Sectional Preview: Michigan City Regional

<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The high school season is almost over and we are getting locked in for the State Playoffs. It is that time of year when we start looking ahead and previewing each and every Sectional. We will start with Regional 1 and have two previews per day until the start of the Sectional tournament on Tuesday, March 2. Today, let’s start it off with Regional 1.</span></p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><b>Sectional 1: Lake Central</b></p> <p><b>The Teams: </b>East Chicago Central, Gary West, Hammond Central, Hammond Morton, Highland, Lake Central, Munster</p> <p><b>Our</b> <b>Contenders</b><span style="font-weight: 400;">: Hammond Central, Munster, Lake Central</span></p> <p><b>Player To Watch: </b>[player_tooltip player_id="1049160" first="Jordan" last="Woods"] (2023) - Hammond Central</p> <p><b>Prediction: </b>Hammond Central is the newest school to the IHSAA as they are the combination of three other Hammond schools which moves them up to 4A. Munster, led by [player_tooltip player_id="814532" first="Brandon" last="Trilli"], comes in at 17-4, and they will give them a tough game in the semifinals as these two teams are a combined 11-0 against Sectional opponents. The winner of this game should take the Sectional title. On the other side of the draw, Lake Central and [player_tooltip player_id="1042498" first="Brandon" last="Escobedo"] got a great draw and should meet East Chicago Central in the semis for a trip to the Sectional title. Lake Central took Munster to overtime and only lost to Hammond Central by 3, so they should make the championship game interesting, especially on their home floor. I am taking Hammond Central, but I would not be shocked if Munster or Lake Central pulled off the upset.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><b>Sectional 2: Portage</b></p> <p><b>The Teams: </b>Chesterton, Crown Point, Hobart, Lowell, Merrillville, Portage, Valparaiso</p> <p><b>Our</b> <b>Contenders</b><span style="font-weight: 400;">: Chesterton, Valparaiso, </span></p> <p><b>Player To Watch: </b>[player_tooltip player_id="870243" first="Travis" last="Grayson"] (2022) - Chesterton</p> <p><b>Prediction: </b>This Sectional is a two-horse race at the top with undefeated #1 Chesterton and #7 Valparaiso, and we will see this matchup on Friday night in the semifinals. Last week, Chesterton topped Valparaiso 60-57 in overtime behind a 40-point performance from [player_tooltip player_id="870243" first="Travis" last="Grayson"] which included 31 in the second half and overtime. He is a Mr. Basketball contender and one of the most underrated prospects in the state. It will be a neutral floor in the second meeting, and [player_tooltip player_id="935722" first="Mason" last="Jones"] and Valparaiso have revenge on its mind after the narrow loss. On the other side of the draw, [player_tooltip player_id="868237" first="A.J." last="Lux"] and Crown Point should make the Sectional finals, but after 30 point losses to both of the favorites earlier in the year, it does seem the championship game will be on Friday night. I am taking Valparaiso to bounce back to take down Chesterton, but it is really a flip of a coin.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><b>Sectional 3: Plymouth</b></p> <p><b>The Teams: </b>LaPorte, Michigan City, Mishawaka, Plymouth, South Bend Adams, South Bend Riley</p> <p><b>Our</b> <b>Contenders</b><span style="font-weight: 400;">: LaPorte, Michigan City, Mishawaka, South Bend Adams</span></p> <p><b>Player To Watch: </b>Jamie Hodges Jr. (2023) - Michigan City</p> <p><b>Prediction: </b>This Sectional is one of the most even, and it could honestly be won by any of four different schools. On the top of the draw, Michigan City and Mishawaka will battle in the opening round with the winner taking on LaPorte. This is really a coin flip on who makes it out, but I will take Michigan City and Jamie Hodges Jr. to get past LaPorte and [player_tooltip player_id="870274" first="Grant" last="Ott-Large"] and advance to the Sectional finals. On the bottom of the bracket, South Bend Adams and Thomas Snyder beat South Bend Riley by 22 points last Friday, so I would think they should cruise to a Sectional finals appearance. I am going to take South Bend Adams to redeem a five-point loss at Michigan City earlier in the year, but a good game from Jamie Hodges Jr. could put Michigan City over the top.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><b>Sectional 4: Elkhart</b></p> <p><b>The Teams: </b>Concord, Elkhart, Goshen, Northridge, Penn, Warsaw</p> <p><b>Our</b> <b>Contenders</b><span style="font-weight: 400;">: Goshen, Penn, Warsaw</span></p> <p><b>Player To Watch: </b>[player_tooltip player_id="1049169" first="Markus" last="Burton"] (2023) - Penn</p> <p><b>Prediction: </b>#8 Penn (18-2) comes in as the favorite to this Sectional, but the draw did not do them any favors. However, they have beaten all five opponents in their Sectional by at least 9 points including a 12 point win over Warsaw who they have in the opener. Warsaw will need a great game from [player_tooltip player_id="868247" first="Jaxson" last="Gould"] if they are going to pull off the stunner. Penn will then have a semifinal matchup with Northridge who took them to overtime during the season. On the other side of the bracket, [player_tooltip player_id="870291" first="Drew" last="Hogan"] and Goshen is the clear favorite to make the finals at they got the bye and seemingly cruised past Elkhart and Concord during the regular season. In the end, I think [player_tooltip player_id="1049169" first="Markus" last="Burton"] and Penn will be too much and the Kingsmen will cruise to the title.</p>