The girls basketball sectionals were finally completed last night, so now it is on to the regionals on Saturday. In the 4A regionals, there are some competitive matchups and a few not-so-competitive games. At Valpo, Merrilville, South Bend Clay, and Elkhart Memorial all have a chance to advance to the semi-state. At Huntington, all four teams have a shot at the title. At BNL, Floyd Central, Mooresville, and Bloomington South have their sites set on the semi-state. Defending state champion Ben Davis is at Southport for the regional. They start off against Franklin Central, at team they easily defeated during the regular season. The first game at Southport is between Westfield and Warren Central. That is a game that Warren should win as long as they can keep their focus due to the methodical slow-down offense of Westfield.
My picks for the regionals:
4A - Merillville, McCutheon, Ben Davis, Mooresville
3A - Hammond Gavit, FW Elmhurst, Rushville, Ev Memorial
2A - Garrett, Oak Hill, Heritage Christian, Austin
1A - FW Canterbury, Turkey Run, Waldron, Vincennes Rivet
But the big story of the day is the opening games of the college baseball season. Ball State goes on the road to face 2009 CWS Final Four and current #15 Arkansas for a three game series. Today's game is at 405p. Brad Piatt gets the start for the Cardinals. The weather is supposed to be in the mid-40s for the weekend, but it will be rainy. Other early battles between ranked teams include #3 Virgina traveling to #16 East Carolina and #5 Rice going to #30 Stanford.
Friday, February 19, 2010
Thursday, February 18, 2010
Ball State runs out to big lead, then loses it, but comes back for a great win!
The MAC West division leaders played last night as Ball State hosted Central Michigan. BSU came out of the doors quickly to take a 36-25 halftime lead. That lead was extended to 15 points early in the second half. However, the Chippewas went on a 18-0 run over an 8 minute stretch to take a 43-40 lead with 10 minutes left. BSU stormed back with a 14-5 spurt to lead 57-52 with 3 minutes left and held on for a 69-63 victory. The win puts BSU in sole possession of first place in the MAC West. They hold a one-game lead over CMU and a two game lead over the other two directional Michigan squads. All of the MAC schools are participating in the Bracket Busters over the weekend. Ball State will host Tennessee-Martin on Saturday at 2pm.
All but two girls sectionals are now complete. Sectional 28 and 42 have their finals tonight. Last night in 4A, Pendleton Heights beat Connersville in OT and Floyd Central defeated Seymour. 3A #1 Rushville beat 3A #3 Hamilton Heights 76-69. I will have regional previews tomorrow.
All but two girls sectionals are now complete. Sectional 28 and 42 have their finals tonight. Last night in 4A, Pendleton Heights beat Connersville in OT and Floyd Central defeated Seymour. 3A #1 Rushville beat 3A #3 Hamilton Heights 76-69. I will have regional previews tomorrow.
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
Sectionals still delayed
There are still some sectional finals that have yet to be played in the girls basketball tournament. Sectional 8 between Connersville and Pendleton Heights has been rescheduled (again) for Wednesday. Sectional 15 at Floyd Central has also been postponed to Wednesday. The sectional 27 battle between Rushville and Hamilton Heights, and sectionals 28, 44, 55, 58, 60, and 61 are also ppd to Wednesday. The Shenandoah sectional still has four teams left. The semi-finals have been rescheduled to Wednesday with the finals on Thursday.
Games of note that were played on Tuesday included Bloomington South defeating cross-town rival North 45-32. The battle between two of the top 3 teams in class A was a barn burner as Vincennes Rivet defeated Barr-Reeve 50-48 in three overtimes. Rivet hit a three pointer at the buzzer in the second overtime to push the game to a third overtime. Barr-Reeve was 8-of-24 from the free throw line. Barr-Reeve finished the season 21-2 with both losses to Rivet by a total of 7 points. Rivet continues their season at the North Daviees regional on Saturday, as they try to follow up their state runner-up finish from last year.
Games of note that were played on Tuesday included Bloomington South defeating cross-town rival North 45-32. The battle between two of the top 3 teams in class A was a barn burner as Vincennes Rivet defeated Barr-Reeve 50-48 in three overtimes. Rivet hit a three pointer at the buzzer in the second overtime to push the game to a third overtime. Barr-Reeve was 8-of-24 from the free throw line. Barr-Reeve finished the season 21-2 with both losses to Rivet by a total of 7 points. Rivet continues their season at the North Daviees regional on Saturday, as they try to follow up their state runner-up finish from last year.
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
Girls sectional play still going on
The weather in the southern part of the state has caused the sectional games to be delayed at least twice. There are still 3 sectional finals to be played in class 4A. Pendleton Heights and Connersville play in Sectional 8. The two Bloomington schools battle it out in sectional 14. #4 Floyd Central hosts Seymour in sectional 15. But the biggest games are at the 3A and 1A levels. In Sectional 27, 3A #1 Rushville plays 3A #3 Hamilton Heights at Shelbyville. In 1A, #1 Vincennes Rivet plays #3 Barr-Reeve at Loogootee. I'll have regional previews later on in the week, once the pairings have been finalized.
Sunday, February 14, 2010
What a difference a year makes
The Brownsburg girls basketball team beat a heavily-favored Decatur Central squad in the sectional semi-finals on Saturday morning. The Bulldogs took control early, leading 27-13 at one point in the first half. However, DC was not finished and came back to tie the game three times in the 4th quarter before a Decatur Central technical foul and a few key blocks by freshman center Stephanie Mavunga sealed the 45-40 victory. Mavunga and Lindsey Dall led the team with 14 points each. Ryne Carr added 11.
In the sectional finals, the Bulldogs played Ben Davis, who is ranked #1 in the state and in the top 5 of most national polls. BBurg held it close for a half, only down 17-14 last in the second quarter. But, as they always do, the Giants used a run to take a 20-point lead in the third quarter. The Bulldogs season ended with a 60-42 defeat. Mavunga led the team with 14 points. Dall scored 8 and Morgan Miller had 7. The Dogs finished with a 18-6 record.
That 18-6 record comes after a 2008-09 season where the Dogs were 4-17. The team had the biggest improvement in the entire state as shown here. We lost one player from the 08-09 team and replaced her with a 6-foot-2 freshman that led the team in scoring. Plus, almost everyone form the 08-09 team returned with an extra year of experience and chemistry of playing together. Next year, we lose three players from this squad, but only one that had significant playing time. Leah Freestone graduates after scoring 114 points in her senior season (5 ppg) and 329 career points. She was a three-year starter and added great shooting from the perimeter. She will be missed.
In the sectional finals, the Bulldogs played Ben Davis, who is ranked #1 in the state and in the top 5 of most national polls. BBurg held it close for a half, only down 17-14 last in the second quarter. But, as they always do, the Giants used a run to take a 20-point lead in the third quarter. The Bulldogs season ended with a 60-42 defeat. Mavunga led the team with 14 points. Dall scored 8 and Morgan Miller had 7. The Dogs finished with a 18-6 record.
That 18-6 record comes after a 2008-09 season where the Dogs were 4-17. The team had the biggest improvement in the entire state as shown here. We lost one player from the 08-09 team and replaced her with a 6-foot-2 freshman that led the team in scoring. Plus, almost everyone form the 08-09 team returned with an extra year of experience and chemistry of playing together. Next year, we lose three players from this squad, but only one that had significant playing time. Leah Freestone graduates after scoring 114 points in her senior season (5 ppg) and 329 career points. She was a three-year starter and added great shooting from the perimeter. She will be missed.
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