Sectional Preview – New Castle Regional
In this article:
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…
Access all of Prep Hoops
Continue reading this article and more.
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 21-24 which feed into the New Castle Regional.
Sectional 21: Garrett
The Teams: Fort Wayne Dwenger, Angola, Leo, Fort Wayne Concordia, Garrett, Woodlan, Heritage
The Contenders: Heritage, Leo, Fort Wayne Concordia, Woodlan
Players to Watch: Preston Ross Preston Ross 6'8" | PF Bishop Dwenger | 2023 State IN (Fort Wayne Dwenger, 2023), Jackson Mcgee (Leo, 2024), Trey Hiteshew (Leo, 2024), Ajani Washington Ajani Washington 6'2" | SG New Haven | 2024 State IN (Fort Wayne Concordia, 2024), Cole Hayworth Cole Hayworth 6'5" | SF Concordia Lutheran | 2024 State IN (Fort Wayne Concordia, 2024)
Prediction: This bracket is another unbalanced one with the majority of the contenders down on the bottom. Heritage got the the only bye here and really the best draw playing the winner of Bishop Dwenger and Angola. On the other side of the bracket, it could become a rock fight with Leo/Concordia and Garrett/Woodlan. In the end, I think it will be Heritage and Fort Wayne Concordia in the championship game with Fort Wayne Concordia winning it. When it comes to the post-season, it all about talent and at the end of the day, Concordia had the most in Sectional 21.
Sectional 22: Frankfort
The Teams: West Lafayette, Western, Frankfort, Benton Central, Rensselaer Central, North Montgomery, Twin Lakes
The Contenders: West Lafayette, Western, Frankfort, Benton Central, Rensselaer Central
Players to Watch: Divine Adeyanju Divine Adeyanju 6'6" | C West Lafayette | 2023 State IN (West Lafayette, 2023), Jayce Strode Jayce Strode 6'5" | PF Frankfort | 2024 IN (Frankfort, 2023), Dawson Brock Dawson Brock 6'1" | SG Benton Central | 2023 IN (Benton Central, 2023), Colby Chapman Colby Chapman 6'3" | PG Rensselaer Central | 2023 IN (Rensselaer Central, 2023), Jared Kirsch Jared Kirsch 5'11" | PG North Montgomery | 2024 IN (North Montgomery, 2024)
Prediction: Sectional 22 has all the makings of being a really fun with multiple teams having a chance to win this one. Twins Lakes got the only bye here but will have to face either West Lafayette or Western, both who are contenders in this Sectional. In the bottom half, it comes down to either Frankfort, Benton Central, or Rensselaer Central with the 5-16 North Montgomery Chargers really not having a good chance here. When it comes to the championship game, I like Western and Rensselaer Central to square off with the senior duo of Colby Chapman Colby Chapman 6'3" | PG Rensselaer Central | 2023 IN and Tristen Wuethrich Tristen Wuethrich 6'0" | PG Rensselaer Central | 2023 IN leading Rensselaer Central to back-to-back Sectional Championships.
Sectional 23: Peru
The Teams: Peru, Mississinewa, Maconaquah, Bellmont, Northwestern, Norwell, Oak Hill
The Contenders: Oak Hill, Peru, Maconaquah, Bellmont, Norwell
Player to Watch: Matthew Roettger Matthew Roettger 6'2" | SG Peru | 2024 State IN (Peru, 2024), Bauer Maple Bauer Maple 5'10" | PG Maconaquah | 2023 State IN (Maconaquah, 2023), Luke McBride Luke McBride 6'1" | PG Norwell | 2023 State IN (Norwell – Bethel commit, 2023), Landon Biegel Landon Biegel 6'4" | SF Oak Hill | 2023 State IN (Oak Hill – Huntington Commit, 2023)
Prediction: Sectional 23 has a lot of talent and a lot of good teams here. 5 of the 7 teams in this one have a realistic shot at cutting down the Sectional nets here and all five will have to earn it. Oak Hill got the best draw here and will face the winner of Mississinewa and Peru. On the other side, we will see matchups up Maconaquah/Bellmont and Northwestern/Norwell. The semifinals could be one of the best in the state as I project to see Oak Hill/Peru on the top half and Norwell/Maconaquah on the bottom. In the championship game, I see Oak Hill and Norwell facing off with Oak Hill getting the surprise upset here. This Sectional needs another Luke McBride Luke McBride 6'1" | PG Norwell | 2023 State IN vs Landon Biegel Landon Biegel 6'4" | SF Oak Hill | 2023 State IN matchup.
Sectional 24: New Castle
The Teams: Delta, Centerville, Frankton, Jay County, Yorktown, New Castle, Hamilton Heights
The Contenders: Delta, Yorktown, Frankton, New Castle
Players to Watch: Jackson Wors (Delta, 2024), (Delta, 2024), A.J. Dunn A.J. Dunn 6'1" | SG Yorktown | 2023 State IN (Yorktown, 2023), Kieran Tewari (Yorktown, 2024), Gavin Welch Gavin Welch 6'6" | SF New Castle | 2023 State IN (New Castle – Berry Commit, 2023), Colin Taylor Colin Taylor 6'2" New Castle | 2024 IN (New Castle, 2024), Tillman Etchison (Hamilton Heights, 2024)
Prediction: At first glance, Delta is the team that got the best draw here as they will have go through both 7-13 Centerville and 7-13 Hamilton Heights to make it to the championship game. It is the other side that becomes more of a toss-up really with Frankton/Jay County and Yorktown/New Castle. I think that side comes down to host New Castle and Yorktown with Yorktown being able to do just enough to make it to the final game vs Delta. There, I have to give Delta the edge here. That trio of Delta juniors of Jackson Wors, , and Jayden Furney Jayden Furney 6'1" | SG Delta | 2024 IN is extremely underrated and I think this is where they breakout here.