2007-2008 Boys Basketball  Week-5, Top-10 Poll A USA-365.com Special Report by Mark Smith (01-08-2008)

CHESTERTON (01-08-2008)  Fortunately, last week's snowstorm hit on New Year's Eve and New Year's Day when almost no one was playing basketball.  Any other time and we'd have had 100 postponements.

The Greater South Shore Conference (Noll, Calumet, Marquette, Clark, North Newton, Whiting, River Forest & Lake Station) debuts their eight-team league tournament in mid-January and the 50th Porter County Conference (PCC) Tournament occurs the same week Jan. 15-19.

A perceived lack of league tournaments in prep basketball is something that is exclusive to Northwest Indiana.  Most places in the Hoosier state have league, city and/or county championship tournaments.  There is a Wayne County tournament.  A Shelby County tournament.  A White County Tournament, a Howard County Tournament.  And most folks don't even know where those places are.  There's so few teams in Starke and Marshall County that they have the Bi-County tournament.

In Indianapolis, there is the 16-team Marion County Tournament and the 12-team Indianapolis city tournament.  NW Indiana leagues (that means you, DAC) are just stubborn.  But there could and should be a Lake County Tournament.  There are 24 teams (Bowman and Campagna Academy would make it 26) in Lake County.

Exclude some teams (CP, Merrillville and LC can't play as long as they have the 14-game DAC season because they don't have a free week) that may choose not to be in to get the number down to 16 and go at it.  Big school.  Little School.  All together.  Play Tuesday (1st round), Thursday (four quarterfinals and four elimination games), Friday (two semifinals and four elimination games) and the semifinals and finals on Saturday.  You could add a fifth or seventh place game if you wish.  It's not a complicated format.  Everybody plays until they lose twice or until Saturday arrives.  Everyone would play two or three games except for the Final 4 who would play four times.

Nobody could lose more than twice.  Nobody would be forced to play twice on the same day.  And everyone in the league could attend the semifinals and finals.

I think there's a chance of this happening because it would expand the archaic limit of regular season games from 20 to 22 since you (by IHSAA rules) can play 16 games and two tournaments.  There is already a Lake County wrestling tournament.  This is a do-able idea, and short of an eight-team Duneland Conference Tournament (which would draw 10,000 fans over six days), this is the great unsold idea for NW Indiana basketball.

Do we have an organizer among us?

1.  (4A) Chesterton (10-0)
2007  (16-7) 2006 (14-9), 2005 (9-12), 2004 (13-8)

CHESTERTON:  Zack Novak scored 37 as the Trojans beat 4A No. 3 Reitz 67-54 at the 'Region Rumble' at Valparaiso University on New Year's Day.  Chesterton isn't the most individually talented team in NW Indiana, but they play the game very, very well.  In the Reitz game, the Trojans got 46 shots and Novak (27 ppg.) had 25 of them.  That's how they'll win.  Teams that do not have a player like that can only go so far.  Balanced scoring: Five players averaging 10 points a game will not ever win anything.  The Trojans were 13 of 19 from the foul line, which is what you have to have to beat a ranked team.  Reitz did out-rebound Chesterton 29-23 and that could be a problem, because for the Top-10, the Trojans are a small team.  But there are no Top-10 teams in the DAC and that's their goal along with winning their sectional.  The Trojans got 26 from Novak and 13 from guard Tommy Peller to stay undefeated, winning 64-60 at Crown Point to end the first half of the year.  Chesterton has six home games left.  20-0 is unlikely but it's sure not impossible.

2.  (4A) East Chicago (7-2)
2007 (22-3) 2006 (19-5), 2005 (13-8), 2004 (13-10)

EAST CHICAGO:  The Cardinals got 28 from Derrell Conner to rally past 4A No. 3 Lawrence North (7-2) in what must've been a classic game.  The Cardinals won a racehorse game 80-65 over Howe at the Region Rumble Wednesday night and that was key, because I think it regained some confidence lost in two failed trips to Marion County.  Conner has been an impact player against strong teams.  I believe he has led EC in scoring against Warren Central, North Central and now Lawrence North.  But, when they came back to beat LN, the three-time 2004-2006 state champion, they have accomplished a major feat, even at home.  The Cards rarely face a taller team and this was a night when they overcame one.  If the two meet again (and they could) it would be in the state title game.  This was easily EC's biggest regular season win in this decade.

