Friday Night Games to Watch

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>It is our first true Friday night slate of the Indiana High School Basketball season. Last Friday was very light being the day after Thanksgiving, but we hit the ground running this evening with a full schedule. I'll have boots on the ground coverage from Arsenal Tech High School as the Titans host North Central. Here are quick previews of the five best games to watch around the state this evening.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Brebeuf Jesuit @ Cathedral</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This annual early season rivalry game is always a fun one. Both programs come in at 2-0 with the Braves being ranked #5 in Class 3A while the Fighting Irish sit just outside the Class 4A Top 10. 6'8" junior wing [player_tooltip player_id='1525663' first='Brady' last='Koehler'] has been outstanding for Cathedral so far this season while fellow junior point guard [player_tooltip player_id='1297083' first='Lebron' last='Gough'] and sophomore wing [player_tooltip player_id='1561135' first='Keaton' last='Aldridge Jr']. have contributed at a high-level as well. However, slowing down Butler signee [player_tooltip player_id='1278639' first='Evan' last='Haywood'] of Brebeuf will be no easy task. This one could come down to a individual duel between Haywood and Koehler.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Evansville Harrison @ New Albany</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The game to watch this evening for Indiana High School Basketball fans in southern Indiana. Evansville Harrison put five scorers in double-figures in their season-opening win over Parke Heritage with [player_tooltip player_id='2089943' first='Eli' last='Speer'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1761697' first='Malachi' last='McNair'] leading the way with 19 points a piece. The 6'6" McNair also added 13 rebounds. Jay Summit, [player_tooltip player_id='1578468' first='Shane' last='Sims'], and [player_tooltip player_id='1539669' first='Brooks' last='Thomas'] round out a strong core for the Warriors. New Albany is 2-0 coming off of a 64-62 win at Bloomington South. [player_tooltip player_id='2276379' first='Chris' last='Lampkins'] is the name to know for the Bulldogs.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Mishawaka Marian @ South Bend Riley</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>If you are up in the South Bend area this is the game to put on your schedule tonight. Riley is off to a 2-0 start and are a sleeper in Class 4A that should begin to capture some more statewide attention. Bethel commit [player_tooltip player_id='1547394' first='Payton' last='Baird'] and dynamic junior guard [player_tooltip player_id='1297088' first='Marvin' last='Schindler'] are the names to know for the Wildcats. Meanwhile, Mishawaka Marian is no stranger to success. Senior forward Elias Norgaard led them with 14 points in their season-opening win against Goshen. Look for fellow senior [player_tooltip player_id='1384443' first='Zion' last='Rhoades'] to play a big role inside as well.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Noblesville @ Fishers</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Probably the game of the night around the state, this Hoosier Crossroads Conference matchup and potential Sectional 8 preview will be a fun one. Fishers is out to a 3-0 start which included a win over defending undefeated state champion Ben Davis. The Tigers are ranked #6 in Class 4A while the Millers of Noblesville come in ranked #5 with a 2-0 record. In the backcourt you have a battle between Huntington commit [player_tooltip player_id='1578471' first='Taden' last='Metzger'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1158209' first='Aaron' last='Fine'] while [player_tooltip player_id='2079500' first='Keenan' last='Garner'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1275012' first='Hunter' last='Walston'] matchup on the wing. However, the young talent is equally as intriguing in this one. The Millers feature sophomore guard [player_tooltip player_id='1534261' first='Justin' last='Curry II'] while Fishers has two of the best freshmen guards in the state in [player_tooltip player_id='2140345' first='Cooper' last='Zachary'] and [player_tooltip player_id='2267046' first='Jason' last='Gardner Jr.']</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Zionsville @ Westfield</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Class 4A #3 Westfield is 2-0 on the young season which includes a win over Kokomo while Zionsville got off to a 1-0 start with a win over Carmel. Junior wing [player_tooltip player_id='1525678' first='Maguire' last='Mitchell'] was excellent in that game and will look to carry that over to Friday night's Hoosier Crossroads Conference/Sectional 8 matchup. Fellow junior guard [player_tooltip player_id='1525679' first='Drew' last='Snively'] is one to watch for the Eagles as well. Meanwhile, [player_tooltip player_id='1275749' first='Trey' last='Buchanan'] and Nick Book create a potent one-two punch for Westfield that will be hard to stop this season. This will be a very intriguing matchup on the far north side.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->