just 28 baskets in two games? Well... yes it does.