We may be entering the doldrums of winter, but the pressure on the basketball court is starting to heat up as we get into the new year.
There are no truly dominant programs in the area this season. Anyone can seemingly beat anyone. A few teams have separated themselves from the pack, but outside of maybe the top four teams, there is a lot of parity.
As league action kicks into high gear, here is Bounce’s latest guess at the top 10 teams in northeast Indiana.
NO. 1 – BISHOP LUERS KNIGHTS (8-1, 2-0 SAC)
Buoyed by a 14-point victory over Warsaw to open the Bob Wettig Tournament in Richmond on Jan. 2, Coach Seth Coffing’s team vaults into the top spot in Bounce’s poll.
While the Knights did suffer their first loss at ‘The Wettig,’ it was to a 4A state-ranked team in Ben Davis, far from a bad defeat.
Amidst the junior and senior-laden rotation for Bishop Luers is freshman Jayden Moore, who dropped 13 points on Churubusco early this week. The 6-foot-2 forward may not be a key every game for Luers, but he does show that this team is more than the Truesdale twins, and that there is plenty of talent in the pipeline.
NO. 2 – WARSAW TIGERS (9-3, 1-0 NLC)
The Tigers entered Christmas with an undefeated record, then exited the holiday season losing three of its six contests between the Hall of Fame Tournament and the Bob Wettig Tournament.
The competition was no joke. Fishers is the No. 1 team in the state and Jeffersonville is no slouch. Couple those defeats with a loss to Bishop Luers and Coach Matt Moore’s squad has some inspiration to improve.
The year can go one of two ways. The holiday struggles could lead to more in the Northern Lakes Conference and beyond, or Warsaw finds its way. There is no doubt that Coach Moore went searching for tougher competition around the holidays. He found it. Now, what does his team do with the lessons learned?
An undefeated Northridge team looms Friday in one of the best games of the weekend in the state.
Why Not Higher?
Well, that 67-53 loss to Bishop Luers could have something to do with it.
NO. 3 – BLACKHAWK CHRISTIAN BRAVES (10-2)
Like Warsaw, Blackhawk Christian learned some lessons over the holidays while competing at the Ray Furney Holiday Classic in Lawrenceburg. The Braves went 3-1, finding ways to pull out close wins over Castle in overtime and Bloomington South by two, a pair of Class 4A foes. But Blackhawk Christian also lost to Silver Creek by 20 points, a team that is also high on people’s radar in Class 3A.
The Braves get Homestead and Bishop Luers over the next week. Things are about to get interesting around here.
Why Not Higher?
Blackhawk Christian’s schedule has been versatile, and it has handled business when it comes to area foes. But it has yet to face the likes of Homestead, Bishop Luers and Wayne. The Braves will face all three between now and Feb. 1.
NO. 4 – WAYNE GENERALS (7-3, 2-0 SAC)
Wayne’s most impressive performance this season so far came, in Bounce’s opinion, in a loss. On Jan. 3, the Generals went down to top-ranked and undefeated Fishers at its own tournament and nearly knocked off the Tigers.
In fact, since the season-opening puzzler at Leo (a 50-43 loss), Wayne’s two defeats have come to a very good crown point team by one and at Fishers. This is a senior-dominated team, at least with its high scorers, and its time is now. You can almost feel that urgency and energy when you watch the Generals play. For the last three years for this core, there was always next year. Well, there is no next year now. That fuel another deep playoff run.
Why Not Higher?
Perhaps Bounce should have Wayne higher, especially with its play of late. But hey, it’s motivation, right Generals?
NO. 5 – HOMESTEAD SPARTANS (8-4, 1-1 SAC)
Perhaps lost a bit in the holiday hoopla was Homestead’s own tournament that saw the Spartans go 3-1, including a win over East Chicago Central, a 10-win team.
A 40-point pasting in Sparty’s most-recent outing reinforced the fact that Homestead is one of the top teams in the area. But the next few weeks will be telling. South Side is up Friday, followed by Blackhawk Christian and Snider next week. A challenging stretch, to be sure.
Why Not Higher?
Four losses, including three to area teams.
NO. 6 – SOUTH SIDE ARCHERS (8-2, 2-1 SAC)
That Northrop loss right before Christmas is still extremely weird, but the Archers seem to have found their footing by following it up at Delta, going 2-1 over the holidays in a tournament. The lone loss was to the hosts, who are 9-1.
Junior Zacariah Belcher continues to make his mark. The 6-foot-8 forward leads the team in scoring at 14 points per game to go with 9.3 rebounds and 3.8 blocks per contest.
Why Not Higher?
That pesky loss to Northrop.
NO. 7 – COLUMBIA CITY EAGLES (6-5, 1-0 SAC)
Since starting 5-1 and finding itself in the thick of Bounce’s Power Poll in its last edition, the Eagles have lost four of five. Now, outside of a defeat at the hands of three-win Muncie Central, the other trio of losses weren’t bad, coming to South Side, Blackhawk Christian and NorthWood.
Can this team still be the best in the NE8? Possibly. And we won’t have to wait long to find out, as five of Columbia City’s next six games are against league foes.
Why Not Higher?
A team with five losses at No. 7? Bounce feels that is more than fair.
NO. 8 – SNIDER PANTHERS (5-5, 1-2 SAC)
Look, after the top four in this power poll, Bounce had trouble making sense of it. A .500 team in mid-January in the top 10? Usually, no. This year? Sure, why not.
Perhaps it’s more because of the losses as opposed to the wins that we are feeling the Panthers. South Side, Wayne and Warsaw all beat Snider by double digits, as well as a very good Avon team. The only sketchy loss has been Huntington North at its own tournament.
We have to remember this is still a largely young squad, with a sophomore class emerging that is going to be a problem the next two years. Growing pains can be hard…and confusing.
Why Not Higher?
Five losses, including two in the SAC already.
NO. 9 – GARRETT RAILROADERS (9-2, 2-1 NECC)
The Railroaders continue to defy expectations in Year 1 under Logan Traylor. The next win, No. 10, will be the first double-digit victory campaign for the program since 2014-15.
This is a young and hungry group who are only going to get better in the coming years. For now, Garrett looks like a contender in the NECC.
Interestingly, the lone loss so far in the conference was to Angola, the team that Garrett drew to open the NECC Tournament next week.
Why Not Higher?
Strength of schedule still looms large, at least compared to the teams above them in the power poll.
NO. 10 – NORWELL KNIGHTS (8-2, 1-0 NE8)
Here come the Knights! With five-straight wins, Norwell is starting to catch some eyes in the area. Going to DeKalb and getting a double-digit win just before Christmas started the ball rolling, and it has continued heading into Saturday’s showdown at Leo.
Norwell’s next two league games are against the aforementioned Lions and New Haven. We will find out a lot about Coach Mike McBride’s squad soon.
Why Not Higher?
Lack of a marquee win (or two).
IN THE CONVERSATION (in alphabetical order)
Adams Central (6-2)
Angola (6-3)
Bluffton (5-3)
Heritage (5-3)
Huntington North (4-5)
Lakeland (7-2)
Leo (5-4)
New Haven (5-6)
Northrop (5-4)
These opinions represent those of Bounce and Outside the Huddle. No opinions expressed on Outside the Huddle represent those of any of our advertisers. Follow Bounce on Twitter at Bounce_OTH
Where’s Manchester? 10-1 and the #3 rated player in your Ft Wayne player rankings?