Perhaps no story in basketball has been as intriguing or as unnoticed as the turnaround at Center Grove, which went into No. 2 Carmel on Friday and walked away with a stunning 60-40 win. Now sitting at 9-1, the Trojans are on every 4A team’s radar.
The quick, athletic Greyhounds jumped on Center Grove early, holding the Trojans scoreless until 2:39 left in the first quarter and taking a 16-6 lead after the first quarter. Center Grove, a long team that features several players between 6-foot-4 and 6-7, clamped down on defense the rest of the way, holding Carmel to 8-of-25 shooting in the final 24 minutes and single-digit point totals in each of the last three periods.
Center Grove shot 52.5 percent from the field in the game, led by junior Andrew Smeathers with 17 points. Kyle Barth, one of just two seniors on the roster, tallied 15, while J.T. Barton added 13. Point guard Jonny Marlin, the Trojans' leader at both ends of the floor, posted 11 points and six rebounds. Scott Laskowski led Carmel in scoring with 13 points, while Alex Payne contributed 11 in the loss.
Center Grove has now won four games in a row, its only loss coming to No. 1 Bloomington South (10-0), 67-53. The Trojans have several days to prepare for their next contest, which will come on Friday in the second round of the Johnson County tournament against the winner of Indiana Creek (2-6) and Greenwood (1-6). The other bye in the six-team tournament goes to Franklin (7-2), which will play the winner of Whiteland (4-5) and Edinburgh (5-4).
Danville seniors earn first county title
3A No. 2 Danville earned its first Hendricks County title since 2005 with a 58-49 win over Avon, staving off an aggressive Oriole team that was blown out in their previous meeting on Dec. 4, 80-54.
Much like their first matchup, Danville started sluggishly against Avon, managing just 10 first-quarter points. The Warriors then turned it on in the third quarter, taking the lead for good and outscoring the Orioles 21-11 behind an eight-point quarter from Purdue recruit Travis Carroll.
Carroll led all scorers in the game with 23 points, while tallying 15 rebounds. Juniors Juan Sarver, 14 points, and Dominique Blackmon, 12 points, each had big games against the Orioles. Seniors Michael Humphrey and Jordan Weidner each dropped in 10 points against Avon, but Weidner posted 23 against Brownsburg in the previous round, while Humphrey added 13.
Danville will try to extend the unbeaten streak on Friday at North Montgomery (4-6).
Mount Vernon wins county, hands New Castle first loss
3A No. 6 Mount Vernon has compiled a list of impressive victories this year with perhaps the best coming on Saturday at 4A undefeated New Castle, which the Marauders bounced 52-42 in overtime.
Thus far Mount Vernon has traveled to 4A Pendleton Heights (8-3), has toppled 4A titans Munster (9-1) and Zionsville (9-4) at neutral sites, and has defended its home court against 3A rival Lapel (7-3). The Marauders toppled New Palestine and won back-to-back games against Greenfield-Central before Saturday's thumping of New Castle. Seniors Daniel Turner and P.J. Hubert, both averaging over 15 points per game, paced Mount Vernon against the Trojans, with Hubert scoring 15 and Turner posting 22 points and 10 rebounds. Mount Vernon will next be in action on Friday against Rushville (5-4).
Boys wrap-up
Pendleton Heights earned its first Madison County championship with a 51-44 win over Anderson. The Arabians were led by Nathan Hendershot with 23 points.
Tyler Wheeler hit a pair of free throws to help Hamilton Southeastern (8-2) edge Muncie Central 49-47. Wheeler had 11 points and five rebounds while sophomore Gary Harris had 13 points, eight rebounds, and six steals.
Jeff Howard scored 20 points, including the tying basket at the end of regulation, in a 52-45 overtime win against Broad Ripple. Maurice Fuller score seven of his 17 points in overtime for the Shamrocks. Fuller also had the game-winning basket against Fishers on Friday in a 68-66 win that took six overtimes to decide.
Lebanon (6-3) scored a 71-61 victory over Frankfort behind a 21-point, 10-rebound performance by Alex Prittie.
Austin Ethrington had a game-high 23 points, including 12 in the fourth quarter, as Hamilton Heights (7-3) topped Taylor 51-46.
Girls basketball: Defense powers Westfield to 15-0
4A No. 6 Westfield boasts the top defense in the state amongst 4A teams, and it was on full display Saturday, as the Shamrocks held off Plainfield, 37-32.
Westfield stifled the Quakers, who shot just 18.5 percent from the field (10-of-54). Freshman star Jenn Anderson led the Shamrocks with nine points, over five below her average. Seniors Jenna Erhman (eight points) and Rachel Evans (seven) provided just enough of a spark for Westfield, which improved to 15-0 on the season.
The Shamrocks should be well-seasoned heading into sectionals, as they finish off the regular season with a three-game road trip to Pendleton Heights (11-3), Fishers (10-4) and Brownsburg (11-4), followed by a pair of home games against McCutcheon (11-4) and Kokomo (12-0).
Girls wrap-up
Cathy Doyle dropped in 17 points as Bishop Chatard (9-3) beat Guerin Catholic 55-24.
Mooresville got 24 points from Jama Sharp and 23 points from Maegan Callaway as the Pioneers knocked off Franklin 68-46 on Friday.
Pendleton Heights won the Madison County tournament 58-20 behind 22 points from Hannah Douglas.
Katie Brewer posted 19 points and 13 boards for Roncalli (7-6) in a 44-32 win over Beech Grove (8-5).
A 20-2 run spanning the first and second quarters gave Fishers (10-4) a 55-40 victory over North Central (7-7). Shanika Maddox had a monster game with 28 points and 13 rebounds.
