Thankfully the weather held up this week and it made for a busy week in high school ball. I got to catch a full slate of games in person and streaming as well. The week kicked off streaming the best game I’ve seen so far this season. Merrillville went on the road to Hammond Noll and put up a fun/ fast paced game that came down to the wire. Tuesday night I got to stream the Madison @ North Decatur OT game. On Wednesday I made the short drive to see the South Ripley Raiders take on the Shawe Hilltoppers in an ORVC matchup. The battle of Columbus took place on Friday night and I caught the Madison @ Austin game on Saturday night that features 2 of the better freshmen in southern Indiana. Let’s get to what happened around the state in Week 4.
Merrillville @ Hammond Bishop Noll– This game up in the Region was one of the few on the slate for Monday night so the spotlight was on these 2 teams. Noll came in with a sneaky good 5-1 record, only losing by 4 to Portage. The Pirates were 1-1 but took a very good SB Adams team down to the last minute. The big name in this one coming in was Merrillville sophomore, Charles Hardiman who had a slow first half, but made up for it in the 2nd. Noll held a small lead for most of the game but the Pirates fought back to tie it up going into the 4th. It seemed like the momentum was in Merrillville’s favor but Noll Jr. big Jeffrey Patton wouldn’t be denied underneath. Time after time the Warriors went inside to Patton and he delivered with a variety of post moves. Pirate soph. Cam Jones had himself a big game as well finishing with 21 pts. Speaking of sophomores with 21 pts, Noll’s Jaray Walker equaled that total showing that state this game had alot of young talent. After 2 Hardiman free throws tied with up @ 63 with about 15 seconds left, Noll came down and drove to the basket and got the ball knocked out with 3.7 left on the clock. The inbounds pass went right into Patton who went to work down low like he had all game. A quick dribble and a spin towards the middle of the floor and he laid it up and in for the game winning basket as time expired. Hardiman was excellent in the 2nd half finishing with 23 pts., but the night belonged to Noll big, Jeffrey Patton. The game winning bucket gave him 23 on the night and a walk off W.
Silver Creek @ Jeffersonville- The defending state champs hosted the 3A #1 Silver Creek Dragons on a rare Thursday night game this week. The Devils were celebrating their ring ceremony before the game but that celebration was short lived after the first few minutes of the game. Silver Creek jumped out super hot on both ends of the floor. If the Dragons can bottle up that 1st quarter there’s no 3A team in the state that can mess with them. Senior Kasen Daeger was throwing Daeger-bombs from the outside early and often. Credit to Jeff, after that 1st quarter haymaker SC threw the Devils played them pretty much even. The defense was more intense and players looked unafraid of taking shots. Senior Terrence Nord took advantage of some open looks from deep and finished the game with 14 pts to lead the Red Devils. The Dragons height was hard for Jeff (or any team in the state) to overcome throughout the game. 6’9 senior Dane Caldwell got himself going in the 2nd half ending with 9 pts. As did 6’8 junior Lucas Linderman who put in 9 pts. Linderman has improved as much as anyone from last year to this season and has a high ceiling going into the spring/ summer. The difference in this game as Silver Creek held onto a 10-12 pt. cushion in the 2nd half had to be the shooting of Daeger from the outside. Kasen put up 20 pts. in a 64-51 W for the Dragons.
Columbus North @ Columbus East- What a wild and strange game this was. The gym (and parking lot) was full on Friday night. It felt like the whole town of Columbus was here wearing either orange or blue. I felt like East had the advantage in height and talent with 6’6 senior Keaton Lawson and 6’3 senior Carter Patterson. Early on it was East junior guard Judah Lewis who looked like he was on his way to a big game, playing with confidence hitting some open shots. North’s zone defense really messed up wanted East wanted to do all game. It kept the score low and gave the Bulldogs a chance to stay close throughout the game. Throw in massive foul trouble from East’s Lawson, who picked up his 4th on a technical foul late in the 1st half and Lewis eventually fouling out in the 4th and North stayed within striking distance. In fact, both teams received technicals at one point, as did East coach Perry Nash. I’m not sure North ever led the entire game but had multiple chances to tie the game late in the 4th. The Olympians also never scored in the 4th which made the North comeback possible. With neither team taking the game over it eventually went to OT where it looked like East had control, but like everything else in this game, there was nothing a given. North’s junior Austin Perry hit a 3 with around 10 seconds left to cut the East lead to 3. After a couple missed free throws Perry had a chance to tie the game and the ball touched most of the rim before bouncing out giving East the 52-49 OT W. Lawson, Patterson, and Lewis all finished with 11 pts for East (unofficially) while North was led by Perry with 14 pts and Sr. Caleb Ferguson with 13 pts.
