By RICHIE HALL
Reporter Sports Editor
The Friday semi-final games at the Class 4A Noblesville boys basketball Sectional 8 are Fishers vs. Anderson and Hamilton Southeastern vs. Carmel.
The last time those teams played each other was…less than a month ago.
They were close games, too. The Indians beat the Tigers 64-62 in a Feb. 6 game at Anderson’s gym. Three days later, the Royals hosted the Greyhounds, and won 58-51. The re-matches begin at 6 p.m. tonight, with Fishers-Anderson first, followed by the showdown between Carmel and Southeastern.
The Indians are coming off a dramatic double overtime, first-round sectional win over Noblesville on Tuesday, 74-69, which improved their record to 11-13 on the season. The Tigers, meanwhile, got a bye into the semi-finals after finishing their regular season 11-11.
Senior JoMel Boyd scored 24 points for Anderson in their Tuesday win, which bumps his season average up to 12.6 points per game. Boyd also pulled 12 rebounds for a double-double, giving him 6.1 boards on the year.
Sophomore Joseph Jones had 11 Tuesday points, keeping his season average at 9.3 per game. Senior Marquavias Beverly collected 10 rebounds and scored eight points; he is averaging 6.3 rebounds and 9.6 points.
“Anderson is playing as well as anyone these past three weeks and have really done a great job of finding their offensive stride as of late,” said Tigers coach Matt Moore. “We played a solid game in our first matchup but were not able to close it out as timely turnovers hurt us. For us to have an opportunity to avenge that defeat we will need to have a balanced scoring attack along with maximizing our possessions with good ball movement and patience. They are an elite rebounding team so it will be critical for us to limit them to one shot attempt per possession.”
Junior Terry Hicks is Fishers’ leading scorer and rebounder, with 11.5 points and 5.3 rebounds per game. Junior Willie Jackson adds 9.7 points per game, while senior Jeremy Szilagyi has thrown in 46 3-pointers on his way to a 9.6 points per game average.
CARMEL-HSE: TOUGH SCHEDULES
The Carmel-Southeastern semi-final will be another test between teams that are definitely battle-tested.
The No. 10-ranked Greyhounds have the third-toughest schedule according to the Sagarin ratings, while the Royals’ schedule is ranked eighth toughest. Both teams have done well against those demands: Southeastern finished its regular season 17-7; the Royals got a bye into the semi-finals.
Carmel is 16-7, adding another victory to its column after winning a trench battle with Westfield 33-24 in a Tuesday first-round game. Junior John Michael Mulloy scored 16 points for the Greyhounds; he is leading the team in scoring at 14.2 points and on the boards with 8.2 rebounds. Junior Andrew Owens is next in line at 11.8 points and 4.3 rebounds.
“This will be a challenging game for us,” said HSE coach Brian Satterfield about another battle with Carmel. “They are a good team and we have to bring our A game to win. They will come out fired up and we have to be ready from the start and play 32 quality minutes. Keys will be the boards, limiting turnovers and the ability to get quality shots.
The Royals have several scoring threats, with four players averaging in double figures: Junior Aaron Etherington is scoring 12.5 points per game, followed by senior Chaz Birchfield and junior Noah Smith at 10.8 each, and senior Nick Bowman at 10.5 points per game.
On the rebounding front, Birchfield is collecting 5.9 boards per game, with sophomore Mabor Majak grabbing 5.7 and Etherington pulling 5.1. Smith is handing out 4.6 assists per game.
“We’re going to have to be better team defenders,” said Carmel coach Ryan Osborn. “They have multiple scoring threats and their scoring is very evenly distributed so it will fall on all of our guys to do their job. Obviously we’re going to have to do a better job of boxing out and finishing possessions.”Offensively we’ll have to execute better, be more patient and make better decisions with shot selection. Valuing possessions will be key.”
OLD RIVAL FOR GUERIN CATHOLIC
Guerin Catholic will be hosting one of its first rivals at 6 p.m. tonight in the first semi-final game of Class 3A Sectional 27.
The Golden Eagles will play Cardinal Ritter. The two teams played each other during Guerin’s early days, with a four-game series lasting from 2009 to 2012. The Golden Eagles won all four of those games; the last one was a 68-53 victory on Feb. 3, 2012.
The Raiders are 13-7 and come into the semi-finals on a five-game win streak. They received a bye into the semi-finals, while Guerin Catholic cruised past Bishop Chatard 71-51 in a Tuesday first-round game.
