1A Semi-State Preview
Outlook Huntington North #7 Gary 21st Century (20-6) vs. #1 Liberty Christian (24-4) 1 pm ET This is this more intriguing of the two 1A Semi-State match-ups. Gary 21st Century has a really special guard in Northern Illinois commit Eugene…
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Huntington North
#7 Gary 21st Century (20-6) vs. #1 Liberty Christian (24-4) 1 pm ET
This is this more intriguing of the two 1A Semi-State match-ups. Gary 21st Century has a really special guard in Northern Illinois commit Eugene German but in this one he could see the best defensive guard he has all year in Liberty Christian’s Ronny Williams. If Williams can hold German down, it should be an easy win for Liberty Christian. If not, it could be a long day for Liberty Christian especially if DeAndre Gholston is on his game for Gary 21st Century. The real key for Liberty Christian is Franklin Nunn, he has been playing great in the tournament so far and he will have to continue his scoring to win if German is hitting his shots. Prediction: Liberty Christian 75, Gary 21st Century 63
Seymour
#3 Bloomfield (25-3) vs. #17 West Washington (20-8) 4 pm ET
On paper it would seem that Bloomfield is the obvious choice but if you take a look at West Washington it could be a bit tougher to pick Bloomfield. Bloomfield is a very solid fundamental team with one of the best inside bigs in the state with University of Illinois Springfield commit Brandon Van Sant down there banging around. Van Sant will be a big key to the game for Bloomfield who makes their money on the defensive end allowing just 39.96 points a game, fourth best in the state. As for West Washington they look for their magic to continue and it very well could. They are the hottest team in the state right now winning their last 10 after starting 10-8. West Washington is a young team with just one senior and they play well together distributing the ball to everyone but they must stop Van Sant if they want to have a chance. Prediction: Bloomfield 53, West Washington 47
How Tough was the Road?
Gary 21st Century – Opponents Record Combined: 69-30 – .679 W%
Gary easily had the toughest road to Semi-State this year in the 1A tournament. They had to get past #6 South Newton and #16 Triton in Regionals and did so rather easily. Despite playing 4 games in the tournament and every other remaining team having played 5, Gary’s opponents thus far have had the most wins combined giving Gary the mark of having the toughest path up to this point.
Liberty Christian – Opponents Record Combined: 66-58 – .532 W%
While Gary had the toughest overall path Liberty Christian had almost as tough a track to Semi-State. If their Sectional field had not been so weak they would have been given the nod of the toughest path. I can’t do it though when your Sectional opponents are a combined 26-44. In Regionals, Liberty Christian took down #2 Seton Catholic and #10 Lafayette Central Catholic, both tough tests for completely different reasons.
Bloomfield – Opponents Record Combined: 66-62 – .516 W%
Bloomfield suffered through an easy Sectional slate with the opponents being a combined 24-50 but showed everyone they could hang with anyone in Regionals. They took out #4 Indianapolis Tindley and #9 Indianapolis Arlington who had a combined 42-12 record really boosting themselves above West Washington.
West Washington –Opponents Record Combined: 63-63 – .500 W%
West Washington has had by far the easiest road to this point of the tournament. They only win they had over a ranked opponent was against #18 Wood Memorial in the Regional championship. This is not a knock on West Washington though as they played really well throughout the tournament gaining 3/5 wins by double digits.