Sectional Preview – Michigan City Regional
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It is officially almost time for Indiana High School Basketball to enter into the most exciting time of year. We have made it through over three months of regular season action and now culminate with a win-or-go-home state tournament. Here…
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Continue ReadingIt is officially almost time for Indiana High School Basketball to enter into the most exciting time of year. We have made it through over three months of regular season action and now culminate with a win-or-go-home state tournament. Here at Prep Hoops Indiana our staff will be previewing all 64 sectionals around the state over the next several days. Let’s dive on in beginning with Sectionals 1-4 which feed into the Michigan City Regional.
Sectional 1: Munster
The Teams: East Chicago Central, Gary West, Hammond Central, Hammond Morton Lake Central, Merrillville, Munster
The Contenders: Hammond Central (20-1), Lake Central (14-8), Munster (20-2)
Players to Watch: Brandon Trilli Brandon Trilli 6'5" | SF Munster | 2023 State IN (Munster H.S. – Northern Michigan), Jordan Woods Jordan Woods 6'2" | PG Hammond Central | 2023 State IN (Hammond Central H.S. – Eastern Illinois, Football)
Prediction: Hammond Central comes in ranked #3 in Class 4A with a 20-1 record. They also received the best draw getting opposite of Lake Central and Munster. The Wolves defeated Lake Central by five points recently, but have not played Munster yet this season. Eastern Illinois football commit Jordan Woods Jordan Woods 6'2" | PG Hammond Central | 2023 State IN leads the way averaging 14.9 points and 6.4 assists per game while junior wing Matthew King Matthew King 6'3" | SG Bosco Institute | 2024 IN and junior forward Daniel Garza Daniel Garza 6'5" | PF Bosco Institute | 2024 IN are two other top players to watch for Hammond. It is certainly their sectional to lose, but it won’t be easy cutting down the nets on Munster’s home floor if they make it out of the bottom half of the bracket. Hammond Central
Sectional 2: Crown Point
The Teams: Chesterton, Crown Point, Hobart, Kankakee Valley, Lowell, Portage, Valparaiso
The Contenders: Chesterton (17-5), Crown Point (12-8), Valparaiso (11-12)
Players to Watch: Mason Jones Mason Jones 6'7" | PF Valparaiso | 2023 State IN (Valparaiso H.S. – Ball State), A.J. Lux A.J. Lux 6'3" | SG Crown Point | 2023 State IN (Crown Point H.S. – Bellarmine)
Prediction: Defending Class 4A state runner-up Chesterton is back once again featuring a talented junior duo of guard Tyler Parrish Tyler Parrish 6'3" | SG Chesterton | 2024 State IN and forward Justin Sims Justin Sims 6'6" | PF Chesterton | 2024 State IN . They’ve already defeated both Crown Point and Valparaiso this season and get the benefit of the first round bye. However, they will likely have to defeat both a second time to cut down the nets. Valpo has the benefit of the better draw on the bottom half of the bracket while Crown Point has the home court advantage. The experience the Trojans have with winning in the post season should be enough to advance them to the regional round. Chesterton
Sectional 3: LaPorte
The Teams: LaPorte, Michigan City, Mishawaka, Plymouth, South Bend Adams, South Bend Riley
The Contenders: LaPorte (16-6), Michigan City (16-6), Mishawaka (16-5)
Player to Watch: Jaime Hodges Jr. (Michigan City H.S. 2023)
Prediction: Michigan City is led by dynamic point guard Jaime Hodges Jr. and his 21.7 points per game. However, they fell to South Bend Adams this season proving they are vulnerable in a one-and-done type of atmosphere. They open up sectional play with one another with host LaPorte awaiting the winner. The Lancers have not lost to a sectional opponent this season. LaPorte has four upperclassmen scoring in double-figures led by senior Kyle Kirkham at 14 points per game, but the overall talent and athleticism of the Wolves is hard to pick against this time of year. Look for them to avenge their early season losses and cut down the nets Sectional 3. Michigan City
Sectional 4: Elkhart
The Teams: Concord, Elkhart, Goshen, Northridge, Penn, Warsaw
The Contenders: Penn, Warsaw
Players to Watch: Markus Burton Markus Burton 5'11" | PG Penn | 2023 State #190 Nation IN (Penn H.S. – Notre Dame), Jaxson Gould Jaxson Gould 6'3" | SG Warsaw | 2023 State IN (Warsaw H.S. – Indiana Wesleyan)
Prediction: With all due respect to Warsaw and the rest of the sectional field at Elkhart, there isn’t much reason to spend too much time breaking this one down. It will be pretty darn surprising if anyone besides the Penn Kingsmen cut down the nets. They are led by Mr. Basketball front-runner Markus Burton Markus Burton 5'11" | PG Penn | 2023 State #190 Nation IN who is averaging 30.4 points per game. Senior guards Joey Garwood Joey Garwood 6'1" | SG Penn | 2023 State IN and Joe Smith Joe Smith 5'10" | PG Penn | 2023 State IN add some additional scoring punch in their backcourt to make up one of the best offensive teams in the northern part of Indiana. Warsaw slowed the game down when they face off earlier in the year, but still lost by 10 points. Anything can happen come tournament time, but don’t expect an upset here. Penn