Week 13 News and Notes

Week 13 was a fun one where I got to catch some streams and hit up some local games here in southern Indiana. Tuesday I took a trip up to Seymour to check out Scottsburg @ a good 1A Trinity Lutheran team. Got to see one of the top ranked teams in 2A, Oak Hill play @ Marion on Thursday night. The Golden Eagles aren’t very tall but very deserving of their top 2 or 3 ranking in 2A defeating an athletic Marion squad @ their place. On Friday @ Austin the Eagles really impressed me and showed they could be a real sectional contender with one of the state’s top freshmen. The Columbia City @ Northridge game was very interesting to say the least. I’m not sure if you can really take anything out of that game with CC’s Owen Marshall getting 2 tech’s and thrown out of the game early. Northridge Sr. Brady Scholl continued to show why he should be an Indiana All Star. On Saturday I figured Scottsburg would take care of business on Sr. night @ home v. Southwestern (Hanover) but a different Rebel team showed up. The sectional draw was on Sunday night so I’ll be doing some sectional picks soon. Let’s take a look @ how Week 13 went down.

Scottsburg @ Trinity Lutheran- Some games are won pretty. And some games were like this one for the Warriors. It was a real grinder of a game that saw both the Warriors and Cougars hold leads and try and tough out a W. The usual knockdown shooting for Trinity Lutheran guard Hudson Lang was off and equally as ‘off’ was the Warriors 6’4 Jr. Jarin Luttrell. The one constant in this game was Scottsburg Sr. Garrett Boling. Boling was the 6th man on the Warriors state championship team in 2024 but saw limited action because of them only really playing 5 guys most games. An all state football player, Boling has become a really nice basketball player that is agile for his size with good hands, feet, and instincts for hoops. In the first half it was alot of Boling and Cougar Jr. Reed Mellencamp doing the scoring. Mellencamp put in 16 pts for the game and TL took a 3 pt. halftime lead, 25-22. The game really didn’t actually get going offensively until the 4th quarter. The Warriors got a really big lift tonight from sophomore Bennett Pearcy. He got most of his points off free throws but was also a solid ball handler and hit his shots at big times to help close out the game. Pearcy finished off the game with 12 pts. Also with 12 big points in the game was Scottsburg freshman, Jaxon Owens who hit four 3s on the night. Owens is shooting 45% on the season from 3 and was actually a little ‘off’ from his % tonight from deep, I believe going 4/10. Mellencamp ended the game with a team-high 16 pts and fellow Jr. Hudson Lang put in 11 pts. After being down after every quarter Scottsburg scratched and clawed out a 56-51 road W. Boling was the clear POTG scoring 20 pts but controlling the game and coming up with points down low when buckets were hard to come by. Trinity Lutheran has a tall task in a couple weeks being in a sectional with top 5 Hauser, but if they can find a consistent 3rd or 4th option, they could really compete. Lang and Mellencamp are obviously their top 2 scoring threats. As for Scottsburg they’ve got this last few weeks of playing 4A ball before going back to their normal 3A class next season.

Southwestern (Hanover) @ Austin- I’ve been looking forward to this Sectional 45 matchup for a while. The Rebels came with in the experienced upperclassmen starting 4 seniors (Caleb Goode, Brady Cook, Jeter Chatham, and Braxton Lewis) while Austin’s top 2 leading scorers are a freshman and sophomore. But the Eagles have been playing pretty solid of late and the game was @ home so I thought this game could go either way. Austin’s freshman phenom, Micah Mohler came out on fire shooting in the 1st quarter putting up 14 pts and giving a Eagles a small lead after 1. The Rebels have their own freshman as well who got his shot going in the opening quarter. SW guard Quinton Lewis put in a team-high 16 pts and has been a real bright spot for the Rebels this past month. The rest of the game pretty much belonged to the Eagles. Sophomore Tracen Roush had one of his best games since last year’s 38 pt. sectional performance. Roush was hitting open shots from all around the 3 pt. line tonight. By halftime it was the Eagles up by 9 with the game still within reach for SW. Rebel Brady Cook did what he could to keep SW in the game finishing with 14 pts. By the time the 3rd period ended the game was well in hand with Austin up 59-44. Mohler and Roush just continued to put up points and Mohler even got a breakaway dunk that got the crowd going. Jr. Braxton Barger also was a X factor in this game putting up a big 14 pts. Maybe not many outside of southern Indiana know exactly how good the Austin freshman really is, but everyone from the entire state better get familiar with the name; Micah Mohler. Tonight he finished with a game-high 25 pts. When Roush and Mohler are playing like they did tonight Austin is going to be very tough to beat. On the flip side, what has been concerning for the last few games I’ve seen of SW is the defense. Against South Ripley the Rebels gave up 85 pts, against South Dearborn 81 pts, and tonight 79. The talent is there and certainly the shooting, usually putting 5 guys on the floor capable to getting hot from the outside. The injury early in the season to Braxton Lewis hurt and just getting him back helps. The sectional is on their home floor is also a plus so there’s about 10 days to get it right and figure it out. Tonight the Eagles got the 79-59 W in the battle of Sectional 45 rivals.

