CLASS 1A: KOUTS VS MONROE CENTRAL
WHERE AND WHEN?: Saturday at 10:00 am ET at Lafayette Jefferson
KOUTS (23-4, 6-1 in PCC): The always-positively consistent Kouts program under Kevin Duzan did it again last Saturday, after defeating Tri-County, 56 to 45.
It was not the prettiest day offensively for the high-powered Kouts Mustangs as the team shot 35% from the field. Nonetheless, despite a slower day from leading scorer Lucas Kleckner, other pieces like Eli Harper, Landon Garrett, and Billy Miller picked up the slack. The 6’3 Harper, despite his 4 of 20 day from the field, wrangled in 19 rebounds and still had a double-double. Garrett shot the ball best on the squad and scored a game-high 17 points. The freshman, Miller, added 12 in his first taste of Regional action.
Depth is often challenging to come by at the smaller school levels. Yes, you can have a star like Kleckner and a proven head coach like Duzan, but a few other productive pieces to the puzzle can make the difference. Many can say it did last Saturday.
The Mustangs will now giddy up towards its chance at a second-ever Semi-State title and the first since the 2021 season.
MONROE CENTRAL (19-6, 7-2 in Mid-Eastern Conference): Longtime Blue River head coach, Brian Klein, has had a successful first winter with the Golden Bears. Overall, Klein sports a 277-216 record in his 21st year as a head coach, and more notably won his first Regional title in his career in year one with Monroe Central.
The Golden Bears may have one of the best players in the class, if not the state, in Easton Foster. The 6’6 senior forward averages 21.7 points, 10 rebounds, 2.3 steals, and 3.2 blocks a night. Better yet, Foster shoots 63% from the field, 78% from the line, and 40% from three. Budding freshman Luke Morgan and juniors Tashaun Beatty and Justus Ullom are names to look out for as well.
In regards to previous squads, this year’s Monroe Central team is one of the more memorable. Its win over Daleville meant the Golden Bears would win their first Regional title since 2010 and only its second in program history. Better yet, this program had suffered two consecutive losing seasons before this winter, which further credits the work of the players and coaching staff heading into the 2024-25 season. The Golden Bears are also arguably playing its best basketball up to this point, as the closest margin in its four tournament games was against Daleville, which was decided by eight points.
More history will hope to be written for Monroe Central’s sake, as they now will be gunning for its first-ever Semi-State title.
WHO DOES THE WINNER PLAY?: Triton (23-4) or Clinton Prairie (24-2) at 8 pm ET.
CLASS 2A: 21ST CENTURY VS WAPAHANI
WHERE AND WHEN?: Saturday at 10:00 am CT at Michigan City
21ST CENTURY (20-6): The Cougars took advantage of a 22 to 9 fourth-quarter deficit in its favor to blow open its game last Saturday against Fort Wayne Luers, en route to 21st Century’s third regional title in four seasons. This is the first regional title under head coach James Scott.
Despite the size disadvantage discussed in the Regional previews, 21st’s two stars, Lemetrius Williams and Terrence Hayes did a little bit of everything in the win. Starting with Williams, who crossed the 1,000-point career mark in the win, the senior grabbed 11 boards, scored nine points, dished out six assists, and blocked five shots. Hayes paced the team with 17 points in addition to his five rebounds, four assists, two steals, and four blocks. Junior Jacoby Donaldson made his presence known as well.
The Cougars do have some threats beyond the arc but are more so a physical group that makes their money inside – as Scott’s squad shot 55% from two with only three made 3-pointers in the win against Luers. An unsung reason for the Cougars’ inside presence can be the recent play of Kayleb Young, a 6’8 sophomore who last Saturday only played in his fourth varsity game for 21st. Young answered those concerns about the Cougars’ lack of size with eight points and four rebounds, and more so offering more lineup flexibility for Scott’s squad moving forward.
WAPAHANI (26-1, 9-0 in Mid-Eastern Conference): Matt Luce leads the Raiders with an astounding 335-98 career record in his 18th season at the school. During that same time frame, Wapahani has only had ten or more losses in a season once. That said, similar to 21st, this is a program that is going through a successful stretch of its own, highlighted by three consecutive Regional Championships and the top spot in the 2A class in numerous statewide polls.
On the floor, junior point guard Camden Bell leads the charge with 17.8 points per game and a mesmerizing 51% clip from beyond the arc. Experience for Bell won’t be an issue, as he will gear up for his 84th career game with the team. Coach Luce’s son, Nate, has had an impressive senior season with 15.2 points a contest and shooting 46% from three. Nate also knows a thing or two about experience with 106 career games played. Eli Andrews and Brock Zickgraf pose as some taller wings/guards for Wapahani, as they are the top two on the team leaderboard for rebounds a game.
Wapahani’s 26 wins in 2024-25 marks the third consecutive winter with more than 25 wins. They also have not had a losing season since the 2006-07 campaign. Despite the nearly two decades of success, the Raiders seek its second consecutive and only the second-ever Semi-State Championship in Wapahani boys basketball history.
WHO DOES THE WINNER PLAY?: Manchester (23-2) or Jimtown (16-10) at 7:30 CT.
