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2011-2012 Boys BasketballWeek-7, Top-10 PollA USA-365.com Special Report by Mark Smith02-09-2012 |
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2011-2012 Boys BasketballWeek-7, Top-10 PollA USA-365.com Special Report by Mark Smith02-09-2012 |
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ST.
JOHN (02-10-2012) There's still shifting at the top of the local top 10
because the challenges to the top teams are not what they might be.
The dramatic move is clearly being made by Munster, which has won seven in a row
by 10 points or more. But Bowman rolled over Bishop Luers 101-74 on Jan. 28 in a
game that was somewhat suspicious as the Luers coach said he was not going to
show everything he had in a game that didn't matter.
What? I know Luers played the night before and traveled over 100 miles to play
Bowman, which was idle on Jan. 27th. I'm not sure Luers can be 27 points better
in the middle of March, but it's very odd to hear a coach say that.
When you look down the line the big games are all about Andrean. The 59ers
(12-1) play at Munster (12-2) on Feb. 17 and Bishop Noll (15-0) at Andrean
(12-1) on Feb. 24.
Just one note and a sad one. Remember the Culver Academy team that won its first
sectional, regional and semistate title last year, winning the 3A Regional in
Crown Point?
But Culver is an elite boarding school. Many of the students there are not from
Indiana. Their two top forwards graduated and their lead guard, a dominant all-stater,
went back home and Culver Academy is 0-14 this year. Not all private schools
have it easy.
A note to the folks at Lakeshore TV. Please don't tape delay the boys state
tournament pairing show on Feb. 25 like you did the girls pairing show. If the
pairings are released at 6 p.m. and you don't run the TV show announcing them
until 10:30 (which is my understanding of what happened on Jan. 26), everyone
who cares will look up the pairings on line and no one will watch the show.
ST. JOHN:
LC is coasting to the DAC title due largely to lack of competition. The Thursday, Feb. 9 game with Valparaiso (11-4) has been devalued as the Vikings have run into some problems. LC, which has won five in a row, still has just the early loss to Hamilton Southeastern (14-2) and the DAC loss at Michigan City (7-7). This team needs to spend the final three games getting ready to play Munster, which is what will define their season.
2. (4A) Munster (14-3)
MUNSTER: Okay, I'll buy in. It's taken some time. But Munster has
rolled over everybody recently inducing a 20-point road win at Valparaiso (11-4)
on Jan. 28. 6-foot-6 transfer Danilo Zakovic scored 17 at Valpo and he hasn't
played his best yet. The losses are only to Warren Central (13-4) and Lake
Central (15-2), but this is a younger team that's climbing. They have a lot of
length and they're faster than they first appear. Munster did lose 54-53 to
Merrillville last week, but they have a true lead guard in Michael Schlotman and
a lot of multi-position players. I think Munster would probably defeat LC if the
game is played tomorrow. But it won't be.
WHAT THEY NEED TO DRAW: Munster would like to play LC immediately in the
post-season. It's their best chance to win the sectional.
GARY:
Bowman's 101-74 win over Bishop Luers (11-6) was very impressive. Bowman led 86-55 after three quarters. Carlos McCormack and 6-foot-10 Stephen Hawkins each scored 16. Hawkins had 10 rebounds. Luers had 32 turnovers. Bowman is so good when the pace of the game is fast, but I still have doubts about them when the game is slowed. Despite a loss last week to Hamilton Southeastern (16-2), nobody locally is going to run with Bowman in the state tournament and not everybody understands that there is a huge difference between Class 1A and Class 2A in the Indiana state tournament.
4. (3A) Andrean (15-1)
2011 (15-9), 2010 (13-10), 2009 (10-13)
MERRILLVILLE: Andrean is coasting against a weak league heading up to their match with Munster in mid-February. The narrow 68-64 win over sub-.500 Lafayette Catholic (7-8) is an indication that the world outside NW Indiana might be a little harder on the 59ers than region foes have been. The Niners topped Penn by 30 but Penn is 7-9 this year. The lone loss to Lebanon (16-2) on Jan. 2 is no big deal. They won't see Lebanon again. The gaping hole in this season is that Andrean doesn't play Lake Central. The gaping hole in most every season is that Andrean does not play Lake Central. Sure would like to see it. As it stands now, Andrean is the only team on Munster's schedule left that can beat them. We'll know more about them when they get to Munster.
WHAT THEY NEED: No injuries. Only Hanover Central (9-6) has even a remote chance in 3A Sectional 18 against Andrean. The Niners could beat the other four teams with their JV.
5. (2A) Bishop Noll (16-1)
2011 (26-1), 2010 (17-5), 2009 (13-9), 2008 (19-5)
HAMMOND: Bishop Noll has not played the toughest schedule in the world
and the loss to Highland (11-6) could not have been a surprise. But let the
record show: Schedule or not.
Noll is 42-2 in the last two years. That's not a misprint. 44 games. 42 wins. I
have my doubts here, but there's still a lot of proof in the final days. Noll
still plays Valparaiso and East Chicago. Here's where there needs to be a Lake
County Championship tournament involving the 24 largest Lake County schools.
