Sectional Preview: 4A South
Now that the Sectional draw has taken place this past weekend, we are ready to preview each Sectional heading into next week and the beginning of the playoffs. Here is our breakdown for each Semistate pod. Sectional 9: Richmond Champion…
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Continue ReadingNow that the Sectional draw has taken place this past weekend, we are ready to preview each Sectional heading into next week and the beginning of the playoffs. Here is our breakdown for each Semistate pod.
Sectional 9: Richmond
Champion Prediction: Connersville
Connersville is 15-8 on the season, 4-1 against Sectional opponents with their loss being by 2 point to Mt. Vernon-Fortville in January. But since that loss, Connersville has gone 7-1 with wins over North Central, Lawrence North, and New Palestine. They are locked in and at the perfect time with a head coach that knows how to win in March.
Sleeper Pick: New Palestine
New Palestine is the second best team in this Sectional but they do have to play one more game than the best team in Connersville. They did lose to Connersville early this month but only by 1-point. So, if they get through the first game, the second game could be a barnburner. The top half of the Sectional is more loaded so the Championship game, in theory, would be easier than their Semifinal.
Best (Potential) Matchup: Pendleton Heights vs. Richmond
The main reason for this pick is because who knows what will happen. Pendleton has had a pretty tough season but Richmond, for all of their talent, hasn’t been able to put it together at all. This is a game that could produce a number of different outcomes and I’m not sure there is any way to predict it.
Sectional 10: Lawrence North
Champion Prediction: Lawrence Central
The pick here is based on a couple different factors. LC not only gets the bye game, they get the much easier matchup in the Semifinal round between 5-16 North Central or 6-14 Arsenal Tech. That means they are pretty much set to get to the Finals. We will talk later about their matchups against Warren Central but they have been playing really well and have done so against the best teams in the state and have shooting ability that will translate well to March.
Sleeper Pick: Cathedral
Cathedral got the worst draw of anyone along with their first round foe, Lawrence North. Getting out of the first round will be tough on it’s own but then to have Warren Central rested and waiting and likely Lawrence Central on the other side, that is why this is the Group of Death for those soccer fans out there. However, if there is one team that can do it outside of Warren or LC in this Sectional, it is Cathedral.
Best (Potential) Matchup: Lawrence Central vs. Warren Central
While Warren Central is going to be the pick for most people and completely warranted, LC was stellar in both game against Warren Central and only had a let down in the fourth quarter in their first matchup in the Marion County Tournament. Had they held up a little longer, they had the lead late and could have went 2-0 against them. Warren Central has been nothing but spectacular and regardless of who wins this game, they should be the favorite to get to the 4A State Title game. Part of the problem with such a loaded Sectional.
Sectional 11: Perry Meridian
Champion Prediction: Ben Davis
Ben Davis is having a stellar season sitting at 13-7 and have been able to string a ton of wins this season. They just got done beating Cathedral and Crispus Attucks int he last couple weeks. They are a two-headed monster with Jalen Windham and Dawand Jones but have found a way to have that be enough to get wins against some of the best teams in the state. Their Sectional is setup for them and could knock off some teams beyond this first week.
Sleeper Pick: Decatur Central
While Decatur Central doesn’t have those really high-end wins, they have been good and surprised some people this year. They are 13-6 and will get Ben Davis this week before heading into Sectionals so they can use it to figure out how to play against it later. They are loaded with guards and they like to run so that could be a good advantage against a team like Ben Davis who is more built around their size.
Best (Potential) Matchup: Indianapolis Pike vs. Ben Davis
As always in Sectional 11, Pike vs. Ben Davis is going to be the one to watch and could happen in the Semifinal round. These two teams have split their two games during the season so this could go either way and will be Round 3. If Ben Davis can find a way to push Dawand Jones down as low as possible, he’s basically unstoppable. With Ben Davis getting a whole week off with a bye game, Dawand Jones should be fully rested and ready to dominate.
Sectional 12: Brownsburg
Champion Prediction: Brownsburg
Brownsburg is a team that has beaten Carmel, gone 16-6 this season, and has been pretty strong in the second half of the year. They are 5-0 against Sectional opponents and have been able to beat Plainfield twice and Avon twice. While their draw is tough, not sure there is an extremely difficult path for them to the second week.
Sleeper Pick: Avon
While Brownsburg has beaten Avon twice, this is the one matchup that could be interesting as Avon is playing really well lately winning their last four games and is a team that can really run, bring some length, and cause some pressure. Brownsburg has struggled with that in some games this year, always found a way to overcome it and win but it seems like the one area a team could try and expose. Avon would be the best in this Sectional to do that.