Madison @ Austin- The obvious draw of this game was the young talent on the floor for both teams. This may be a game in 2 or 3 years really draws a big time crowd. Both teams play multiple freshmen and sophomores. Early on the Cubs came out firing thanks to Jr. Gabe Fife and Fr. Braysen Russell. In fact, Russell put up 18 pts in the first half alone as Madison took a lead into the half. Austin settled into the game in the 2nd getting sophomore Tracen Roush involved for 14 second half points finishing with 16 on the night. Austin freshman Micah Mohler also got going in the 2nd half putting up 24 pts and 9 rebounds for the game. What gave the Eagles a real spark was freshman Hayden Hurt who hit 2 massive 3’s to help push Austin into the lead. Hurt has earned more PT as the season rolls along and I would look for him to see alot more varsity minutes moving forward. Madison had their own freshman duo of Russell, who scored a game- high 27 pts and Gavin Barnes who got to double figures before fouling out with 10 pts. Austin rolled on to a 68-53 win for their 2nd of the season but had a strong weekend after playing Paoli to a 1 point game on Friday night.
Other News and Notes from Around the State
- Charlestown beat Clarksville on Tuesday, 73-36. Sr. Keevin Bowman put up 15 pts, 8 assists, 7 rebounds, and 4 steals in the W
- Decatur Central got a good W on Tuesday as well with a 77-50 over Indy Lutheran. Elyas Zapata had a big game of 18 pts, 11 rbs, and 4 assists.
- Shelbyville moved to 4-0 with a 67-58 W over Greenwood. The Golden Bears are one of the more slept on teams in 3A so far this season.
- North Decatur got a 69-61 OT W over Madison despite Cub freshman Braysen Russell putting up 26 pts and 4 rbs.
- South Ripley got a 78-29 W @ Shawe on Wednesday and a 80-70 W over South Decatur on Saturday. Soph. Eli Gilpin scored a game-high 24 pts. on Wednesday and Jr. Drew Volz led the Raiders with 23 pts on Saturday.
- Jennings County got a nice W over Greensburg on Wednesday night. Sr. Johnny Elkins scored 22 pts, 8 rbs, and 5 steals.
- Blackford moved to 5-0 on Friday night with a 66-38 W over Elwood thanks to Soph. Amarian Leggett with 21 pts and 6 assists.
- Borden soph. Wyatt Jones continues his scoring tear putting up 21 pts, 6 rbs, and 3 assists v. West Wash on Friday night. On Saturday Jones scored 20 pts and 5 boards in a W v. Eastern Pekin.
- Lanesville sophomore also put up a big weekend with 29 pts and 11 rbs v. South Spencer and 18 pts and 11 rbs. v. Henryville
- Sr. Brennan Miller for Lawrence North and Soph. Noah Washington with New Albany both put up 24 pts in their game on Saturday night in a LN 80-78 W.
- CAI Jr. Noah Vance continues his big season as the Warriors only returning starter from last year putting up 28 pts and 6 rbs in a W v. South Central
- Princeton defeats Castle on Saturday, 79-50 thanks to 25 pts. from soph. Quintyn Voltz and a triple double from Sr. Edwin Holmes, 12 pts, 11 rbs. and 10 assists.
- Orleans Sr. Nate Brown scores 28 pts in a W v. North Harrison
- Parke Heritage picked up a 82-47 W over South Putnam thanks to Jr. Carter Crum putting up 20 pts and 10 rbs.
