Sectional Preview – New Castle Regional

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>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 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.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2>Sectional 21: Garrett </h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>The Teams:</strong>&nbsp;Fort Wayne Dwenger, Angola, Leo, Fort Wayne Concordia, Garrett, Woodlan, Heritage</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>The Contenders:</strong>&nbsp;Heritage, Leo, Fort Wayne Concordia, Woodlan</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Players to Watch:&nbsp;</strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1049161' first='Preston' last='Ross'] (Fort Wayne Dwenger, 2023), [player_tooltip player_id='1547387' first='Jackson' last='Mcgee'] (Leo, 2024), [player_tooltip player_id='1578478' first='Trey' last='Hiteshew'] (Leo, 2024), [player_tooltip player_id='1158179' first='Ajani' last='Washington'] (Fort Wayne Concordia, 2024), [player_tooltip player_id='1158230' first='Cole' last='Hayworth'] (Fort Wayne Concordia, 2024) </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Prediction:&nbsp;</strong>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 <strong>Fort Wayne Concordia</strong> 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. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2>Sectional 22: Frankfort</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>The Teams:</strong>&nbsp;West Lafayette, Western, Frankfort, Benton Central, Rensselaer Central, North Montgomery, Twin Lakes</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>The Contenders:</strong>&nbsp;West Lafayette, Western, Frankfort, Benton Central, Rensselaer Central</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Players to Watch:</strong>&nbsp;[player_tooltip player_id='1556365' first='Divine' last='Adeyanju'] (West Lafayette, 2023), [player_tooltip player_id='1158244' first='Jayce' last='Strode'] (Frankfort, 2023), [player_tooltip player_id='1042501' first='Dawson' last='Brock'] (Benton Central, 2023), [player_tooltip player_id='1556355' first='Colby' last='Chapman'] (Rensselaer Central, 2023), [player_tooltip player_id='1386182' first='Jared' last='Kirsch'] (North Montgomery, 2024) </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Prediction:</strong>&nbsp;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 [player_tooltip player_id='1556355' first='Colby' last='Chapman'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1556358' first='Tristen' last='Wuethrich'] leading <strong>Rensselaer Central</strong> to back-to-back Sectional Championships. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2>Sectional 23: Peru</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>The Teams:</strong>&nbsp;Peru, Mississinewa, Maconaquah, Bellmont, Northwestern, Norwell, Oak Hill</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>The Contenders:</strong>&nbsp;Oak Hill, Peru, Maconaquah, Bellmont, Norwell</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Player to Watch:</strong>&nbsp;[player_tooltip player_id='1158198' first='Matthew' last='Roettger'] (Peru, 2024), [player_tooltip player_id='1784929' first='Bauer' last='Maple'] (Maconaquah, 2023), [player_tooltip player_id='935745' first='Luke' last='McBride'] (Norwell - Bethel commit, 2023), [player_tooltip player_id='1273049' first='Landon' last='Biegel'] (Oak Hill - Huntington Commit, 2023) </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Prediction:</strong>&nbsp;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 <strong>Oak Hill</strong> getting the surprise upset here. This Sectional needs another [player_tooltip player_id='935745' first='Luke' last='McBride'] vs [player_tooltip player_id='1273049' first='Landon' last='Biegel'] matchup. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2>Sectional 24: New Castle</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>The Teams:</strong>&nbsp;Delta, Centerville, Frankton, Jay County, Yorktown, New Castle, Hamilton Heights</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>The Contenders:</strong>&nbsp;Delta, Yorktown, Frankton, New Castle</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Players to Watch:</strong>&nbsp;[player_tooltip player_id='1295334' first='Jackson' last='Wors'] (Delta, 2024), [player_tooltip player_id='1295310' first='D'Amare' last='Hood'] (Delta, 2024), [player_tooltip player_id='1162711' first='A.J.' last='Dunn'] (Yorktown, 2023), [player_tooltip player_id='1578430' first='Kieran' last='Tewari'] (Yorktown, 2024), [player_tooltip player_id='1160680' first='Gavin' last='Welch'] (New Castle - Berry Commit, 2023), [player_tooltip player_id='1578367' first='Colin' last='Taylor'] (New Castle, 2024), [player_tooltip player_id='1578475' first='Tillman' last='Etchison'] (Hamilton Heights, 2024)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Prediction:</strong>&nbsp;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 <strong>Delta </strong>the edge here. That trio of Delta juniors of [player_tooltip player_id='1295334' first='Jackson' last='Wors'], [player_tooltip player_id='1295310' first='D'Amare' last='Hood'], and [player_tooltip player_id='1275827' first='Jayden' last='Furney'] is extremely underrated and I think this is where they breakout here. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->