Topic: Basketball
2023IHSAAB
113th Annual IHSAA (Indiana) Boys Basketball Final Class 1A, 2A, 3A, &4A
Gainbridge Fieldhouse
Indianapolis, IN
March 25, 2023
© 2023 Ron Harrison
Southwood vs. Indianapolis Lutheran (Boys) Class 1A Championship
Southwood coach Christian Perry started the following lineup: 6-3 Sr. Cole Winer, 6-2 Jr. Will Winer, 6-4 Sr. Dylan Stout, 6-0 Sr. Nathan Lehner, and 6-1 Sr. Jason Oprisek. Indianapolis Lutheran coach Remus Woods countered with 6-3 So. Cayden Loescher, 5-11 Sr. Durray Smith, 6-5 Sr. Kaiden Patterson, 5-10 So. LJ Ward, and 6-1 Sr, Aiden Alialy.
Indianapolis Lutheran outscored Southwood 36-16 in the second quarter on their way to a 97-66 victory. Indianapolis Lutheran shot 50.7% from the field including six of 21 from the three point line. The Saints connected on 17 of 20 free throws, pulled down 52 rebounds, and scored 12 points off 24 Southwood turnovers. Southwood shot 37.3% from the field including one of 11 from beyond the arc. The Knights connected on 15 of 28 free throws, pulled down 40 rebounds, and scored 17 points off 18 Indianapolis Lutheran turnovers.
Cayden Loescher led a balanced Indianapolis Lutheran scoring attack with 22 points, 10 rebounds, five assists, and two blocked shots. Durray Smith added 21 points including five three point baskets, four rebounds, and two assists. LJ Ward recorded 17 points, seven rebounds, seven assists, six steals, and four blocked shots. 6-5 Sr. Kameron Patterson chipped in with 15 points, eight rebounds, six assists, and two blocked shots. Kaiden Patterson added 10 points, seven rebounds, and two assists.
Jason Oprisek led Southwood with 17 points, five rebounds, and two steals. Cole Winer added 15 points and six rebounds. Will Winer recorded 13 points, six rebounds, and six assists. Nathan Lehner chipped in with eight points and six rebounds. Dylan Stout added eight points, eight rebounds, two assists, three steals, three blocked shots.
Southwood - 10,16,23,17,66
Indianapolis Lutheran -9,36,32,20,97
Southwood - (66) – C. Winer 15, W, Winer 13, Stout 8, Lehner 8, Oprisek 17, Denney 4, Wilcox 1.
Indianapolis Lutheran - (97) – Loescher 22, Smith 21, Kai. Patterson 10, Ward 17, Alialy 6, Kam. Patterson 15, Jones 4, Ervin 2.
Fort Wayne Blackhawk Christian vs. Linton-Stockton (Boys) Class 2A Championship
Fort Wayne Blackhawk Christian coach Matt Roth started the following lineup: 6-8 So. Kellen Pickett, 6-5 Jr. Isaac Smith, 6-6 Sr. Josh Furst, 6-3 Sr. Jimmy Davidson, and 6-4 Sr. Gage Sefton. Linton-Stockton coach Noah Hawkins countered with 6-6 Sr. Joey Hart, 6-5 Jr. Braden Walters, 6-4 Sr. Nathan Frady, 6-3 Fr. Paul Oliver, and 6-3 Sr. Logan Webb.
Fort Wayne Blackhawk Christian captured their thid championship in five seasons with a 52-45 victory over Linton-Stockton. However this one did not come easy as Linton-Stockton behind the hot shooting of Joey Hart (18 first half points) led 29-18 at halftime and 35-33 after three quarters. The Braves ramped up their defense after the intermission and used Kellen Pickett to closely shadow Joey Hart and they outscored Linton-Stockton 19-10 in the final quarter to earn the win.
Fort Wayne Blackhawk Christian shot 42.5% from the field including six of 20 from the three point line. The Braves connected on 12 of 19 free throws, pulled down 32 rebounds, and scored six points off five Linton-Stockton turnovers. Linton-Stockton shot 26,4% from the field including six of 22 from beyond the arc. The Miners were only four of 27 from the field in the second half. The Miners connected on 11 of 13 free throws, pulled down 33 rebounds, and scored eight points off 10 Fort Wayne Blackhawk Christian turnovers.
Kellen Pickett led Fort Wayne Blackhawk Christian with 19 points including two three point baskets, five of seven free throws, nine rebounds, and four assists. Gage Sefton added 16 points and eight rebounds. Jimmy Davidson recorded nine points, seven rebounds, and two assists.
Joey Hart led Linton-Stockton with 23 points including five three point baskets. Logan Webb added 11 points including six of six free throws, and five rebounds. Nathan Frady recorded three points, 12 rebounds, and four assists.
Fort Wayne Blackhawk Christian - 11,7,15,19,52
Linton-Stockton - 14,15,6,10,45
Fort Wayne Blackhawk Christian - (52) – Pickett 19, Smith 3, Furst 2, Davidson 9, Sefton 16, Muldoon 3.