- Monroe Central got a tough 77- 73 W v. Hagerstown on Saturday despite Tiger Soph. Jaykob Troutwine scoring 38 pts and 6 rbs. Bear Sr. Ta’Shawn Beatty with 25 pts.
- Bloomfield Sr. Blake Neill scored 33 pts on his father’s team, Owen Valley in a 62-52 W.
- Ben Davis got back on track this week with 2 Ws. Sr. Jashawn Ladd scored 15 pts, 6 rbs, 5 assists, and 5 steals v. Warren Central and 21 pts, 4 rbs, and 3 assists v. Brownsburg.
- Penn sophomore Caleb Coolman had himself a game on Friday in a W v. Michigan City. He put up 14 pts, 14 rebounds, and 7 assists.
5 Stars of Week 4
- Jeffrey Patton- Hammond Noll. 24 pts. and 6 rbs. in a W v. Merrillville (game winning basket) on Tuesday. 16 pts and 9 boards in a W v. Valpo on Saturday.
- Michael Norton- Decatur Central. 24 pts, 17 rbs, 5 blocks in a W v. Mooresville. 16 pts and 6 rbs in a W v. Indy Lutheran
- Dezhon Hall- Attucks. 21 pts. and 6 rbs. in a W v. Warren Central on Wednesday. 17 pts and 4 rbs. in a W v. Jeffersonville on Friday and 30 pts in a W v. Evansville Bosse on Saturday.
- Karter Kobe- Portage. 23 pts, 4 rbs, 3 assists, and 6 steals in a W v. Calumet Tech on Tuesday. 26 pts and 6 steals in a W v. Kankakee Valley on Saturday
- Noah Smith- Plainfield. 30 pts and 5 rbs. in a W v. Perry Meridian. 23 pts on Saturday in a W v. Zionsville
Team of the Week
Indianapolis Roncalli Royals. Got a 76-52 W @ Perry Meridian on Tuesday, a 75-49 W @ Chatard on Friday night. And a 67-61 W @ Beech Grove on Saturday.
Upset(s) of the Week- South Putnam with a 62-50 W v. Cloverdale. Wawasee with a 43-33 W v. Warsaw. Floyd Central with a 62-53 W over Bloomington South. Franklin Central gets the 57-55 W over New Pal.
Top 10 Freshman Performances from Around the State in Week 4
Braysen Russell- Madison. 26 pts and 4 rebounds v. N. Decatur on Tuesday. 27 pts and 4 rbs v. Austin on Saturday
Zayden Johnson- East Chicago Central. 12 pts, 6 rbs, and 2 steals v. Chesterton on Tuesday. 10 pts, 6 rbs, 2 assists, and 2 steals in a W v. Merrillville on Friday.
Naji Meux- East Chicago Central. 10 pts, 4 rebounds, and 2 assists in a W v. Merrillville. 19 pts and 5 rebounds on Saturday v. Warren (IL.)
Quinton Lewis- Southwestern (Hanover). 11 pts, 8 rbs, and 5 assists in a W v. Jac-Cen-Del. 20 pts, 2 assists, and 3 steals in a W v. Clarksville
Micah Mohler- Austin. 19 pts v. Paoli on Friday night and 24 pts. and 9 rbs. in a W v. Madison on Saturday.
Deshawn Clay Jr.- Gary West. 13 pts, 6 rbs, and 4 assists on Saturday v. Hillcrest (IL.)
Romyiez Calvin- Evansville Harrison. 14 pts and 12 rebounds in a W v. Liberty Christian
JP Siltz- Henryville. 14 pts, 6 rebounds, and 4 assists in a W v. Lanesville
Grayson Dease- Evansville Reitz. 16 pts and 10 rebounds in a W v. Lawrence Central
Larry Upshaw Jr.- Michigan City. 17 pts v. Penn on Friday night.
Games on the schedule for Week 5
Monday- St. X (Louisville) v. Male (Louisville) KOB Finals
Tuesday morning- Mt. Vernon v. Northview and Silver Creek v. Crown Point @ HOF Classic
Tuesday night- Batesville @ South Ripley
Saturday- Lawrence Central @ Jeffersonville
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