3.  (4A) CROWN POINT (7-3)
2007 (12-9), 2006 (9-13), 2005 (13-9), 2004 (6-16)

CROWN POINT:  CP played well, but it was not enough in a 64-60 loss to Chesterton (10-0), the team they have to beat at some time this year.  Stephen Albrecht scored 21 and Kyle Hanaway passed out 10 assists, but the Trojans made some big plays after CP led 55-53 in the final three minutes.  On New Year's Day, the Bulldogs got 35 points from Albrecht in a 77-70 victory over 2A No. 3 Winchester (7-2) in the 'Region Rumble' at Valparaiso University.  Albrecht scored 27 of his 35 after half-time in his best shooting performance of the year.  The Bulldogs did lose 52-42 to Merrillville, a game they led 41-40 early in the final period.  CP has some big weekends coming up against Michigan City and East Chicago on Jan. 18-19 and against Valparaiso and Boone Grove on Jan. 25-26.

4.  (4A) Merrillville (7-2)
2007 (13-9), 2006 (17-4), 2005 (18-4), 2004 (9-12)

MERRILLVILLE:  The Pirates won their biggest game of the season 52-42 over arch-rival Crown Point last week.  Aireus Stephenson grabbed nine rebounds, but it was a slow tempo that turned back the Bulldogs.  I wish there was more offensive talent on this team.  Balanced scoring is like winning the Iowa caucus.  It doesn't mean much when it's decision time.  There's no Pirate you have to double-team and a good, quick defensive team will hold them.  I think Bo Patton can be that scorer, but Stephenson scored 24 against Portage Friday night.  Merrillville lost a 21-point lead Friday, but held on to beat Portage 60-59.  They are a little erratic at times.  The next four games are Michigan City, Lebanon, Lowell and LaPorte.  Those aren't total mismatches (although Lowell and Lebanon are a little outnmanned) but the Pirates need to win the first five January games before they head to Crown Point on Feb. 1.

5.  (4A) Gary West Side (6-2)
2007 (14-7), 2006 (7-14), 2005 (19-5), 2004 (12-7)

GARY:  The Cougars might be disappointed that three wins at the Gary Holiday Tournament over Wirt, Roosevelt and Lew Wallace were all close games, but I think that team needed it.  You can't move them up past East Chicago, but the Cougars certainly justify their ranking here.  The 59-58 win over Lew Wallace (7-3) was a steal for the Cougars as a three-point play by forward Gerald Campbell and a three-point shot from DeShawn Clay erased a final minute, three-point LW lead.  The Side was just 12-of-21 from the line and they have to do better than that, but Clay (23) and Campbell (20) combined for 43 of the 59 points.  Now, another vacation.  A two-week break before they battle Wirt on Jan. 11.  That's not good.

6.  (4A) Michigan City (6-5)
2007 (8-13), 2006 (9-12), 2005 (6-16), 2004 (2-19)

MICHIGAN CITY:  The Wolves beat host Goshen in the Goshen Holiday Tournament before losing the title game to powerful Elkhart Memorial 75-68.  Always look at strength of schedule.  Memorial (5-1), Crown Point (7-3), Chesterton (10-0) and South Bend Washington (11-1) are four teams that have topped MC and that's no crime.  This team has 6-foot-9 senior Jarrod Jones in the post and 5-10 senior Stephen Ward handling the ball.  Jones is Angel Garcia without the hype.  Wins over Merrillville (7-2) and Goshen (7-2) can't be overlooked.  It gets real in January as MC battles CP, Merrillville and Chesterton again, plus Clay (7-2).  MC beat Valpo to start the new Year 51-46 and everybody in the DAC is uneasy about playing this team two or three times.