Best (Potential) Matchup: Terre Haute North vs. Terre Haute South
Rivalry games are always the best and these two teams don’t like each other at all. They aren’t having good years but that can still lead to a fun game. This first round matchup should have some buildup and even though North has won the first two games, South isn’t going to let that stop them from playing their best ball of the season. This might be the worst game but has the potential to be such a battle that it could be the most entertaining.
Sectional 13: Center Grove
Champion Prediction: Center Grove
Center Grove is by far the easy pick here. They are a very, very good team with one of, if not the best player in the state and Mr. Basketball contender in Trayce Jackson-Davis. They will have a very easy path with Greenwood, even though they gave them a tough game earlier, followed by Franklin Central. This is a team that should be playing in the second weekend.
Sleeper Pick: Franklin Community
Franklin Community is the one team that has enough senior depth and scoring to be able to offensively keep up with Center Grove. Granted, they have lost two them pretty well twice this season, I think seniors getting their last run against the dominant team in the Sectional means quite a bit and these are some good players that could be able to get one last run in them.
Best (Potential) Matchup: Franklin Community vs. Whiteland
The best matchup likely is the Franklin Community and Whiteland game. These two teams have split already this year and it would be odd if this wasn’t a close game. These two teams could face off in the Semifinal game and Whiteland, while 9-12, 9 of their losses have been by 10-points or less so they have shown to be competitive regardless of their record.
Sectional 14: Columbus North
Champion Prediction: Bloomington South
Bloomington South started off the year rough but they have been nothing but stellar this season since then. They are 20-3 now and their head coach, J.R. Holmes will go for the all-time wins mark for a head coach in Indiana this week looking for #807. They have everything going for it right now and heading into the best time of the year.
Sleeper Pick: Columbus North
Columbus North is the team here to watch. They are having a great year, better in the second half and is the one team that played Bloomington South competitively taking them to overtime two weeks ago. They have some big wins this year, have been consistent, and have the pieces to play them tough. Given a second chance, it could make for a solid sleeper.
Best (Potential) Matchup: Columbus North vs. Bloomington South
As we stated, this matchup is the one to watch. This would be for the Sectional Championship and the second time these two teams have faced off this year with the other ending in overtime for Bloomington South to get the win. Of all of the rivalries with North vs. South and North vs. East, this is likely the game to be not he lookout for.
Sectional 15: Seymour
Champion Prediction: Floyd Central
No team in the southern half of the state has been as good this year as Floyd Central. They are 19-2, have gone out of their way to test themselves, and have found success. They only have two losses to Bloomington South and Jeffersonville by a combined 11 points. They haven’t won a Sectional since 1989 and this looks like the year they are going to get it done.
Sleeper Pick: Jeffersonville
Jeffersonville has beaten both New Albany and Floyd Central this year so they could be looked at as the favorite but they are 14-5 and have some questionable losses for a potential 4A Sectional Champion with Evansville Harrison and Southwestern (Hanover). They aren’t bad losses but it changes them from being dominant to a really good team. With that being said, their top-end ability is plenty to win this thing so they could cruise through and it wouldn’t surprise.
Best (Potential) Matchup: Floyd Central vs. New Albany
These two teams don’t like each other and Floyd Central hasn’t been able to get past New Albany in Sectionals as far back as the records go on JohnHarrell.net so this will be a first in at least a while if they can. They have beaten them earlier this year, they are the better team this season, and Julien Hunter is out. All of those things give them a chance to buck tradition and start a new one. The build up for this game should be through the roof.
Sectional 16: Evansville North
Champion Prediction: Castle
Castle has Alex Hemenway in his final season and he might be enough on his own to will them through this Sectional. They are 5-0 against Sectional opponents, 17-4 overall and are on a 6-game winning streak right now. They are setup and proving themselves again this season. Not sure how far they can get but should be the team to beat in this Sectional at least.
Sleeper Pick: Jasper
Jasper is 13-8 on the season but 4-0 against Sectional opponents. They haven’t played Castle yet but they are holding wins over Evansville Harrison, Evansville Reitz, Evansville Central, and Evansville North with Reitz coming the closest by 6 points. This team got an easy draw as they avoid Castle and Reitz until the finals.
Best (Potential) Matchup: Jasper vs. Evansville Harrison
These two teams played once this season with Jasper winning by double-digits. It wasn’t super close but it being the first game of the season could be a little tough to take fully. Harrison has been good lately and they are holding some big wins. Idris Mitchell and Kel’Ondre Dixon could be big factors in this game if they come to play and could make this a much more difficult game.