Sectional time has concluded and what a wild week that it was. Bounce went 6-3 projecting area Sectional winners, but I don’t have to count Bethany Christian, do I?
But above all of that was a great week of basketball with major triumphs for Warsaw, North Side, Wayne, Fairfield, Concordia, Blackhawk Christian, Westview and Canterbury, who have all extended their seasons. With that comes the heartache for every other area team who saw their seasons end this week.
So what are some of the major points of the prep hoops week?
BLACKHAWK STILL NOT DOWN
We all talked as the week started about the toughest area Sectional and there was little to no debate.
You were going to have to be really sharp and really focus, as well as being super talented, to get out of the Sectional at Bluffton. Among the toughest in the state based on overall record of the teams involved, this one was the toughest to predict.
With ACAC champion Adams Central, defending state champion Blackhawk Christian, co-TRC champ Manchester, a surging Whitko and second in the SAC Bishop Luers, this had to be the premiere Sectional in Northeast Indiana, if not in the entire north half of the state, this week. And as much as everyone had their opinion on who could come out on top, it was once against Blackhawk Christian.
The Braves are Sectional champions for the seventh straight season and will have the chance to defend their state crown still as we move into the Regional round and it is getting to the point where its so highly impressive what they do.
Kellen Pickett and Isaac Smith are the only guys back from the state title team that played really deep roles, yet Blackhawk Christian continues to show that the culture of a program can expand behind the loss of players to graduation. That was something they had always done during the Marc Davidson regime, but we all didn’t know if they could continue that trend. Days after Davidson’s birthday, still celebrated by the Braves faithful, Blackhawk Christian showed that old habits die hard.
Aiden Muldoon has been such a critical piece to this program, looking like back in time players like Abe Hicks and Michael Pulver, who stepped up into a critical pace setting role for the Braves in previous postseason runs. He has been fantastic as a guy who went from a bench player who saw some minutes in relief last season to a guy that the Braves have to have on the court all of the time.
Pickett and Smith each scored 21 to shut down Adams Central on Friday and then each scored 20 on Saturday in a title win over Bishop Luers. Muldoon had 10 and 8 in those two games respectively while Luke Mansfield inserted himself well with 10 points on Friday and then threw down an energy defining dunk on Saturday.
And here is Blackhawk Christian, headed to the second weekend of the postseason again. Things just don’t change much in a place with such deep rooted traditions of success.
THE LUKE HELMUTH SHOW
Not only did the Westview senior finish his regular season strong, Luke Helmuth made a case for being the MVP of Sectional week, if that were an actual thing.
On Tuesday, as Fremont kept trying to surge back into their game with Westview, they couldn’t find an answer defensively for Helmuth as he slashed and shot his way to a game high 27 points for the Warriors.
On Friday, Helmuth scored 24 points and had five assists as the Warriors staved off Central Noble. Helmuth’s line was crazy as he hit 12 of 13 free throws and had 14 fourth quarter points as the Warriors held off the Cougars.
On Saturday, Helmuth looked the most human like of the week, with 10 points.
The support around Helmuth was still pretty solid and it makes Westview an interesting team as they head into their Regional bout with Wabash. On Tuesday, Wiley Minix and Kaden Grau each scored nine points in the win over Fremont. In Friday’s win over Central Noble, Westview hit 21 of 24 free throws and while1 2 of those makes were Helmuth, Minix was big too and finished with 13 points while Wyatt Zepp had 15. In Saturday’s title game opposite Churubusco, nine different Warriors scored.
But for me, this week was a big boost from Helmuth and his ability score the ball with diversity and poise. It is a major impact of a moment for the Warrior senior as the team heads to the Regional round.
WELCOME BACK WILL
While Homestead fell short to Wayne in Saturday night’s championship game, the week was a banner one for Will Jamison.
The Spartan senior who missed most of his senior season after a car accident has shined in his short time back but his work this week was stellar. Kudos to Jamison for his effort, intensity and character to step back into this world and do so at such a high level. And also kudos to the Spartans players and coaches who went through almost an entire year without him on the court but knew when to defer to one of the area’s best once he was back in the lineup.
On Tuesday, Jamison scored 31 in a win over Huntington North and on Saturday, he put in 26 points at the Spartans fell short to Wayne in the title game despite a great fourth quarter.
All else aside, it was great to see Jamison get back on the court and it was even better to see him perform at such a high level again. His future remains a bright one.
NORTH SIDE HAS DEPTH
The Legends are a team that was tricky in the preseason to really discuss.
The loss of Brauntae Johnson to a football injury was going to be a major blow. But that didn’t mean North Side was down at all. For the vast majority of the season, all eyes have been rightfully on Eugene Young and Jaxson Fugate. As two of the stars of the SAC, the duo has been unstoppable when they are both playing their best together.
Not many other teams have two players that both can consistently score in the 20s most nights. In Tuesday’s overtime win against Carroll, Young had 25 and 10 rebounds.
But what is making North Side‘s Sectional title run special is the fact that they aren’t just leaning on that duo. The bench has been helpful all season and that was the case on a really good level all week long, leading to North Side’s title win against Snider.
Javion Davenport has spent most of the season going from a nice piece in the lineup to one of the SAC’s breakout performers and on Tuesday against Carroll, twin brother Javius Davenport helped reassert himself in a big way with 17 points and four steals. Da’von Haney posted a nine point/nine rebound near double double.
Friday’s win over a feisty DeKalb team really showed off North Side’s depth. While Fugate was held to six points and Young exited the game after a nasty fall with just four points, other stepped up huge. Rodney Jones had 12 points while Javius Davenport scored 11, Javion Davenport scored 10 and Haney added eight big rebounds.
Saturday’s title with saw Javion Davenport and Young each score 17 while Fugate had 14 and Jordan King scored eight. Fugate register 13 rebounds to 10 from Young.
Depth has been and will continue to be key as the Legends match up with the other real deep team in the SAC in Wayne during the Regional round.
OTHER NOTES
Wayne‘s Jevon Lewis broke the program’s all-time scoring record (formerly Justin Mitchell’s 1,416 points) on Friday against New Haven….Dane Lantz of Angola scored 28 points Friday in a loss, but finished six points shy of 1,000 for his career….Bishop Luers coach Seth Coffing picked up the 100th win of his career on Friday night against Whitko….Warsaw‘s Sectional title win was the 41st in school history, the most among area teams….North Side‘s Sectional title is their 29th ever, tying South Side for the fourth most in area history.
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