Games of the Week: Week 14

<p>The IHSAA basketball season is coming to an end, and the Sectional tournament is just a week away. It is getting to be crunch time for these teams as they are all looking to be playing their best basketball of the year heading into March. Let’s take a look at the top 10 games of this week of basketball in the final week of the regular season.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>1.     Bloomfield @ Barr-Reeve - Friday @ 7:30</strong></p> <p>In a potential 1A semi-state matchup, 1A #2 Bloomfield (17-4) takes on 1A #7 Barr-Reeve (15-7) in the final game of the regular season. Bloomfield’s losses have come to 1A #5 Loogootee, 2A #5 Linton-Stockton (twice), and 3A #4 Sullivan. They have an extremely tough last week of the season going to Bloomington South and Barr-Reeve. Barr-Reeve has won 8 of 9 after their four-game losing streak in the middle of the season. They are preparing for a loaded Sectional featuring four top-12 1A teams. This will be a guard-heavy matchup with [player_tooltip player_id="870288" first="Christopher" last="Royal"] and [player_tooltip player_id="870307" first="Baylin" last="Graf"] taking on [player_tooltip player_id="958397" first="Hagen" last="Knepp"] being the matchup to watch.</p> <p><strong>2.     Covenant Christian @ Jac-Cen-Del - Wednesday @ 7:30</strong></p> <p>Covenant Christian (10-11) takes the long trip to Jac-Cen-Del (15-5) to close out the season. Despite Covenant Christian’s record, they only have three losses to 2A or 1A schools, and all three of these losses were by 1 point. Jac-Cen-Del has lost all five of their games to 3A or 4A schools, and they have won 5 straight. The matchups to watch will be [player_tooltip player_id="1184701" first="Christian" last="Flowers"] vs [player_tooltip player_id="870287" first="Wyatt" last="Day"] and Brock Buckley vs Caleb Simon. </p> <p><strong>3.     Sullivan @ North Daviess - Wednesday @ 7:30 *** (Rescheduled from Thursday in case of weather)</strong></p> <p>3A #4 Sullivan (20-1) takes on 1A #3 North Daviess (19-3) in one of the marquee final week matchups. Sullivan’s lone loss came in the Wabash Valley Classic semifinals by two points to Terre Haute North, but they have won 12 games in a row. North Daviess has three losses to 1A #2 Bloomfield, at 1A #7 Barr-Reeve, and 2A #3 Fort Wayne Blackhawk. Despite the Cougars outstanding 19-3 record, they have played 9 games decided by 2 possessions (7-2 in these games, so you can almost guarantee this will come down to the wire. This will be a big point guard battle between [player_tooltip player_id="870312" first="Randy" last="Kelley"] and [player_tooltip player_id="935727" first="Jaylen" last="Mullen"].</p> <p><strong>4.     Brownsburg @ Center Grove - Tuesday @ 7:30</strong></p> <p>Brownsburg (14-8), travels Center Grove (10-10) to close out the Bulldogs’ regular season. Both of these teams can play incredibly well and beat the best teams as Brownsburg beat Westfield, Carmel, and Zionsville earlier in the year and Center Grove has won back to back over North Central and Warren Central. However, they have both lost games against teams they definitely should beat. Both of these teams also come in as favorites in their Sectional, so they are looking to end the season on a high note. Elhadj Diallo and [player_tooltip player_id="1275779" first="Kanon" last="Catchings"] will make a difference for Brownsburg.</p> <p><strong>5.     Leo @ Fort Wayne Blackhawk - Tuesday @ 7:30</strong></p> <p>3A #5 Leo (16-3) goes on the road to 2A #3 Fort Wayne Blackhawk (16-4) in a battle of two of the top Fort Wayne teams in the state. All three of Leo’s losses have come on the road to Fort Wayne Northrop, New Haven, and Columbia City. Blackhawk’s four losses have come to 4A #5 Homestead in overtime, Fort Wayne Dwenger, Fort Wayne Snider, and Antwerp in Ohio. This will be a frontcourt battle with [player_tooltip player_id="870232" first="Caedmon" last="Bontrager"] and [player_tooltip player_id="870240" first="D.J." last="Allen"] for Leo and [player_tooltip player_id="1042496" first="Gage" last="Sefton"] and [player_tooltip player_id="1042499" first="Josh" last="Furst"] for Blackhawk. </p> <p><strong>6.     