7.  (2A) Bishop Noll (7-2)
2007 (9-13), 2006 (6-15), 2005 (8-14), 2004 (15-10)

HAMMOND:  Bishop Noll got nipped 53-51 by 3A North Montgomery (8-1) at the 'Region Rumble' at Valparaiso University on New Years Day.  I still like this team a lot more than I like Mike Huckabee.  The Warriors need to be uncompromising with their style.  Push the ball and challenge people.  They will get smoked occasionally during the regular season, but not in the 2A playoffs.  Noll has Gary Roosevelt and Hammond left to play, but they know that 2A Sectional 33 has only five teams and only three: Noll and Wheeler (5-2) are over .500.  And Noll has already bombed Wheeler.  If I'm Bishop Noll, which played a run-and-gun 88-77 win over Marquette Friday, the state tournament is all I'd be thinking about.

8.  (3A) Wirt (5-3)
2007 (14-9), 2006 (12-9), 2005 (9-12), 2004 (6-15)

GARY:  Here's another team that has schedule issues.  Seven game in the first six weeks.  You can't really analyze them because they spend more time on the sidelines than Vince Young.  The Troopers won over South Bend Adams 58-52 Friday as Erik Hester scored 18, but Adams is 4-6.  When you have East Chicago (7-2), Gary West Side (6-2) and St. Joseph's (10-0) on the schedule, there are no long term complaints there.  But let's get it underway. You can't just talk about how good you might be if you played more games.  Less talk.  More action.  I think it's coming.

9.  (3A) Lew Wallace (8-3)
2007 (5-17), 2006 (4-17), 2005 (5-17), 2004 (9-12)

GARY:  I'm not totally buying into the rebirth of the 'Killer Bees' here just yet.  LW is 3-3 against Indiana teams and 5-0 against squads from Illinois and Wisconsin.  They've done more damage after crossing the state line than Al Capone did.  The Hornets are young.  They lost a game they should have won 59-58 to Gary West Side and they lost a 30-point lead before beating Bowman Academy in overtime.  There's no big wins here, but the losses are to Gary West Side, East Chicago and Bishop Noll, three good teams, all of whom are in this poll.  They aren't ducking anybody.  LW has rematches with EC and West Side.  But let's beat some Indiana teams and then we'll have an idea of how good this team is.  Plus:  Let's beat West Side.  Right now in Gary, that's what it's all about.

10.  (3A) Calumet (5-1)
2007 (14-8), 2006 (4-19), 2005 (4-17), 2004 (2-20)

GARY:  The Warriors are going to be 8-1, but they're also going to be out of this poll.  You simply cannot play River Forest (1-7), Morton (1-7) and Lake Station (3-5) as your only games in a 4-week span.  The entire season for them will start over when they get to the Greater South Shore Conference (GSSC) tourney on Jan. 14.  This team was a thriller at the start of the year, but the thrill is gone.  Calumet's boys have to make this odd schedule (only 3 games between Dec. 8 and Jan. 8) work FOR them.  They should be able to go full blast the last six weeks.  Calumet can't be tired.  They play less than that poor boy who backs up Peyton Manning.

On the outside looking in...

(1A) Morgan Township (6-2)
2007 (16-9), 2006 (5-16), 2005 (10-14), 2004 (19-4)

MORGAN TOWNSHIP:  The Cherokee Nation came off a long break to win the South County Tournament with wins over Hebron and Boone Grove.  Morgan beat Boone 42-36 in the title game and they now turn around and face Boone again Saturday night (1-5-2008).  If Morgan wins again, they'll be 9-2 when the Porter County Conference (PCC) starts on Jan. 16.  This team averages 48 points a game and they make it work with ball control and a lot of hustle.  The Cherokees do not play anything but 1A and 2A schools the rest of the way.  There's a lot of potential for wins here for a senior-dominated team.  But you can only play league rivals so many times before they start to close the gap on you.


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