Southwestern (Hanover) @ Scottsburg- Well, it was the same group of Rebels tonight but looked like a completely different team. See if you can explain this; Scottsburg rolled Austin earlier in the season by 25 or 30. Austin then last night defeated Southwestern by 20. And then tonight in this game, Southwestern beat Scottsburg by 15. It’s been a crazy season like that that has gone way too fast. Watching Austin put up 79 pts on Southwestern last night gave me the impression tonight’s game may get ugly for the Rebels. Something happened or clicked from last night to tonight’s game because SW came out firing on all cylinders. In fact, both teams came out shooting from beyond the arc with the first 4 shots coming from 3 pt. land. Both Coach Richardson for the Warriors and Coach Nussbaum for the Rebels are known for their teams shooting alot of 3s. The Lewis brothers for SW had it going early as the younger Lewis (Quinton) has been a real bright spot and has become one of southern Indiana’s best shooters in the ’29 class. Quinton is routinely scoring in double figures most every game and tonight had 11 pts. Warriors 6’5 Jr. Jarin Luttrell had a tough game on Tuesday but got his shot alot tonight. Luttrell is a quick trigger and led Scottsburg in pts. tonight with 17 pts. After a 16-10 first quarter lead for the Rebels, the lead eventually grew up to 11 and I was kind of wondering when the Warriors would flex and just take the game over. With only a 7 pt. halftime deficit the Rebels never cooled off or stopped being the aggressor. As down as I was on them last night, tonight they looked like the team I thought they’d be and a real sectional contender. The Sr. Lewis brother (Braxton) had his best game of the season after returning from injury just a week- 1o days ago. He finished with a game-high 25 pts. SW Sr. Brady Cook routinely got to the basket and finished while being aggressive going after rebounds. Cook put up 16 pts while fellow Rebel Sr. Caleb Goode scored 11 pts. When SW gets 4 guys in double figures it usually equals a W. The defensive intensity that has been missing for the Rebels lately was there tonight which answered my big question about them. Only giving up on 54 pts. to a pretty solid Scottsburg squad that had some size advantages was impressive. SW eventually put the game away in the 4th and ruing Scottsburg’s Senior Night @ Meyer Gym, 69-54. Senior Garrett Boling battled some early foul trouble for the Warriors and never could really ever get it going. Boling is the team’s leading scorer and had a really good game on Tuesday v. Trinity Lutheran was held to just 8 pts in tonight’s game.

