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School Points Record, HCC Scoring Title In Sight
Published February 22, 2012 | Some noting and quoting as the countdown begins for the start of the Indiana high school boys basketball tournament:
Gary Harris, relaxing before a recent basketball game, needs 36 points to become Hamilton Southeastern High School's career scoring leader/HC Sports Daily photo: Steve Risley.
Records were made to be broken.
And Hamilton Southeastern’s Gary Harris is closing in on a big one, a major school milestone that has withstood the test of time for more than 40 years.
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Friday’s BOYS Basketball SCHEDULE Click on continue reading |
The 6-5 senior is only 36 points away from becoming the school’s all-time scoring leader.
The Michigan State recruit has 1,430 career points. Jack Roudebush, a 1970 graduate, scored 1,465 points.
The multi-talented Harris has scored 500 points so far this season and is averaging 25.0 points per game.
He also should lock up his second consecutive Hoosier Crossroads Conference scoring championship Friday night on Senior Night.
The Royals entertain Lafayette Jeff and Rashad Richardson, who averages 24.3 points.
Also Noteworthy:
• Three Hamilton county boys basketball players rank among the top eight scorers in scoring. University High junior Jordan Pickett averages 26.0 points, followed by Harris and Sheridan junior Tyler Jones (22.9).
• Fishers’ 6-8 senior Tyler Alderman is averaging 3.8 blocked shots. That’s tops in the Hoosier Crossroads Conference.
• Southeastern also can add a school-record 14-game winning streak in Friday’s regular-season finale, and a victory would match last season’s record total of 20 wins. The Royals finished 20-4 a year ago.
Lightning Strikes Again In Sectional Draw
Published February 20, 2012 | What are the odds?
Hamilton Southeastern draws North Central, which is new to the so-called Hamilton County Sectional this
HSE basketball coach Brian Satterfield.
year thanks to the two-year IHSAA realignment, in the first game of Sectional 8.
Just like Southeastern drew North Central in the first game of the girls sectional.
Both Southeastern teams had another thing in common . . . both were No. 1 at the time of the blind draw.
I mean, what are the odds of such a scenario?
I put that question to Jason Wille, the IHSAA sports information director.
“I have no idea what the odds are, but it’s pretty amazing to think about,’’ he said via an email.
North Central coach Doug Mitchell.
The Royals will take it step by step, with hopes they live to play again in the one-and-done tournament format. That’s something the HSE girls were unable to do . . . play again.
As most know, the HSE girls, unbeaten at 20-0, lost to North Central in the sectional opener at Carmel.
Now, it’s the boys turn to take center stage.
Talk about having a Bull’s-Eye on your back. Yeah, it does get bigger.
You’d probably have to go back a long way to find a bigger opening-game match-up, with so much at stake, in the 102 years of the Indiana high school boys basketball tournament.
Again, what are the odds of lightning again striking that box where the little white balls with team names pop up like popcorn, or bingo?
Postseason Is Simply A Different Mentality
Published February 12, 2012 | Some thoughts and observations about high school basketball and the postseason:
We saw the one-and-done scenario in the opening round of the girls sectional, in Class 4A Sectional 8 at Carmel.
Yeah, it wasn’t pretty for top-ranked Hamilton Southeastern.
Unfortunately, what happens in the regular season means nothing. The Lady Royals came into the sectional 20-0. They went home 20-1.
The bottom line is that the postseason is an extremely different mentality.
When it comes to the tournament, you can bounce it all out the arena door. What you did to get to this point simply means nothing.
It’s simply one of those tough-but-hard lessons to learn.
Maybe the postseason should be referred to as one-and-keep-playing instead of one-and-done.
When teams enter the tournament they have to realize that Game No. 1 or any game after that could be the last.
When you lose, you don’t get to practice the next day. You just get to clean out your lockers, and reflect on what could have been. Yeah, those 20 straight wins were impressive, but they’re only a memory when you lose in the tournament, especially in your opener.
Maybe this is what makes the IHSAA basketball tournament so beautiful. Sad, yes, but many contend it’s a thing of beauty because it’s what helped make the postseason in Indiana so special for so many years.
Boys HS Basketball: There’s Plenty Of Parity
Published February 6, 2012 | If there’s ever a year to make an argument against Class Basketball, well, maybe we’re seeing it.
