Carmel successfully defended its boys basketball regional championship on Saturday.
The No. 1-ranked Greyhounds won at the Class 4A Logansport regional, winning back-to-back titles for the second time. Carmel overcame a slow first half to beat Fort Wayne Northrop 58-42 in the morning semi-finals, then defeated No. 7 Zionsville 53-39 to claim the championship.
Carmel is now 24-1 for the season and won its 10th regional championship in program history. The Greyhounds also won back-to-back regional titles in 2012 and 2013. The ‘Hounds will play next Saturday in the 4A north semi-state, taking on No. 9 Penn at Lafayette Jefferson. Tipoff is scheduled for 3:30 p.m., following the 1 p.m. 2A game between Frankton and Andrean.
Carmel got in trouble against Northrop, finding itself down 14-9 after the first quarter and 24-16 at halftime. But the Greyhounds quickly got themselves together at the start of the second half, with senior and Butler commit John Michael Mulloy converting two three-point plays in the first minute of the half.
The Bruins’ Isaac Anderson made a pair of free throws to get back of 26-22, but Carmel scored 10 straight points to take a 32-26 lead. Karsten Windlan hit two foul shots, then Robert Fry’s layin tied the game. Windlan got the Greyhounds in front with a three-point play, then Andrew Owens drained a 3-pointer.
Windlan made another “and-1” to end the quarter: The senior drained a 3-pointer while being fouled, then hit the free throw to convert the rare four-point play with six seconds left. That gave Carmel 24 points in the third period, and put the ‘Hounds ahead 40-32.
Northrop’s Sydney Curry hit one foul shot at the end of the quarter, keeping the Bruins within 40-33 going into the fourth. But Carmel got off to another strong start, adding 11 points in the first 3:30 of the period. Owens scored five points (a layin and a 3), then the ‘Hounds made six straight free throws. Luke Heady drained four and Peter Suder hit two. That put Carmel up 51-33, and it maintained that lead for the remainder of the quarter.
Windlan scored 19 points, with Owens adding 13 and Mulloy 11. The freshman Suder pulled four rebounds, while Owens made four steals and Mulloy blocked two shots.
THREE FOR ALL
There was no slow start for the Greyhounds against Zionsville. Owens and Heady gave Carmel a quick 6-0 lead with back-to-back 3s. The Eagles’ Nathan Childress brought his team back with six straight points of his own, a three-point play and a 3-point basket.
But Windlan drained his own 3 to get the ‘Hounds up 9-6, and that gave Carmel the lead for good. The Greyhounds kept the “3-for-all” going in the second quarter, with Owens making two more triples, and Heady getting another one. Carmel led 22-15 at halftime.
Owens started the second half with – guess what? – another 3, then Windlan made a jumper to put the ‘Hounds up 27-15. Zionsville began to push at this point, cutting Carmel’s lead to 30-22 with 4:28 left.
But Windlan made a 3 during that time to prevent a serious Eagles run, and he would make two more downtown shots in the quarter, which ended with the Greyhounds up 36-27. Mulloy began the fourth quarter with an “and-1,” then Zionsville scored consecutive baskets to get within 39-31.
Mulloy got the lead back to 10 with a jumper, and Carmel’s advantage stayed at double digits until the final buzzer. Suder helped out big time during the fourth quarter, scoring eight points.
Windlan again was the scoring leader with 18 points, while Owens added 14; both players totaled four 3-pointers in the game. Suder collected eight rebounds, with Windlan grabbing five.
SEMI-FINAL GAME
Carmel 58, Fort Wayne Northrop 42
Carmel FG FT TP PF
Karsten Windlan 5-11 8-11 19 1
Peter Suder 0-0 2-2 2 3
Luke Heady 0-2 7-10 7 1
Andrew Owens 5-11 0-0 13 4
John Michael Mulloy 3-7 5-6 11 4
Robert Fry 2-2 2-2 6 2
Ben Frische 0-0 0-0 0 2
Jackson Jannsen 0-0 0-0 0 0
Conner Gioia 0-0 0-0 0 0
Conner Wemhoff 0-0 0-0 0 0
Cole Brady 0-0 0-0 0 0
Brian Waddell 0-0 0-0 0 0
Totals 15-33 24-31 58 17
Score by Quarters
Carmel 9 7 24 18 – 58
Northrop 14 10 9 9 – 42
Carmel 3-point shooting (4-9) Owens 3-6, Windlan 1-3.
Carmel rebounds (19) Suder 4, Windlan 3, Fry 3, Mulloy 3, Heady 2, Owens 2, Wemhoff 1, Frische 1.
CHAMPIONSHIP
Carmel 53, Zionsville 39
Carmel FG FT TP PF
Karsten Windlan 6-11 2-2 18 1
Peter Suder 4-6 0-0 8 2
Luke Heady 2-5 0-0 6 2
Andrew Owens 5-10 0-0 14 1
John Michael Mulloy 3-6 1-2 7 2
Robert Fry 0-0 0-0 0 0
Jackson Jannsen 0-0 0-0 0 0
Conner Gioia 0-0 0-0 0 0
Conner Wemhoff 0-0 0-0 0 0
Brian Waddell 0-0 0-0 0 0
Cole Brady 0-0 0-0 0 0
Totals 20-38 3-4 53 8
Score by Quarters
Carmel 11 11 14 17 – 53
Zionsville 8 7 12 12 – 39
Carmel 3-point shooting (10-22) Owens 4-9, Windlan 4-7, Heady 2-5, Suder 0-1.
Carmel rebounds (22) Suder 8, Windlan 5, Heady 4, Mulloy 4, Fry 1.
The Carmel boys basketball team successfully defended its Class 4A regional championship Saturday at Logansport. The Greyhounds beat Fort Wayne Northrop in the semi-finals and Zionsville in the championship game, and will play Penn in the Lafayette Jefferson semi-state next Saturday. (Photo provided)