IHSAA girls basketball Class 2A sectional preview: Schedule, players to watch, predictions

It is sectional season for Indiana high school girls basketball. Let’s take a closer look at the Class 2A field with storylines, the local matchups, players to watch and predictions.

Insider: 10 takeaways from 2024 IHSAA girls basketball sectional draw

Class 2A

No. 1 team: North Knox (23-1)

North vs. South in Bicknell: Barring upsets, Friday night at North Knox is going to be nutty. The No. 1 Warriors vs. No. 2 South Knox (22-1) in a rematch of their Dec. 2 battle, which North Knox won by five in overtime. Those Warriors nearly upset defending 4A champion Bedford North Lawrence at the end of November and boast a trio of offensive threats with Lexi Primus, Alex McKinley and Brynna Collins. They shoot 43% from the field and 37% from 3, and are on a 15-game win streak.

The Vincennes-based Spartans are led by junior Ella Bobe, who became the program's all-time leading scorer last week with 1,112 career points. She also holds the single-season assists record, which she set last season. South Knox's schedule includes wins over Lafayette Central Catholic, 4A Castle, 3A Corydon Central and 3A Evansville Memorial.

Sectional stacking: The Providence bracket is loaded with three teams in the RPI top 115. Austin (17-6) is the favorite, having beaten both first-round opponent Providence (16-7) and Brownstown Central (14-9) over a three-day stretch in December. Providence has a notable underclassman quartet with sophomores Avery Smith, Addison Smith and Kaia Kailer, plus freshman Jayda Kempf; Brownstown Central has played the toughest schedule among the three.

Harness and the pursuit of a second sectional title: Alli Harness made headlines as a sophomore when she played with two broken wrists to lead Carroll (Flora) (20-3) to a sectional championship. The 5-8 guard is now a senior Western Michigan commit, who recently cleared 2,000 career points and, alongside fellow senior Madison Wagner, has the Cougars positioned as the favorite in the Delphi sectional. However, advancing to regionals will likely take them through Lafayette Central Catholic (12-11), which has played the toughest schedule in 2A.

SECTIONAL PREVIEWS: 4A | 3A | 2A | A

Sectional 40 at Lapel

Team to beat: Lapel (19-4). There have been some growing pains for the Bulldogs as seen during losses to Eastern Hancock and 3A Hamilton Heights. But they've also beaten five 4A teams (including Greenfield-Central and Pendleton Heights) and are 2-0 vs. first-round foe Alexandria, though their first meeting was closer than the 55-45 final. Senior Madelyn Poynter and sophomore Laniah Wills are Lapel's primary engines, but don't overlook the contributions of senior AnnaLee Stow, who had nine points, six boards, seven assists and three steals in the county final vs. Alexandria.

Next best: Alexandria (18-4). The computers really like the Tigers, ranking them ahead of Lapel despite two head-to-head losses and a weaker strength of schedule. However, a win Wednesday would qualify as an upset and doing so will undoubtedly require a monster game from junior Jacklynn Hosier, who has accounted for nearly 45% of her team's scoring (26 ppg, 6 rpg, 5 apg and 6 spg). Fellow junior Lily Harpe ranks second in scoring, rebounds, assists and steals for Alexandria, which generates around 17 steals per game.

Sleeper: Monroe Central (15-7). They'll have to avenge a regular-season loss to Wapahani first, but Monroe Central led Lapel after a quarter last month (undone by a 19-10 second quarter, ultimately lost 46-35). Juniors Sydney Patterson and Kimber Abshear both average around 12-16 ppg. Abshear returned last week after missing the past seven games (per MaxPreps).

Prediction: Lapel over Winchester (9-13)

Sectional 42 at Scecina

Team to beat: Eastern Hancock (21-1). The Royals followed last year's run to their first-ever regional title with a 14-0 start that featured wins over Triton Central, North Decatur, 4A Cathedral, Lapel and 4A Elkhart — the largest school they'd ever faced, until losing to 4A Lawrence North in game two of the holiday doubleheader. EH has five seniors (Sammie Bolding, Ruby White, Brooklyn Willis, Mackenzie O'Neal and Sydney Springman) plus a freshman standout in Kenzie Koch. The top six have fit together seamlessly, with the team averaging around 62 points (46% FG, 34% 3PT, 72% FT), 29 rebounds and over three blocks (the 6-1 White gives them a unique asset inside).

Next best: Triton Central (17-6). This sectional ran through Triton Central from 2018-21. Reasserting their dominance will require the Tigers to upset the third-ranked team in the state. They were hit hard by graduation, but have a very talented sophomore in Maryrose Felling (18 ppg, 5 rpg, 3 apg). She's bolstered by a pair of seniors — Brooklyn Bailey (13 ppg, 8 rpg) and Hailey Harris (7 ppg, 5 rpg) — and a rising freshman in Quinn King, who's been good for six assists per game.

Local notes: Scecina (6-16) has a noteworthy underclassman in freshman Ainsley Brown. She's averaging around 13 points and two steals, with three 20-point performances. Brown scored a career-high 23 points in a four-point win over Tech, then matched that total a couple weeks later in a six-point loss to Attucks. … Riverside (3-12) has won two of three and is 3-3 since mid-December. … Irvington Prep (2-11) set a season-high in scoring en route to its second win of the season against Providence Cristo Rey on Jan. 11. This marks the Ravens' first multi-win season since 2019-20.

Prediction: Eastern Hancock over Scecina. Royals weather through a rugged opener, then cruise Saturday night.

Sectional 43 at Park Tudor

Team to beat: Sheridan (17-5). The Blackhawks — whose only sectional championship came in 2015 — are driven by a strong junior class headlined by Ferris State commit Kenzie Garner, who recently cleared 1,000 career points and set the school's single-season assists record. The 6-0 guard/forward is averaging around a double-double per game, plus five assists and five steals. She's been bolstered by the return of Cecilia Timme, who missed last year due to injury (10 ppg, 4 apg, 3 spg). That top pairing is complemented by Shelby Eaton and Nova Cross, both of whom are good for around 6 ppg.

Next best: University (10-12). The Trailblazers are young with senior Keira Bright and junior Anyah Jordan-Turley joined by five sophomores. They have a well-balanced scoring attack with Jordan-Turley, Charlotte Conyers, Bright and Leah Norvell all averaging around 8-11 ppg, and may receive another boost with sophomore Hannah Grubbs making her way back from injury — she played Tuesday against Heritage Christian after missing the previous 12 games. University has played one of the toughest schedules in 2A.

Sleeper: Covenant Christian (7-16). The Warriors got a tough, but by no means impossible, draw with University in the opening round. They hung with 4A Cathedral in the City semifinals earlier this month (that was really important on the confidence/mental side). Covenant Christian isn't a high-scoring team — juniors Avery Reichart and Vivian Hafner lead the offense — so keeping it a low-scoring game is of the utmost importance (surrendered 60 to University on Jan. 6).

About Park Tudor (9-9): The Panthers play three games in five days leading up to the start of sectionals. They won their first four of the season with seniors Lilly Harris and Claire Webster, sophomore D'aaliyah Kemp and freshman Sydney Squires leading the way.

Prediction: Sheridan over University

Follow Brian Haenchen on Twitter at @Brian_Haenchen.

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Indiana high school girls basketball: Class 2A sectional preview 2024