Welcome to the 2011-12 season, folks.
We’re seeing possibly the most parity since the IHSAA scrapped the single-class system in the 1997-98 season.
Is there really all that much difference in talent? Arguably not as much as one might have expected coming into the current season.
Class A No. 1 Park Tudor put a butt whipping on then-Class 4A No. 1 North Central in late December.
Class 2A Bowman Academy lost to North Central and Cathedral each by three points, and beat 4A No. 8 Lawrence Central by eight points.
Last Friday night, Bowman Academy, the 2010 Class A state champion, gave 4A No. 1 Hamilton Southeastern fits in the first half; but the Eagles, who scored 72 points, could not overcome the combined 71 points by Zak Irvin and Gary Harris and Jacobby Bledsoe.
Muncie Central is ranked No. 1 in Class 3A. The Bearcats have beaten several 4A teams (they lost twice to Southeastern, one loss coming in overtime; North Central beat them by four and Pendleton Heights beat them by four in OT). Pretty competitive team I’d say, and I think the Bearcats could do quite well if we still had a single-class tournament.
Actually, I can’t imagine Muncie Central not winning the 3A title this season. Yeah, the Bearcats are that good.
Same must be said for fourth-ranked Bowman Academy. After seeing the Eagles, I can understand why the private Gary school has trouble scheduling opponents and is forced to travel distances to find quality competition. It stands to reason that not many teams want to play them.
They also travel with a huge entourage. Five busses made the trip to Southeastern.
Indy Alive With Sounds, Scenes Of Super Fun
Published February 1, 2012 | 
Hamilton County Sports Daily photos: Mark Morrow.
Some thoughts and observations during a recent early-morning trip through Super Bowl wonderland in Downtown Indianapolis:
First of all, you don’t have to have a ticket to Super Bowl XLVI to enjoy what could be a once-in-a-lifetime experience for Indy.
There are many things to see and do while leading up to Sunday’s big moment at Lucas Oil Stadium.
This ice sculpture can be seen in a booth on Georgia Street.
And Indy is alive . . . day and night. Yep, really alive.
It’s a football paradise for Football Fanatics, and for people who just might like to sleep all day and party all night.
Georgia Street runs from Capitol Street to Banker’s Life Arena, home of the Pacers. Now the street itself is a destination. It may stay this way. Maybe it’ll become a version of Bourbon Street (New Orleans), or Beal Street (Memphis). Who knows?
The funniest thing I saw (maybe I should say saddest thing) was around 10 a.m., when an old-timer was sorta staggering and spilling contents from his cup with nearly every step.
Georgia Street is just a few steps around the corner from St. John’s Catholic Church. There was a sign in front of the church that read: Come In And Spend Some Time With Jesus.
I’m guessing that was not a religious calling for the old-timer I mentioned.
And . . . did I say he was already in Party Mode, and it was only 10 in the morning?
Girls Basketball Pairings Show On Sunday
Published January 27, 2012 | The annual blind draw for the 37th Annual Indiana high school girls state tournament is Sunday at 7 p.m. The pairings can may be seen on television, heard on radio or viewed via webstream at
Hamilton SE coach Chris Huppenthal will be part of the live program/HC Sports Daily file photo.
www.ihsaatv.org . The local television station is WTTV-4 for the 90-minute show.
Chris Huppenthal, coach of Class 4A No. 1 Hamilton Southeastern will be part of the live program, along with area coach Julie Shelton of Mt. Vernon (Fortville).
STATE TOURNAMENT DATES
Sectionals: Feb. 7, 10-11
Carmel (4A), Indpls. Arlington and Yorktown (3A), Delphi (2A), Bethesda Christian (Class A)
Regionals: Feb. 18
Kokomo (4A), Bellmont and Lebanon (3A), Tipton (2A), Southeastern Shelby (Class A)
Semistates: Feb. 25
North Sites
Plymouth and Warsaw
South Sites
Southport and Bedford North Lawrence
State Finals: March 3
Hulman Center, Terre Haute
Too Bad Fishers’ 2 HS Gyms Are Smaller Venues
Published January 24, 2012 | One thing we should have learned from watching the recent Hamilton Southeastern-Fishers game is that a bigger venue is needed.
