Mike McGraw
Hoosier Authority
And then
there were six. Heading into Friday night’s semi-final round of the sectional
tournament, the Hoosier Crossroads Conference has six of its ten members still
alive. That includes all three of the regular season big guns.
First round
action saw league teams go a combined 3-4. That is a little misleading in that
two games saw HCC teams play each other. High powered Fishers dismantled Zionsville
60-37 and Lafayette Jeff put an end to a dismal season for Harrison 58-25.
Three games
saw HCC squads contest outside opposition. The conference went 1-2 in those
battles. Avon made short work of Indianapolis Tech, 52-34. Brownsburg was not
so lucky, losing a 53-28 verdict to highly regarded Decatur Central. Both of those
contests were in the Ben Davis Sectional. At Zionsville, Noblesville fell to
defending state champion Carmel on Tuesday 65-44.
The second
round will be full of challenges for HCC teams. Let’s start at Ben Davis where
it will now be Avon’s turn to try and slow down Decatur Central. The real fun
though, will be in Zionsville. Westfield, which has won 16 games this season,
will get a chance to dethrone Carmel in the first game. The second contest is a
showdown everybody has seen coming. HCC powers Hamilton Southeastern and
Fishers will square off for a trip to the finals. Whoever is left standing at
this location on Saturday night will have more than earned it.
At
McCutcheon, the host Mavericks will enter the sectional fray. They will face off with Kokomo. Meanwhile,
how is this for a clash of titans? Legendary coaches Jan Conner and Jerry
Hoover will lead Lafayette Jeff and Logansport respectively into battle against
each other. Prospective coaches might want to take a trip up north for a free
clinic.
