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<p>There were 403 teams that started the journey to Gainbridge Fieldhouse last week. Then, on Saturday, we crowned 64 Sectional Champions. We will cut that field in half once again this coming Saturday in the Regional round. As always, Prep Hoops Indiana had boots on the ground coverage throughout Sectional week and will be hitting a handful of different gyms for Regional action as well. As we did prior to Sectional week, we will spend this week previewing the 32 Regional matchups that will be played on Saturday, March 15th. Here is our preview of the four Regionals that make up the Class 1A North.</p>
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<h2 class="wp-block-heading">The Matchups</h2>
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<p>North Judson Regional: Kouts (22-4) vs. Tri-County (14-11)</p>
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<p>Triton Regional: Triton (22-4) vs. Lakewood Park (7-16)</p>
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<p>Frankfort Regional: Clinton Prairie (22-3) vs. Lafayette Central Catholic (12-14)</p>
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<p>New Castle Regional: Daleville (9-15) vs. Monroe Central (18-6) </p>
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<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Best Game</h2>
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<p>When you look just at the records it would appear that none of these Regional pairings are overly intriguing. However, we will have our eyes on the Clinton Prairie versus Lafayette Central Catholic game. The Gophers have been playing high-level basketball throughout the season and have really hit their stride in March running through Sectional 54 with ease. Led by the dynamic backcourt duo of [player_tooltip player_id='1296973' first='Alex' last='Farley'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1297051' first='Jake' last='McGraw'], Clinton Prairie is 23-2 with their only two losses coming by a combined four points to Class 2A programs Sheridan and Tipton. Meanwhile, Lafayette Central Catholic is always a tough out in the tournament because they play such a tough regular season schedule. Their record can often be misleading and this year is no different. Ray Clayton and [player_tooltip player_id='2399012' first='Mikey' last='Stapleton'] are the players to watch for the Knights.</p>
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<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Under-the-Radar Game</h2>
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<p>This designation has to go to the only Regional pairing that features two teams over .500. Kouts survived a difficult Sectional 49 with wins over Marquette Catholic, Westville, and Washington Township. The 22-4 Mustangs are battle-tested at this point. As for Tri-County, the Cavaliers avenged an early loss to West Central in the championship game to earn the right to cut down the Sectional 50 nets. With Triton and Monroe Central being heavy favorites in their respective Regionals, this matchup was the obvious choice from an under-the-radar perspective.</p>
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<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Players to Watch</h2>
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<p>Ray Clayton (Lafayette Central Catholic 2025), [player_tooltip player_id='1296973' first='Alex' last='Farley'] (Clinton Prairie H.S. 2025), Easton Foster (Monroe Central H.S. 2025), Landon Garrett (Kouts H.S. 2026), [player_tooltip player_id='1559321' first='Lucas' last='Kleckner'] (Kouts H.S. 2026), [player_tooltip player_id='2812795' first='Avery' last='MacFarlane'] (Lakewood Park Christian 2026), [player_tooltip player_id='1297051' first='Jake' last='McGraw'] (Clinton Prairie H.S. 2025), [player_tooltip player_id='2399000' first='Gage' last='Riffle'] (Triton H.S. 2026), Hunter Suchyna (Daleville H.S. 2025), [player_tooltip player_id='2391223' first='Tanner' last='Witt-Hoyo'] (Triton H.S. 2025)</p>
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<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Predictions</h2>
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<p>North Judson Regional: Kouts</p>
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<p>Triton Regional: Triton</p>
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<p>Frankfort Regional: Clinton Prairie</p>
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<p>New Castle Regional: Monroe Central</p>
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There were 403 teams that started the journey to Gainbridge Fieldhouse last week. Then, on Saturday, we crowned 64 Sectional Champions. We will cut that field in half once again this coming Saturday in the Regional round. As always, Prep Hoops Indiana had boots on the ground coverage throughout Sectional week and will be hitting a handful of different gyms for Regional action as well. As we did prior to Sectional week, we will spend this week previewing the 32 Regional matchups that will be played on Saturday, March 15th. Here is our preview of the four Regionals that make up the Class 1A North.
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