Eastern (Pekin) @ Springs Valley - Tuesday @ 7:30</strong></p> <p>2A #16 Eastern (Pekin) (16-4) goes on the road to take on Springs Valley (17-3). Eastern (Pekin) comes in at 11-0 on the year against 2A and 1A schools. Springs Valley started the year just 4-3, but they have bounced back for 13 consecutive wins. Each of these teams is led by duos of [player_tooltip player_id="1168247" first="Cade" last="Jones"] and [player_tooltip player_id="1049165" first="Jacob" last="Cherry"] for Eastern (Pekin) and Carter Crews and Kannon Chase for Springs Valley. Last year, Eastern (Pekin) won a double-overtime thriller, and this one should come down to the wire as well.</p> <p><strong>7.     Monroe Central vs. Indianapolis Chatard - Thursday @ 7:30 @ Hoosier Gym</strong></p> <p>2A #1 Monroe Central (20-0) puts their perfect regular season on the line at the Hoosier Gym against Indianapolis Chatard (13-6). Monroe Central went to Fort Wayne Snider on Saturday and came home with the victory. They may be the most battle-tested team in 2A. Indianapolis Chatard started the season 13-0, and they have yet to win a game since January 18th as they are on a 6-game losing streak. This will be their third game in four games to end the season, and they are looking for a big win to get back on track going into Sectional. The point guard matchup with [player_tooltip player_id="1160717" first="Josiah" last="Ullom"] and [player_tooltip player_id="1143910" first="A.J." last="Roseman"] will be the one to watch here.</p> <p><strong>8.     Warren Central @ Pike - Tuesday @ 7:30</strong></p> <p>Warren Central (14-7) takes on Pike (14-7) in a matchup with a pair of Division one players in [player_tooltip player_id="769654" first="D’Ante" last="Davis"] (Louisville) and [player_tooltip player_id="870226" first="Ryan" last="Conwell"] (South Florida). After a 1-4 start to the season, Warren Central has won 13 of 16, but after their best win of the season over 4A #2 Carmel, they suffered a road loss to Center Grove who sits at just .500 on the season. Pike started the year at 9-1, but since then, they are just 5-6, and the Red Devils have not lost or won two games in a row in that span. So, if the pattern holds, Pike will get the win over Warren Central after their loss at Lawrence North on Friday.</p> <p><strong>9.     Center Grove @ Columbus North - Thursday @ 7:30</strong></p> <p>Center Grove (10-10) has their second top-10 game of the week on Thursday as they go on the road to Columbus North (15-6). Center Grove is coming off of two big wins over North Central and Warren Central, and they play Brownsburg on Tuesday as we mentioned before. Columbus North suffered their first loss of 2022 on Friday at Bloomington North by 3 which ended their 9 game winning streak. The duo of [player_tooltip player_id="1063983" first="Sam" last="King"] and [player_tooltip player_id="935735" first="Cooper" last="Horn"] will be the ones to watch as Center Grove will need to shut them down to win. Both of these teams come in as two of the best teams in their Sectional, so they will be looking to end the season on a high note.</p> <p><strong>10.   Tipton @ Lapel - Thursday @ 7:30</strong></p> <p>Tipton (14-6) travels to Lapel (11-10) for the final game of the regular season for these two teams. Tipton comes in having lost 2 of their last 3 to Oak Hill and Frankfort. Lapel comes in on a four-game winning streak, and depending on their result at New Castle on Tuesday, this game could decide if they end over or under .500. The balanced attack of Nate Powell and [player_tooltip player_id="1158205" first="Nolan" last="Swan"] will look to take over this one, but the balanced attack of Lapel, led by freshman [player_tooltip player_id="1381459" first="Brode" last="Judge"], will look to get hot for an improbable Sectional run.</p>