Noll should play Crown Point and Merrillville. They want to but they can't. I
still don't know how good this team is.
WHAT THEY NEED TO DRAW: A bye. Wheeler and Lake Station can be
very difficult and Noll needs to only play two games in the sectional, not
three.
6. (4A) Valparaiso (12-4)
2011 (16-9), 2010 (19-4), 2009 (21-4), 2008 (16-6)
VALPARAISO: The losses are to Noll (16-1), Munster (13-3), CP (7-8)
and LC (16-1) so this is probably where they belong in this poll. Valpo just
doesn't score many points They have to play slow because they won't win any
shootouts. Still, Valpo lost by just one 40-39 to Noll. When was the last time
anybody won a sectional with no player averaging 12 points (John Mosser averages
11.8) a game? Stay tuned.
WHAT THEY NEED TO DRAW: They could draw Portage (2-16), but it
doesn't matter. Other than Valpo, none of the other teams in 4A Sectional 2 are
better than 9-7.
7. (2A) North Judson (13-2)
2011 (22-2), 2010 (15-7), 2009 (20-6), 2008 (9-12)
NORTH JUDSON: This is very high for a 2A private school, but Judson is
in almost exactly the same boat as Hebron. A senior-dominated
once-in-a-generation team in its senior year.
How do Hebron and North Judson, basically 25 miles apart not schedule each other
in boys basketball? Judson has lost only to South Bend Washington (14-2) and
Bishop Noll (16-1), both very close road games. John Eckert (19.1 ppg.) Kendall
Hochstedler (14 ppg.) and Winston Yerger (17.9 ppg.) lead a team that must learn
how to play a half court style slow down game because that's what they will be
confronted with.
WHAT THEY NEED TO DRAW: I think Judson wants to run on Hebron
so they want to play them immediately in 2A Sectional 34. Other than a bye,
Judson most needs to draw Hebron right away.
8. (4A) East Chicago (8-8)
2011 (14-8), 2010 (17-4), 2009 (14-8), 2008 (20-4), 2007 (23-3)
EAST CHICAGO: EC has slid to the .500 mark, but there aren't a lot of good teams this year. Note the schedule. EC is better than Lake Station and Wheeler and now Merrillville, with the Pirates' injury problems. And they have Lake Central (8-2) and Bowman Academy (9-7) yet to play. EC lost just 60-59 to Lake Central (16-2) 79-75 in overtime to Clay (11-6) and just 68-64 to Castle (12-4). They are good but really erratic even with a game. I have Judson and Hebron ahead of EC on senior stability, but the Cardinals have the potential to defeat anyone here on a good night.
WHAT THEY NEED TO DRAW: EC needs a bye in 4A Sectional 1. They can't be trusted to play well against anyone even though they could defeat anyone. Truthfully, EC needs Munster (14-3) to draw LC (15-2), so EC doesn't have to face both of them.
9. (2A) Hebron
(16-1)
2011 (13-8), 2010 (10-11), 2009 (5-14), 2008 (8-12)
HEBRON: The senior-dominated Hawks have won 14 in a row and they have a
chance to finish with 19 wins in a row. I appreciate that Hebron is the champion of the small school Porter County Conference (PCC) and that's why a lot of
people have not seen them play. But here is the untold story. The region's oldest and most tradition-rich basketball program headed for a sectional showdown with North Judson and probably
a regional showdown with Bowman Academy, in what would be the game of the year. With guard Damon Wallace (17.6 ppg.) and 6-foot-6 center Cody Artuso (17.0 ppg.) leading
the Hawks, this group of seven seniors is a once-in-a-generation team for a school this size. Stay tuned.
WHAT THEY NEED TO DRAW: In the six team Winamac sectional, Hebron needs a first round bye. They hope for the long haul and they need to play as few sectional games
as possible.
10. (4A) Crown Point
(7-8)
2011 (18-4), 2010 (8-13), 2009 (15-8) 2008 (17-7)
CROWN POINT:
I know Michigan City (8-8) has defeated CP twice, but after a 2-6 start, CP is
5-2 with two of the losses to Lake Central (15-2). Merrillville WAS better
before they lost 6-foot-8 Ed Seay to injury. Teams like Lake Station (12-4) and
Whiting (11-6) just are not in CP's class. This is a freak team size-wise with
6-foot-5 Tommy Bardeson (16 ppg.) at guard and 6-foot-6 Bret Barclay (11.0 ppg.)
on the wing. Braxton Rice, Nick Jeffirs and Sean Kelly are also 6-5, 6-6 regular
players. Defensively, they create a lot of problems. The key is guard where CP's
Dejan Stefanovic and Zack Plesac have their moments. The Bulldogs are a little
like EC in that they can play out of control at the drop of a hat. But five of
the losses are by 10 points or less. Plesac and Jeffirs have missed significant
time with injury but are back now.
WHAT DO THEY NEED TO DRAW: Michigan City. CP needs to focus right
away and a team that's defeated them twice is the cure for that problem. CP's
depth means they are well-suited to play three sectional games in five nights.