Junior Nate Soltis is Ritter’s leading scorer at 15.6 points per game, followed by senior Miles Tracy, who is contributing 13.3 points per game. Those two are also the top rebounders, with Tracy corralling 7.8 boards and Soltis getting 7.2 per game. Senior Shelby Turner hands out 4.1 assists per game.
“They are really a tough match-up for us,” said Guerin Catholic coach Pete Smith. “They are a little bigger size-wise than us, and are very athletic. We’ll have to limit them to one shot, and also get a good shot ourselves every time. Talent-wise this may be their best group of five seniors they’ve ever had.”
Seniors Jack Hansen and Zach Munson, both of whom are 6-foot-7, have been dominant forces for the Golden Eagles (16-8) this season. Hansen is averaging 18.0 points and 9.1 rebounds per game for GC, with Munson at 15.3 points and 6.6 rebounds. Junior Kian Sills is at 9.8 points per game, while senior Clay Hepp hands out 4.3 assists per contest.
SHERIDAN-FRANKTON: ONE WEEK LATER…
Over at the Class 2A Sectional 40 at Lapel, Sheridan will take on the team that it played in its regular-season finale.
The Blackhawks face No. 4-ranked Frankton in the first semi-final at 6 p.m. However – and this is a big however – Sheridan hung with the Eagles all game before losing 56-54.
The ‘Hawks received a bye into the semi-finals, while Frankton beat Monroe Central 72-64 in Tuesday first-round action. The Eagles are 21-3 coming into this game and have three double-figure scorers: Junior Kaden Key is pouring in 20.5 points per game, followed by senior Landon Weins’ 17.5 points and junior Rylan Detling’s 12.4 points per game. Detling also leads the boards with 6.7 rebounds per game.
After last week’s game, Sheridan coach Chris Schrank believes his team is excited about another shot at Frankton.
“I think they are,” said Schrank. “I think we are looking forward to the challenge. We know that they are a good team. They are 21-3 and ranked No. 4 in the state for a reason, after all. I do think playing them just last Friday has helped us. We got to see them up close. We will be prepared, and after last week’s game they know that they can play with them.
“It’s going to take a great team effort on our part,” said Schrank. “We have to do a good job in transition defense. They get out and run, so we will need to limit those transition points for them. They have a couple of good guards and a big that we have to key in on. We are going to do what we can to limit their opportunities. It’s going to take a solid defensive effort on our part. Offensively, we are going to have to execute, and play to our strengths.”
Senior Ange Gnamkey has been outstanding for Sheridan (11-11), averaging 16.5 points and 6.6 rebounds per game. Junior Nick Burnell has also been tough on the boards, with 6.9 per contest.
ENERGY WILL BE THE KEY FOR ‘BLAZERS
After receiving a first-round bye, University will enter Class 1A Sectional 58 at Bethesda Christian with very high expectations.
The Trailblazers held the No. 1 ranking in the Associated Press poll for a few weeks this season before a late loss to Heritage Christian dropped them to No. 2. University finished the season at 19-2, with Blackhawk Christian the No. 1 team.
The 19-2 ‘Blazers will play International School of Indiana (12-10) in the first semi-final at 6 p.m. Friday. The two teams played each other on Feb. 6 at the “U” Center, with University winning 88-62.
The Gryphons’ big man is by far junior Mawich Kachjaani, who is averaging 23.3 points, 14.4 rebounds and 2.1 blocked shots per game. There are other good players on the International team, of course: Freshman Jaden Thomas is scoring at a 13.9 clip, while junior Akuei Mading is grabbing 6.3 rebounds per game.
“There are a few keys for us to come away with a win,” said UHS coach Brandon Lafferman. “First of all, we have to match ISI’s energy as they play with a lot of it. We have been off for awhile and need to make sure we do not come out flat. Secondly, we have to keep Mawich, their 6-11 center, from getting too many easy touches around the rim. He is always tough to prepare for and is one of the toughest matchups in 1A basketball. Lastly, we need to continue to play together like we have all season. That is the most important piece as it has been the key to our success thus far.”
Senior David Howard leads the University scoring at 14.3 points per game, followed by senior Josh Watson’s 10.1 points and senior Ethan Sickels’ 9.7 per game. Howard also is first on the boards with 4.7 rebounds. Senior Zach Hodgin is dishing out 5.3 assists per game.
ABOVE: Fishers’ Willie Jackson is scoring 9.7 points per game for the Tigers. Fishers will play Anderson in tonight’s first semi-final game at Class 4A Sectional 8 at Noblesville, followed by a semi-final between Carmel and Hamilton Southeastern.
BELOW: Sheridan’s Nick Burnell is averaging 6.9 rebounds per game for the Blackhawks. (Kirk Green/File photo)
