Prep Hoops Indiana Daily (1/7) – Recapping Saturday’s Headlines

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The first Saturday of the new year was absolutely loaded with Indiana High School Basketball games. We had good games tipping off in the afternoon, several county tournaments crowning champions, and a typical full slate of evening games while folks around the state were also locked in to the Indianapolis Colts (who ultimately lost) hosting the Houston Texans. Let's take a full whip around of the top storylines from a busy Saturday in the Hoosier state.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:separator --> <hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity" /> <!-- /wp:separator --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Avon Made a Statement</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Avon Orioles have already matched their season win total from a year ago. This group had quite the run through the Hendricks County Tournament and ultimately came home with the championship for the first time in over a decade. Their path to the title couldn't have been any tougher either as the draw did them no favors. On Tuesday evening they avenged a 17-point loss from December 15th knocking off Brownsburg 57-56 in a wild triple overtime thriller. [player_tooltip player_id='2485622' first='Rohan' last='Pearson'] knocked in the game-winner as time expired for the Orioles. Then, the junior guard was the hero of Friday's semifinal as well as he hit a second straight game-winner, this one was a running three-pointer from in between half court and the volleyball line, to defeat Plainfield 51-48. Finally, Avon dominated previously undefeated Danville in the championship game 68-42 to secure their first Hendricks County Tournament championship since 2013. Sophomore guard [player_tooltip player_id='1561685' first='Jedidiah' last='Minnett'] scored a game-high 24 points in the title game while junior wing [player_tooltip player_id='1539455' first='DeAndre' last='Lott'] added 16 points.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Collision Course in the Indianapolis City Tournament</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>We've got another week before the 2024 Indianapolis City Tournament begins, but we did recently learn the seedings and opening round matchups. Then, on Saturday, the top two seeds who also played in last season's championship game, made emphatic statements with dominant victories. A third program also made a statement that they are not to be taken lightly.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Cathedral Fighting Irish are out to prove something. Losing a McDonald's All-American and another player who should have been an Indiana All-Star is not something most teams can replace. It would typically take a rebuilding year to return to your previous level. However, Coach Jason Delany and the Irish have simply reloaded and are now 10-0 after going down south and dominating Class 2A #3 Providence 74-40. Junior guard [player_tooltip player_id='1297015' first='Deric' last='Cannady'] had 22 points in the game. [player_tooltip player_id='1275770' first='Sheldon' last='Gatlin'] added 11 points while [player_tooltip player_id='1293368' first='Anthony' last='Fields'] chipped in 10 points, 6 rebounds, and 6 assists.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Meanwhile, defending city champion Crispus Attucks is playing their best basketball of the season. The Tigers are now 10-3 on the season having won five straight after defeating Gary 21st Century 84-65 on Saturday afternoon. 6'8" junior forward [player_tooltip player_id='1297019' first='Dezmon' last='Briscoe'] posted a triple-double of 23 points, 12 rebounds, and 10 blocks while [player_tooltip player_id='1275771' first='Ron' last='Rutland III'] added 19 points and 5 assists. [player_tooltip player_id='1297004' first='Chris' last='Hurt'] contributed 14 points and 4 assists as well.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Finally, Arsenal Tech put the city on notice as they went up to Fort Wayne and defeated Top 10 Wayne 65-51. [player_tooltip player_id='2278011' first='Devon' last='Craig'], [player_tooltip player_id='1728675' first='Elexander' last='Harris'], and Eric Brown led the Titans with 18, 14, and 13 points respectively. Tech is now 7-5 on the season and will be the three seed in the Indianapolis City Tournament.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">[player_tooltip player_id='1158238' first='Joey' last='Schmitz']' Historic Shooting Night</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>It is difficult to zone a team that features [player_tooltip player_id='1158238' first='Joey' last='Schmitz']. Center Grove and their star senior guard proved that on Saturday night against Jennings County as he went off for 39 points including a school record nine three-point shots. Schmitz couldn't miss from the opening tip as he hit four triples in the opening period. He also had four assists in the game. The high-academic prospect is planning to study engineering which shapes his recruitment, but he is one of the best remaining guards on the board in Indiana's Class of 2024.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Quick Hitters</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Brownstown Central bounced back with an impressive 60-48 win over Jeffersonville after getting upset by Jennings County on Friday. Purdue signee [player_tooltip player_id='1158245' first='Jack' last='Benter'] scored 28 points to lead all scorers.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Schauss brothers currently seem to have some good fortune on their side. Coach Drew Schauss and his Avon Orioles won on a pair of buzzer-beaters on Tuesday and Friday night in the Hendricks County Tournament. However, not to be outdone, his younger brother Coach Matt Schauss at Columbia City called a Bryce Drew-esque play which resulted in a buzzer-beating three-point shot as the Eagles defeated Bellmont 57-54 on Saturday night. For a further fun wrinkle, their father, Coach Rick Schauss who is an assistant at Columbia City, is a Bellmont High School graduate.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Speaking of the Schauss brothers, I was in-between them in school graduating from Centerville High School in 2009, 2010, and 2011 respectively. Our Bulldogs captured the Wayne County Tournament championship on Saturday night with a 49-42 victory over Northeastern. Sophomore [player_tooltip player_id='1738825' first='Shea' last='Hollendonner'] continues to put up some massive scoring numbers which included 41 points in their semifinal win on Thursday against Lincoln.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Richmond remains out in front of the state in terms of win total as they are now a perfect 14-0 on the season after a pair of weekend wins over New Castle and McCutcheon. Junior guard [player_tooltip player_id='1296998' first='Cedric' last='Horton'] had 23 and 24 points respectively in those two games.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->