Last few weeks before everyone starts 0-0 again
Feb. 16—Boys basketball season is coming down to the final stretch and I think there have been plenty of surprises this year.
Sectional 63 was expected to be a three-horse race between Orleans, Loogootee and Barr-Reeve, and right now it looks like well, a three-horse race between Orleans, Loogootee and Barr-Reeve.However, I don't know if anyone expected the photo finish we may have.
In the three-way round-robin between those schools, B-R is 2-0, Orleans is 1-1 and Loogootee is 0-2, but truthfully, those numbers mean almost nothing. B-R's (17-2) two wins have been by five total points and the win over Orleans was in triple OT. Orleans lost to B-R by three and beat Loogootee by three and are currently on a 15-game winning streak coming in at 18-2. Loogootee is 12-7 but had some injury issues late in the season, however, their two losses to B-R and Orleans were again by just five total points and the sectional will be played at Jack Butcher Arena, so whether you 'pick win, place or show', there is a pretty good chance it will be those three teams, but a whole lot will depend on Sunday's draw.
The 3A Sectional 31 doesn't look like we will have too many answers before the draw either. In fact, right now, everyone in that sectional is in double-digit in wins and Washington might be the hottest team in the sectional, having won its last five and seven of its last eight. Early in the year they lost some very close games, however the second half of the year they have won just about all of the tight games they have been, including two-point wins against Bloomfield, Princeton, Gibson Southern and Jasper and a one-point loss to North Posey during that stretch.
North Daviess will most likely be back in Class A next year and at 13-8, might be the biggest surprise in SW Indiana. Having lost all of it scoring, rebounding and leadership from teams that have to be considered the best in school history, their 13 wins (so far) is pretty remarkable. Their last two losses have been by just three total points, so that number could be even more impressive.
Heritage Hills is 17-4 which should make them the favorite based on record, but they have a recent losses to Pike Central and Southridge. They also have a loss to Jasper, a team Washington beat. They have a match up with Princeton on Tuesday which could be a bell-whether for the rest of the sectional. Southridge also has 14 wins and they should get a real test on Saturday against Barr-Reeve, giving folks a good idea on where they stand. Lincoln is 10-12, but has beaten Pike Central meaning there are almost no easy match-ups regardless of the draw. I imagine there will be a lot of people glued to their devices on Sunday at 5 p.m. when the draw come out.
We should congratulate the Barr-Reeve and Washington girls at regional last weekend. Both teams faced potential state champions, however both losses still left more positives than negatives. Both of Barr-Reeve's leading scorers from that game will be returning next season, while WHS loses just one starter to graduation as well. I won't complain about the venue, because both games were loud and well-attended, but I think it should be big enough to hold all four schools' crowds at the same time.
After Sunday, I would say that we should have a pretty good idea what the post season will look like, while spring sports should be getting hot as well.