Linton-Stockton - (45) – Hart 23, Walters 2, Frady 3, Oliver 4, Webb 11, Franklin 2.
Northwood vs. Guerin Catholic (Boys) Class 3A Championship
Northwood coach Aaron Wolfe started the following lineup: 6-6 Sr. Ian Raasch, 6-2 Sr. Brock Bontrager, 6-8 So. Tyler Raasch, 5-11 Jr. Ethan Wolfe, and 6-3 Sr. Cade Brenner. Guerin Catholic coach Bobby Allen countered with 6-7 So. Bryson Cardinal, 6-2 Jr. Jack Cherry, 6-7 Jr. Dylan Murans, 5-11 Sr. Kamea Chandler, and 6-0 Jr. Robert Sorensen.
Northwood defeated Guerin Catholic 66-63 in overtime. Guerin Catholic trailed 44-35 after three quarters but rallied to force overtime. Northwood shot 46.9% from the field including eight of 18 from the three point line. The Panthers connected on 12 of 15 free throws, pulled down 30 rebounds, and scored 14 points off 11 Guerin Catholic turnovers. Guerin Catholic shot 42.9% from the field including four of 17 from beyond the arc. The Golden Eagles connected on 17 of 19 free throws, pulled down 24 rebounds, and scored 22 points off 13 Northwood turnovers.
Cade Brenner led Northwood with 28 points including five three point baskets, five of six free throws, six rebounds, and two assists. Tyler Raasch added 14 points, 13 rebounds, two steals, and five blocked shots. Ian Raasch recorded 13 points including five of six free throws, three rebounds, and three assists. Ethan Wolfe chipped in with nine points on three three point baskets and five assists. Brock Bontrager pulled down seven rebounds and dished out three assists.
Kamea Chandler led Guerin Catholic with 22 points, two rebounds, four assists, and three steals. Jack Cherry added 15 points including two three point baskets, five of five free throws, and three rebounds. Robert Sorensen recorded eight points, four rebounds, and two assists. 6-2 Sr. Ty Sanders chipped in with seven points and two steals. Dylan Murans added six points and eight rebounds.
Northwood - 18,17,9,8,14,66
Guerin Catholic - 7,20,8,17,11,63
Northwood - (66) – I. Raasch 13, Bontrager 2, T. Raasch 14, Wolfe 9, Brenner 28.
Guerin Catholic - (63) – Cardinal 0, Cherry 15, Murans 6, Chandler 22, Sorensen 8, Parker 5, Sanders 7.
Kokomo vs. Ben Davis (Boys) Class 4A Championship
Kokomo coach John Peckinpaugh started the following lineup: 6-4 Sr. Patrick Hardimon, 6-2 Sr. Shayne Spear, 6-10 Jr. Flory Bidunga, 5-8 Jr. Reis Beard, and 6-0 Sr. Zavion Bellamy. Ben Davis coach Don Carlisle countered with 6-5 Sr. Shaun Arnold, 6-3 Sr. Sheridan Sharp, 6-9 Sr. Zane Doughty, 6-0 So. Mark Zackery IV, and 6-1 Sr. Clay Butler III.
Ben Davis concludes their undefeated season with a 53-41 victory over Kokomo. Ben Davis shot 44.4% from the field including five of 13 from the three point line. The Giants connected on eight of 12 free throws, pulled down 23 rebounds, and scored 21 points off 15 Kokomo turnovers. Kokomo shot 42.2% from the field including one of 10 from beyond the arc. The Wildkats connected on two of 13 free throws, pulled down 34 rebounds, and scored eight points off eight Ben Davis turnovers.
Zane Doughty led Ben Davis with 20 points including 10 of 13 from the field, three rebounds, and two blocked shots. Mark Zackery IV added 16 points including three three point baskets, three rebounds, and two steals. Shaun Arnold recorded 12 points including two three point baskets, four of four free throws, two assists, and two steals. Sheridan Sharp dished out eight assists.
Flory Bidunga led Kokomo with 19 points, 11 rebounds, and five blocked shots. Zavion Bellamy added nine points, eight rebounds, and three assists. Shayne Spear recorded five points and four rebounds. Patrick Hardimon chipped in with four points, six rebounds, and two blocked shots.
Kokomo - 10,7,16,8,41
Ben Davis - 18,10,8,17,53
Kokomo - (41) – Hardimon 4, Spear 5, Bidunga 19, Beard 0, Bellamy 9, Rogers 2, Barker 2.
Ben Davis - (53) – Arnold 12, Sharp 1, Doughty 20, Zackery IV 16, Butler III 0, Windham 4.
Acknowledgements
A special thanks to the Event Stats Crew for the comprehensive stats provided for these games.
Please feel free to send your comments and questions concerning the event, teams, or players to me at prephoops@yahoo.com.
Ron Harrison’s reports on this and other basketball events appear on kyprephoops.com.