The game reportedly was sold out by 6:15 last Saturday night, and yet people were in line still trying to buy tickets.
There were roughly 3,000 fans in the stands at Fishers. Those on the floor were squeezing and nudging folks to find room. You could barely move. Even getting to rest rooms was an adventure.
Seriously, that could have easily been an additional 1,000-spectator gate. And a game of such magnitude between such heated rivals promises to continue to grow in interest annually.
Both Fishers and Southeastern have nice small(er) gyms, but . . .
One cannot help but wonder what the administration was thinking when it built the new Fishers High School. Why didn’t it built a 4,000-to-5,500 arena? That would have assured at least a boys sectional in town probably every other season. It would appear to be a costly decision, based on gate revenue potential.
And as big as basketball has always been in our state, why wouldn’t you want to have a bigger venue to ensure your place in line for a sectional. Especially in such an affluent, family-oriented and sports-minded burg.
I’m just guessing those making the decisions in the Hamilton Southeastern Schools District at the time were worried about making a big difference between the in-town Fishers schools, thus keeping gymnasium capacity pretty equal.
Looking back, I think it was a questionable decision. The way it’s turning out with two such competitive teams in town, well, you get the picture.
Stirring Up Some Spicy Super Bowl Mix
Published January 18, 2012 | Just thinking out loud as I fight a cold while wondering how much snow likely will blanket Downtown Indianapolis for the Super Bowl:
Speaking of the Super Bowl, what could prove to be a real kick in the fanny to the Irsays is that the city that used to be the home of the Colts has a team that could wind up playing in Lucas Oil Stadium in a couple of weeks.
Yep, that same Baltimore, the city that awakened one cold morning in 1984 only to learn that papa Irsay left in the middle of a cold, winter night for Indianapolis, transported by our own Mayflower Movers.
What seems ironic now is that the Ravens are one victory away from coming to town to play for the NFL’s top prize.
Since Jim Irsay pretty much holds the keys to the front door at “The Luke,’’ I wonder if he’d be on hand to let them in? I mean once a Colt, well, there’s always going to be that tie with Baltimore, right?
Like the Colts were this season, that’s still not a warm and fuzzy story . . . and never will be. Time may heal, but not so much in this case for Baltimore folks.
The team many of us thought a year ago could possibly pull a Butler and play for all the marbles in its own home town, was left out in the cold in a season that had little suspense, other than whether the Colts would be bad enough to get the No. 1 pick in the 2012 NFL draft.
Well, we all know that answer.
Revitalizing Single-Class Basketball A Pipe Dream
Published January 14, 2012 | Winning the single-class basketball championship carried more meaning that just being No. 1 in the state.
It was a cultural experience, one that youngsters today will never witness or fully be able to appreciate because of Class Basketball, which became a reality in the 1997-98 season.
Ah, the memories of the good old days, you say? Well, they are just that — only memories.
Unless you’ve been on an extended vacation, you probably heard about a female senator from Oldenburg, who’s taking the issue to the state legislature, with hopes of revitalizing basketball back to its original single-class system.
She does make several good points. She cited enthusiasm for basketball and decreased travel, and an opportunity for economic development reasons for going back to the old format.
In my opinion, the one thing that is missing since we went to Class Basketball is the lack of rivalries from many of the local sectionals. Too many teams have to travel to far-away places, including Evansville and up North. The cost of gasoline is real. Very real.
Elks Lodge Hoop Shoot Winners Announced
Published January 10, 2012 | Hamilton County Sports Daily
The annual Noblesville Elks Lodge #576 Hoop Shoot Free-Throw Contest was held on Saturday, Jan. 7 for students residing in Hamilton County.
NOBLESVILLE ELKS #576
| Click on continue reading for list of WINNERS and PHOTOGRAPHS |
Each contestant shot 25 free throws in the local state qualifier held at Guerin High School under the direct6ion of Golden Eagles varsity basketball coach Pete Smith.
The six winners qualify to advance to the District Competition at Rockville on Sunday, Jan. 29. The District Contest will feature Lodge champions from the other Indiana Lodges within the West Central District. Competition begins at 12 noon.
Trophies were presented to the top three shooters in each category.
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