Ten Best: Warren Central vs. Crown Point
Warren Central got out to a big lead early and rode Paul Minor’s hot streak all the way to the final buzzer. Warren Central got another win moving their record to 14-1 with a 62-50 victory over Crown Point on…
Access all of Prep Hoops
Continue reading this article and more.
Continue ReadingWarren Central got out to a big lead early and rode Paul Minor’s hot streak all the way to the final buzzer. Warren Central got another win moving their record to 14-1 with a 62-50 victory over Crown Point on Saturday night.
MVP: Paul Minor (Warren Central) – Paul isn’t a guy that is going to stand out in most games but he got to work early in this one and showed that he can knock down an open jumper. He had 8 points in the first half on a pair of threes. He broke out in the second half finishing with 16 points and 10 rebounds in the win. Mack Smith and company did a ton but Paul put this team over the edge.
Play of the Game: David Bell (Warren Central) – Warren was starting to pull away in the third quarter and they had just forced Crown Point into a couple bad post looks before Mack Smith started a breakaway. He missed a tough, contested layup that just bounced off the back rim and back out before David Bell finished with a one-handed tomahawk slam putback. It pushed the Warren Central lead out to 15 midway through the third.
Best Offensive Performance: Sasha Stefanovic (Crown Point) – While Warren Central made his life a nightmare most of the night, Sasha still showed he’s one of the better scorers in the state. He didn’t get a chance to shoot the ball a ton but he showed that he could get in the lane and drive, finishing with speed and finisee. In a tough game against one of the state’s best defenders, he had 21 points on 5/12 shooting to go along with 5 rebounds and 2 assists.
Best Defensive Performance: Trequan Spivey (Warren Central) – Trequan didn’t have a ton of offense in this game but he and David Bell seemed to be the guys defending Stefanovic and Decker the entire game which really slowed Crown Point’s offense to a crawl. He was phsyical and rebounded the ball well, just making it an easy night for Warren most of the game. Spivey finished with 11 points and 5 rebounds.
Best Guy Off The Bench: Ki-ng Tyler (Warren Central) – Tyler has been a bright spot for Warren this year as he’s helped to add depth to their bench. He had 6 points on 2/3 shooting. He’s adding production without taking up a lot of shots or touches. That is a big reason for Warren’s success this year because they can play 7-8 guys deep and they don’t seem to miss a beat when they take a guy out.
Best In The Paint: Andrew Kenneally (Crown Point) – Andrew looked solid in parts of the game where his skill and footwork in the post made things difficult for Warren Central. They don’t have a ton of size so when he’s on the floor, Crown Point tended to go to him. He still has to work on getting deeper position as Warren gave him trouble when he was in the mid-post. Once near the rim, Kenneally did pretty well. Kenneally finished with 14 points on 4/9 shooting.
Best Under-The-Radar Performance: Paul Minor (Warren Central) – Have to go with Minor here as he’s just not a guy that scores a ton. He’s more like a 4-8 ppg guy so this was definitely outside the norm for him but then again, we have seen him go off like this a few times before but this might have been the best of the bunch.
Best Underclassmen: David Bell (Warren Central) – Even though he will never play basketball after high school, Bell was easily the best underclassmen on the floor. He’s so athletic and tough that he makes plays constently. He had the big putback dunk and had a couple big blocks in the game as well. He’s a do it all guy on the basketball court who will end up playing high-major football in a couple years.
Best Improved Player: Mack Smith (Warren Central) – The transformation that Smith has made over the last year is real and he’s continually showing that this season. He’s the best player in most games this season for Warren Central and this game was close except for the play of Minor. Smith finished with 20 points on 7/11 shooting and threw in five rebounds as well. He’s just become a lot more aggressive and playing off the bounce has helped to balance out his game.
Best Storyline Moving Forward: Will Warren Central lose again this season? They have 8 more games and a couple are tough but they have managed to go 14-1 so far this year. They have Carmel, Pike, and Fishers three out of the final four games. If Warren Central makes it, they could and should be in line for a #1 overall ranking and have a pretty good shot to make it to state.