Class 4A Semi-State Draw Rapid Reactions

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Indiana High School Basketball fans are typically not super receptive to change. There are many people throughout the state that still long for the days of a single class tournament as they relive the dreams of a “Hoosiers” sort of run to a championship. However, there was another wrinkle thrown into the state tournament this season which so far at least seems to have been successful. The traditional two-game Regional and one-game Semi-State has now been flipped. Additionally, teams are drawn randomly within their classes again for the semi-state round taking north and south locations out of the equation. Let's take a look at the Class 4A Semi-State draw.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2>North Semi-State @ Michigan City H.S.</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:list --> <ul><!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Game one up at Michigan City High School will feature Fort Wayne Wayne (21-4) versus Kokomo (22-4). The Generals of Wayne have turned in one of the most impressive turnarounds in recent history from last season to this season. After winning just four games in 2021-2022 they have piled up 21 wins this year including 13 straight on their way to a Regional title. Most impressively, Wayne is still built for the future as well. Junior point guard [player_tooltip player_id='1578417' first='Jevon' last='Lewis'] leads them in scoring at 17.0 points per game while sophomore [player_tooltip player_id='1297001' first='Chase' last='Barnes'] adds 13.9 points per game. Senior guard [player_tooltip player_id='1556502' first='Monte' last='Smith'] (10.8 points per game) is the only senior that receives consistent playing time. This is a talented bunch who will continue to try and surprise people around the state. However, getting by Kokomo and superstar center [player_tooltip player_id='1363488' first='Flory' last='Bidunga'] will be no easy task. The Wildkats have won back-to-back Regional championship now on the back of the 6'10" Bidunga who is averaging 19.7 points, 13.4 rebounds, and 4.3 blocks per game while shooting an incredible 82% from the field. It'll be hard for the Generals to match his size around the basket, but their athleticism could factor in.</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:list --> <ul><!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Game two in the northern Semi-State will feature Penn (27-1) against Hammond Central (26-1). All these two teams have done all season is win basketball games. The Kingsmen lost to undefeated Ben Davis in the Hall of Fame Classic opener but have otherwise posted an average winning margin of 31 points per game. Indiana Mr. Basketball front-runner, Notre Dame signee [player_tooltip player_id='1049169' first='Markus' last='Burton'], is having an absolutely spectacular season averaging over 30 points per game. Fellow seniors [player_tooltip player_id='1391326' first='Joey' last='Garwood'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1272962' first='Joe' last='Smith'] help to provide additional firepower in the backcourt. Meanwhile, Hammond Central has quietly put up an equally impressive season having only lost to Whitney Young (IL) by five points back on December 27th. Eastern Illinois football commit [player_tooltip player_id='1049160' first='Jordan' last='Woods'] and junior guard [player_tooltip player_id='1384393' first='Matthew' last='King'] are the two primary players to watch for the Wolves, but they have a deep roster full of young talent. You can expect this game, featuring #2 and #3 in the state, to turn into an uptempo affair.</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2>South Semi-State @ New Castle H.S.</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:list --> <ul><!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Game one at The Largest and Finest High School Fieldhouse in the World will feature Brownsburg (21-4) versus Jennings County (24-2). The Bulldogs stumbled with back-to-back losses in February but otherwise had spent much of the season in the Class 4A Top 5. They have absolutely rolled to Semi-State defeating their three opponents by an average of over 21 points per game including Saturday's 27-point beatdown of New Palestine to win the Regional. Class of 2024 Purdue commit [player_tooltip player_id='1275779' first='Kanon' last='Catchings'] averages 17.9 points per game to lead the 'Dawgs while senior [player_tooltip player_id='1391626' first='Elhadj' last='Diallo'] adds 15.7 points and a team-leading 6.9 rebounds per game and junior [player_tooltip player_id='1295337' first='Grant' last='Porath'] chips in another 10.7 points per game. As for Jennings County, they needed double overtime to win in the first round of Sectional and then defeated Jeffersonville by just two points. However, they've gotten rolling since then including a 24-point Regional win over Evansville Reitz. There is a reason this team has just two losses this year by a combined eight points. The Panthers feature a talented backcourt of senior [player_tooltip player_id='1272966' first='Keegan' last='Manowitz'] (14.8 points, 6.3 assists per game) and sophomore [player_tooltip player_id='1578362' first='Carter' last='Kent'] (14.2 points per game). Senior Owen Law rounds a sharp-shooting trio with 11.7 points per game. If they are hot from three-point range they can beat anyone in the class.</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:list --> <ul><!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Ben Davis (30-0) and Bloomington North (19-5) will face-off in the second semifinal at New Castle. At this point you truly can't say enough about the season Ben Davis has had. 30-0 is impressive regardless of who you play, but the Giants have done it while playing Indiana's VERY best. The dominated Sectional 11 winning by an average of 22.3 points per game and then defeating defending Class 4A state champion Cathedral for the second time 63-53 in the Regional. Valparaiso signee [player_tooltip player_id='1042497' first='Zane' last='Doughty'] is the averaging around 14 points and 10 rebounds per game along with about 3 blocks per game. However, this team's success is a story of balance and depth. [player_tooltip player_id='1160716' first='Clay' last='Butler'], [player_tooltip player_id='1273713' first='Sheridan' last='Sharp'], and [player_tooltip player_id='1158204' first='K.J.' last='Windham'] make up an incredibly potent backcourt trio while [player_tooltip player_id='1273740' first='Shaun' last='Arnold'], [player_tooltip player_id='1373105' first='Mark' last='Zackery'], [player_tooltip player_id='1295351' first='Mark' last='White'], and [player_tooltip player_id='1049168' first='Jesse' last='Faires'] provide additional depth. It is just so hard to beat this team, as their perfect record obviously shows. Bloomington North has had to squeak out back-to-back wins to reach Saturday's Semi-State. They defeated both Center Grove in the Sectional and Columbus North in the Regional in the final seconds to advance to this matchup with Ben Davis. Vanderbilt signee [player_tooltip player_id='868224' first='JaQualon' last='Roberts'] is the obvious draw for the Cougars averaging 20.3 points and 7.8 rebounds per game. </li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list -->