Sectional Preview: 13
The coming high school season is almost upon us. With that, we are taking a look at each Sectional in the state. Starting with 64 and ending with 1. Today, we are previewing Sectional 13.
Center Grove (17-8) – Lost Regional Semifinal
Center Grove is coming over year in which they made it all the way to the regionals before losing. Now, they’re set to expand beyond that as their team is really come together with the roster. Led by junior Trayce Jackson-Davis, this team has a lot of weapons. With guys like Spencer Piercefield and Ben Nicoson in the backcourt, they should be very capable of keeping control of the ball and knocking down perimeter shots. Jackson-Davis has taken his game to a new level and they have a ton of offense this season. Should be a team that breaks 20 wins and a legit State Championship contender in 4A.
Franklin Community (14-9) – Lost Sectional Semifinal
This team brings back a ton from last year. They don’t lose much but last season, they were a fairly young team still trying to develop. Now, they are going to be built mostly on juniors and sophomores. They should have more success this season but might still be a year out from being a stellar team. Their youth is good with guys like Blaine Wentzell, Reece Thomson, Cory Richards, and Drew Byerly. They have depth on this roster, they are still just a younger team.
Franklin Central (11-13) – Lost Sectional Championship
Franklin Central is coming off a season in which they only won 11 games and graduated a ton of their talent. This is a complete rebuild for them with only bringing back Tucker and Nick Hall as guys that were contributors and they were among the lowest in terms of offensive contributors. Things will be rough as a start but this program usually has a wide enough talent base to be competitive. Don’t expect the bottom to fall out but it is hard to see where offense is going to come from this season.
Greenwood (11-13) – Lost 1st Rd. Sectional
The past few seasons has been a build up for Greenwood as they finally have a veteran group of players with tons of experience. Eric Moenkhaus, Jeff Reynolds, Max Raker, and Braydon Kincaid have been the core for this team for a while and now they sit with a new head coach and four senior starters. They will need to pick up the pace on offense this year but guys their four seniors all made strides over the course of the summer. Should be a better year and could see them getting to the 17+ win mark, which would be the best since 2005-06.
Martinsville (5-16) – Lost 1st Rd. Sectional
Last season was a long year for Martinsville as they only were able to get five wins. Now, they bring back a few key players in Reid Staggs and Tyler Stead. They will give them a good inside-out threat but this Sectional is a tough one as Center Grove, Franklin, and Greenwood are all stacked this season. If they can develop some this year, they could have a much better shot in a year’s time.
Whiteland (15-8) – Lost Sectional Semifinals
For Whiteland, they lost a big piece last year in Mike Valle and he was so versatile, it will be tough to beat. However, they bring back a good amount of talent with Riley Higdon, Noah Hale, and Brennan Neal. They were a really competitive team last season and should be one again. Their schedule is difficult but they have should have enough offense to get a couple tough wins. Might just be that they are a step behind the top three teams this year.
Contenders For 2017-18: Center Grove, Franklin Community, Greenwood
Prediction: Center Grove
Player to Watch: Trayce Jackson-Davis (Center Grove)