Other News and Notes from Around the State in Week 13

• Guerin Catholic defeated Shortridge, 67-46. Jr. Jake Grissom continues his big games with 30 pts and 8 rbs. for the Golden Eagles.
• Bloomfield got the 66-42 W over North Central (Farmersburg). Sr. Blake Neill with 29 pts and 12 rbs.
• Terre Haute North wins their 16th in a row beating Park Tudor, 63-39. Jr. Tyler Renn with 14 pts for the Pats.
• Borden with the 64-49 W over Crawford County. Brave sophomore Wyatt Jones with 19 pts, 6 rbs, and 3 assists. Soph. Braxton Bowman had 24 pts for the Wolfpack.
• Kokomo beat Indy Metro, 79-59. Kats Sr. Korbyn Hammel with 21 pts.
• Pike got a 30 pt. W over Lawrence Central, 80-50. Jr. Isaiah Hill had 14 pts and 11 rbs.
• Mater Dei defeated Mt. Vernon (Posey) 61-53. Soph. Cole Breeden put up 24 pts.
• Northridge got a 69-41 W over Lakeland. Sr. Hayden Johnson with 27 pts on nine 3s. The Raiders also got a good W v. Columbia City on Friday night. Sr. Brady Scholl put up 26 pts.
• Paoli remained undefeated beating CAI, 40-28 on Tuesday. Sr. Ram Dane Padgett with 12 pts. On Friday, Paoli got the 63- 25 W over Perry Central with Sr. Chad Sullivan putting up 9 pts and 9 rbs.
• Sheridan beat Western Boone 72-44. Sr. Trey Page 34 pts, 5 rbs, and 3 assists for the Blackhawks.
• South Decatur got a 79-41 W over Oldenburg Academy. Sr. Drake Scaggs scored 21 pts for the Cougars.
• Gary 21st defeated East Chicago Central,  69-42. Sr. Terrence Hayes put up 20 pts and 4 rbs.
• Greenfield Central Sr. Clay Mullins put in 32 pts in the Cougars, 60-52 W over East Central.
• Hauser defeated Milan on Sr. night, 76-48. Sr. Gavin Keller scored 20 pts for the Jets.
• North Daviess got the 61-39 W over WRV. Sr. Collin Lengacher put up 20 pts and 12 rbs.
• Evansville Central beat Evansville Christian, 51-50 in OT. Central Jr. Milen Garnett scored 21 pts including the game winning free throw.
• Fishers continued their undefeated season beating Zionsville, 66-42. Jr. Levi Walker led the Tigers in scoring with 18 pts.
• Sullivan got the 56- 49 OT W v. Cloverdale. Soph. Ishmael Kiteka had 21 pts, 12 rbs, and 7 blocks for the Clovers.
• Silver Creek defeated Corydon, 68-50. Dragon Jr. Brandon Hunter had 20 pts. Sr. Panther Jack Fessel also put up 20 pts.
• Evansville Bosse got the 52-48 W over Evansville Harrison. Sr. Dorion Bowen scored 23 for the Dogs.
• In the battle of two Top 10 teams, Pike got the 68-64 W over Lawrence North. Soph. Landon Lampley put up 23 pts, 6 assists, and 2 blocks for the Red Devils.
• Sheridan defeated North Montgomery, 58-31. Sr. Blackhawk Trey Page put in 18 pts, 3 rbs, and 3 assists while getting his 1K career pts.
• FW Wayne got the 76-46 W over Concordia. General soph. Everen Akison scored 24 pts.
• Mt. Vernon with the 61-46 W over New Pal. Sr. Luke Ertel had 24 pts and 11 rbs for the Marauders.
• South Ripley got the 63-39 W v. Rising Sun. Jr. Drew Volz led the Raiders with 28 pts. On Saturday night, South Ripley got a W v. Greensburg 66-52. Soph. Eli Gilpin with 3o pts for the Raiders.
• Ben Davis got the 72-56 W over Cathedral in a battle of Top 20 teams. Sr. Jashawn Ladd scored 25 pts in the W for the Giants.
• Shawe Memorial defeated CAM 79-58. Jr. Loren Stiver with 29 pts for the Hilltoppers.
• Trinity Lutheran got the 72-53 W v. Madison. Jr. Hudson Lang put up 18 pts and 6 assists and Jr. Reed Mellencamp with 16 pts and 9 rbs for the Cougars.
• Attucks beat Purdue Poly 88-65. Jr. Dezhon Hall put up 32 pts, 6 rbs, and 3 assists for the Tigers.

5 Stars of Week 13

Drew Haffner- Westfield. 32 pts in a W v. University. 18 pts, 6 rbs, 4 assists, and 3 steals in a W v. Franklin Central

Blake Neil- Bloomfield. 29 pts and 12 rbs in a W v. North Central (Farmersburg). 36 pts and 10 rbs in a W v. North Knox. Became the all time scoring leader in Greene County.

Amarian Leggett- Blackford. 28 pts and 12 assists in a W v. Northwestern. 38 pts v. FW Snider.

Noah Washington- New Albany. 21 pts in a W v. BNL. 23 pts in a W v. Brownstown.

Clay Mullins- Greenfield Central. 32 pts, 6 rbs, 2 assists + 1 steal in a W v. East Central. 21 pts, 7 rbs, 3 assists, + 1 steal in a W v. Martinsville

Team(s) of the Week- Guerin Catholic. W v. Shortridge 67-46. W v. Roncalli 41-37. W v. North Central (Indy) 57-54. Pendleton Heights. 55-34 W over New Castle. 60-40 W over Delta. 76-66 W over Muncie Central.

Upset of the Week- Warren Central over Carmel, 55-52.

Top Freshmen from Around the State in Week 13

Micah Mohler- Austin. 25 pts in a W v. Southwestern (Hanover). 28 pts w/ 5 3’s in a W v. CAI

Grayson Dease- Evansville Reitz. 25 pts in a W v. Jeffersonville

Romyiez Calvin- Evansville Harrison. 23 pts v. Evans. Bosse

Will Tonagel- Oak Hill. 19 pts, 5 assists, 4 rbs, and 4 steals in a W v. Marion. 11 pts and 4 rbs. in a W v. Elwood.

Braysen Russell- Madison. 19 pts and 6 rbs. v. Trinity Lutheran.

Karson Stoudemire- New Albany. 18 pts in a W v. Bedford NL. 15 pts and 4 rbs in a W v. Brownstown.

Quinton Lewis- Southwestern. 16 pts v. Austin. 11 pts in a W v. Scottsburg.

Ashton Brobston- Frankton. 16 pts in a W v. Daleville. 7 pts v. Alexandria.

Walker Johnson- Delta. 12 pts and 8 rbs in a W v. Rushville. 12 pts and 3 rbs v. Pendleton Heights. 8 pts and 4 rbs in a W v. Shelbyville.

Jaxon Owens- Scottsburg. 12 pts in a W v. Trinity Lutheran.

Graham Wilson- Westfield. 11 pts and 6 rbs in a W v. University.

Luke Keller- Guerin Catholic. 8 pts and 6 rbs in a W v. Shortridge.