Class 3A Regional Preview: Breakdown

<p>Sectional play is over and now all of the attention goes to the Regional matchups this weekend. Time to take a look at the pairings that make up the Class 3A Regionals of the state tournament. </p> <p><b>Regional 5: South Bend Washington </b></p> <p><b>The Teams: </b>South Bend St. Joseph’s, Twin Lakes, Hammond, New Prairie </p> <p><b>Our</b> <b>Contenders</b>: South Bend St. Joseph’s, Hammond</p> <p><b>Player To Watch: </b>[player_tooltip player_id="874159" first="Harold" last="Woods"] (Hammond; 2021)</p> <p><b>Prediction: </b>It would be a huge upset if one of Hammond or St. Joseph’s didn’t make it past its first round game. So assuming that stays true, it’ll set the stage for a terrific game between the two. The biggest matchup to watch will be in the backcourt with [player_tooltip player_id="874159" first="Harold" last="Woods"] (Hammond) and ’JR’ Douglas Konieczny. Both have the ability to score at will, so potentially watching them go at each other on each possession will be fun to watch. I give the slight nod to Hammond due to its more balanced scoring with four players at 10+ points per game. </p> <p><strong>Regional 6</strong>: <strong>New Castle </strong></p> <p><b>The Teams: </b>New Castle, Northwood, Leo, Mississinewa </p> <p><b>Our</b> <b>Contenders</b>: Leo</p> <p><b>Player To Watch: </b>Landen Swanner (Mississinew; 2021)</p> <p><b>Prediction: </b>Leo has the tougher of the two matchups going up against Mississinewa. Mississinew is led by Landen Swanner who is extremely effective and efficient on the offensive end. If they can get a good showing from [player_tooltip player_id="963899" first="Tai" last="McClung"] - someone who can be a bit inconsistent at times - then Mississinew has a shot to knock off Leo. If not, I think Leo cruises through this regional and takes down Northwood in the final. </p> <p><strong>Regional 7: Greencastle </strong></p> <p><b>The Teams: </b>Northview, Beech Grove, Greencastle, Guerin Catholic</p> <p><b>Our</b> <b>Contenders</b>: Beech Grove, Guerin Catholic</p> <p><b>Player To Watch: </b>[player_tooltip player_id="1077028" first="Joseph" last="Bobilya"] (Guerin Catholic; 2021)</p> <p><b>Prediction: </b>I would be surprised if this wasn’t Beech Grove and Guerin Catholic playing for a chance to go to semi-state. A matchup of the perimeter players will highlight this one, but I think Guerin just has too much firepower with its duo of [player_tooltip player_id="1077028" first="Joseph" last="Bobilya"] and <span class="name-pointer">[player_tooltip player_id="1077027" first="Kaleb" last="Edwards"] </span>to be slowed down, so I think it’s Guerin that comes out of this one. </p> <p><strong>Regional 8: Washington </strong></p> <p><b>The Teams: </b>Heritage Hills, Silver Creek, Connersville, Sullivan </p> <p><b>Our</b> <b>Contenders</b>: Heritage Hills, Silver Creek </p> <p><b>Player To Watch: </b>[player_tooltip player_id="529572" first="Trey" last="Kaufman"] (Silver Creek; 2022)</p> <p><b>Prediction:</b> It’s a big time matchup in the first game of the regional as Silver Creek takes on Heritage Hills. Kaufman and [player_tooltip player_id="569321" first="Kooper" last="Jacobi"] for Silver Creek against [player_tooltip player_id="874112" first="Blake" last="Sisley"] for Heritage Hills in the frountcourt is going to be a terrific battle. Silver Creek is just too talented from top to bottom, especially when you throw in point guard [player_tooltip player_id="769684" first="Branden" last="Northern"] into the mix as well. At the bottom, it’s nearly a tossup between Sullivan and Connersville. I give the slight nod to Sullivan due to the firepower that it has offensively with three players averaging at least 15 points per game. Overall, Silver Creek should take this one and should be the team to beat in the Washington Regional. </p>