Fishers Holiday Classic Live Blog – Semifinals

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Prep Hoops Indiana will have boots on the ground for six games on Friday at Fishers High School to cover the 2025 Fishers Holiday Classic. Friday's slate will feature two semifinal games followed contests for seventh, fifth, third, and first place. The two semifinal matchups feature Class 4A #1 Fishers against Chesterton followed by Fort Wayne Wayne versus Portage. Wayne is ranked #14 in this week's Prep Hoops Indiana Top 20 Super Poll. Let's fire up the semifinals live blog that will keep you up to date on everything that happens to begin the day at the 2025 Fishers Holiday Classic.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">#1 Fishers 74 vs. Chesterton 35</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The machine that is the Fishers Tigers was alive and well from the opening tip. [player_tooltip player_id='2267046' first='Jason' last='Gardner Jr.'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1525664' first='JonAnthony' last='Hall'] dominated in transition and got to the rim at well early on in the game to set the tone. Then, in the second quarter, [player_tooltip player_id='1525682' first='Millen' last='McCartney'] connected on four three-point shots including a three-quarter court heave as time expired. All the while, Fishers' defense kept Chesterton from being able to run any offense. Aside from junior guard [player_tooltip player_id='1989437' first='Logan' last='Pokorney'], the Trojans struggled to function through the first half and scoreboard reflected that as Fishers lead 39-14 at the break.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This game continued to get more and more out of hand in the second half. Eventually, with about 4:30 remaining, [player_tooltip player_id='1525664' first='JonAnthony' last='Hall'] had a breakaway dunk that put the running clock into effect as the Tigers went up 68-33. They would go on to win 74-35 to move to 11-0 on the season and advance to the championship game of their Holiday Classic. [player_tooltip player_id='1525682' first='Millen' last='McCartney'] finished with a game-high 17 points on five three-point shots. [player_tooltip player_id='2267046' first='Jason' last='Gardner Jr.'] added 12 points and 5 assists in the balanced attack for Fishers. [player_tooltip player_id='1989437' first='Logan' last='Pokorney'] was a bright spot in the loss for Chesterton finishing with 16 points. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Fort Wayne Wayne 63 Portage 57 (OT)</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This was a fun one. Portage held a consistently lead through the vast majority of the game and grew it to 10 points, 40-30, heading into the fourth quarter. Sam Wellman hit a couple of big shots to grow that lead and O'Mari Evans played well to help lead Portage through those first three periods. However, in the fourth quarter, the tides quickly turned in the favor of Fort Wayne Wayne. Chase Barnes finally scored his first points at the 6:50 mark, Trey Dillard took over the game inside, and then Harold Mack became the star in the final moments. Mack rattled in a three-point shot that cut it to one late in regulation and then went coast to coast with 6.8 seconds on the clock to tie the game and send the Generals to overtime with the Indians. Mack began the overtime period with an And-1 and Barnes iced it down the stretch with free throws as Wayne advanced to the Fishers Holiday Classic championship game with a 63-57 victory.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Trey Dillard led the way with 15 points while Harold Mack added 13 points for the Generals. Preston Comer, who fouled out in overtime, finished with 13 points and 7 rebounds. University of Indianapolis signee Chase Barnes scored all 9 of his points in the fourth quarter and overtime. In the loss for Portage, Bethel recruit Sam Wellman scored 13 points. O'Mari Evans, Garrett Clark, and Michael Wellman all finished with 10 points.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->