CLASS 3A: EAST CHICAGO CENTRAL VS DELTA
WHERE AND WHEN?: Saturday at noon ET at Logansport
ECC (20-8, 2-1 in GLAC): The high-flying Cardinals put on a spectacle against the Hanover Central Wildcats, leading to its first Regional Championship since the State Championship-winning 2007 squad.
Led by the ever-efficient Dominique Murphy, other under-the-radar names like Jamarie Pollard and Gregory Williams further pushed the narrative of the overall strength of East Chicago’s depth. Alongside Murphy’s 28 points (and nine rebounds), Williams and Pollard poured in 11 and 12 points respectively. Keontaye Bell added 12 of his own along with eight assists as the team’s main distributor. Junior guard Joseph Watkins has stepped up in the later half of the year with major minutes on the defensive end.
As a team, the Cardinals shot perfectly from the line, 63% from inside the arc, and 38% from three. Those are three numbers that third-year Head Coach Alaa Mroueh can certainly live with moving forward.
When East Chicago Central is rolling, the overall state of basketball in Northwest Indiana is in a good spot. Yes, the Cardinals will take on a tough Delta team come Saturday and the goal at the end of the day is a successful trip to Indy. However, it can be said that this current Cardinal squad has a few ingredients similar to that team from ’07.
DELTA (17-7, 3-4 in Hoosier Heritage Conference): The Eagles are coached by eighth-year Delta lead guy, Mark Detweiler, who has had quite the postseason resume throughout his coaching career. Detweiler has a combined record of 153 and 53 with the Eagles and has yet to have a winter below the .500 mark. Alongside his now third consecutive Regional title, Detweiler has five other sectional titles (eight in total), which he accumulated at three different schools (Randolph Southern and Union County). The Delta frontman has a combined record of 388-246 in his 27th year in the role.
The Eagles are a squad that averages less than 50 points a contest but also gives up south of 45. Nonetheless, Delta has three players averaging double figures in scoring with seniors Jordan Furney and Bronson Edwards in addition to the junior, Lucas Bragg. Delta’s three-headed scoring attack can get it done anywhere on the floor, as the three shoot no less than 37% from beyond the arc with each attempting more than 80 shots from downtown.
Delta’s seven losses are worth noting, as the Eagles have been more than tested. Some of those seven include Mount Vernon (South 4A Semi-State), New Palestine (South 2A Semi-State), Wapahani (North 2A Semi-State, **lost to them twice), and a few other squads that finished 10 or more games above .500. Although this team may not be as high-flying as the Cardinals, these Eagles are dangerous and hungry for its first Semi-State title since 2002.
WHO DOES THE WINNER PLAY?: Maconaquah (21-5) or South Bend St. Joseph (24-3) at 8 pm ET.
CLASS 4A: CROWN POINT VS HOMESTEAD
WHERE AND WHEN?: Saturday at noon ET at Elkhart
CROWN POINT (21-2, 6-1 in the DAC): Revenge is best served at a time when a trophy is hanging in the balance – as the Crown Point Bulldogs avenged its earlier season loss against Portage with a 68 to 62 overtime win this past Saturday. In what may be considered a golden era of CP hoops, this is now the Bulldogs’ second consecutive Regional Championship and only its third in program history. To make matters better, this team is still incredibly young and features an exceptional core that is playing well in some monumental games.
In a game that was emotional, back-and-forth, and just an overall exciting four quarters (and some change), forward Dikembe Shaw proved why he is one of the area’s top juniors with his 27 points and his late-game heroics. Shaw’s classmate, Kingston Rhodes, scored 20 of his own, including the deciding three-pointer and six points in total in the extra frame. Bryce Peters and Mason Darrell (also both juniors), rounded out that night’s production for CP. This Crown Point team can simply attack you with whoever, and they are planning to follow suit next year.
Next year can wait, however, as Clint Swan and his crew now plan to have a longer trip in the Semi-State after its early exit from last year’s rendition. Part of the reason why CP’s avenged its nightmarish performance on February 6 was holding Portage to 36.4% and 25% from the field and beyond the arc. Those numbers were nearly doubled in the first meeting. In comparison, the Bulldogs shot 46.2% and 33.3%.
HOMESTEAD (22-5, 7-2 in the Summit Conference): The Spartans have some experience on the sideline of its own, as Chris Johnson is in his 26th year with the Spartans and 31st year in the head coaching role. The head coach of Homestead has a record of 449-186 with the team and a mind-blowing 528-219 overall record. Johnson has the seventh most wins out of active head coaches in the state.
Although the wins have certainly been there during Johnson’s tenure, the Spartans previously spent the last two seasons trophy-less, with back-to-back Sectional Championship losses. Heck, this previous Regional Championship was the program’s first since 2015. That said, these Sectionals and Regionals have not featured no-name opponents, with run-ins with schools from the Fort Wayne area and schools in the Indianapolis area. The Spartans have finally gotten over the hunt and believe it’s their time to make some more noise.
On the floor, Homestead is led by budding sophomore wing/big, Mack Welker, a first-team all-Summit Conference selection. Welker scored 14 points and grabbed 10 rebounds in the Spartan’s three-point win over Carroll. Second-team all-conference nods Jake Coolman and Josh Rodgers round things out.
WHO DOES THE WINNER PLAY?: South Bend Riley (22-4) or Fishers (28-0) at 8 pm ET.
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