TERRE HAUTE — Terre Haute North’s Jim Jones and Cloverdale’s Pat Rady are still neck and neck as they have been most of their careers. Jones is tops among active Indiana boys basketball coaches at 667 wins and Rady is right behind at 666. The two men rank third and fourth respectively on Indiana’s all-time list in case of you’ve been under a rock somewhere.
Both the North Patriots and the Cloverdale Clovers have 12 wins this season. While Jones’ team has gone 2-3 in the Metropolitan Interscholastic Conference, the Patriots appear to be in a strong position in Class 4A Sectional 13 with a 4-0 record against the field. That mark includes two wins against Northview, one against Terre Haute South and a 23-point win against Mooresville.
Northview has a strong 5-2 record against the field — the losses both coming to North — and the wins include an 82-79 win against Plainfield (13-4).
The Class 4A field across the state is as tough as ever, but with some welcome parity compared to recent seasons when Greg Oden and Mike Conley dominated at Lawrence North, Jones said.
Eric Gordon, listed as one of the top five players in the nation, and his North Central team are one of many competitors for the state title.
“Competition in 4A right now is extremely good,” Jones said mentioning teams from Franklin Central up to Valparaiso. “[Gordon] has some excellent teammates. They’re just very good. They feel they’re good enough to win a state championship and they are. I think Center Grove feels the same way, as do many of the teams in the MIC. There’s a lot of parity in 4A.”
Jones also said that some 3A teams could definitely compete for a state title. He mentioned Washington, but we’ll add undefeated Edgewood to that group.
The Patriots rank 25th in Sagarin’s ratings, the sixth team from the MIC in the top 25. North Central is third, Warren Central is sixth, Lawrence North eighth and Center Grove 11th and Carmel 21st.
The No. 1 team in 4A and overall is Franklin Central — a team led by Indiana State recruit John Ashworth and Purdue recruit JaJuan Johnson.
I I I
• Clovers clinch conference — Rady and Cloverdale clinched a co-conference title for the second straight season for the first time in the school’s history in the West Central Conference.
The Clovers have won six of their past seven games after starting the year 6-4.
Rady said that is due to turning up the tempo. The Clovers lost 72 percent of their scoring from last year’s 3-point bombing team.
After starting to push the ball more, the Clovers are averaging 77 points over those last seven contests. Michael Neese, Craig Blair, and Christian Cheatham are all averaging double-figure scoring for the Clovers.
• Rox also conference champs — Rockville has clinched at least a share of the Wabash River Conference title. The Rox are at home against Cloverdale tonight.
R.J. Mahurin, sophomore son of coach Dave Mahurin, has upped his scoring average to 18.6 with some strong games of late.
• Gilman shines in loss — North Central senior point guard Andrew Gilman was 5 for 5 from the field and 11 for 11 at the free-throw line at one point late in the second half of the Thunderbirds’ loss at Clay City on Feb. 8. Gilman had 27 points on 8 for 14 shooting.
Gilman’s is averaging 17.5 points, while shooting 53 percent from the field. The senior suffered broken vertabrae in his back as a sophomore that put his ability to return to a high level in doubt.
Heading into the Clay City game, North Central was shooting 49.9 percent from the field as a team at 350-702, one made shot shy of 50 percent.
Second-year coach Ryan Kamaan’s team is the highest rating Class A team in the Wabash Valley, according to Sagarin’s ratings. The T-Birds are 202nd overall. Shakamak is the Valley’s next best at 219th.
• Sullivan storms ahead — Behind the improved health of senior guards Derrick DeMoss and Evan Baker, Sullivan is a team that could end up surprising some teams in Class 3A Sectional 29. While the Golden Arrows are just 1-4 against potential sectional opponents, most of those games were in 2006. Sullivan is 6-1 since Jan. 1, including a win at Northview.
The addition of 6-foot-5 Thad Thompson from the junior varsity has been big for the Arrows in addition to DeMoss and Baker being able to practice more than one day a week early in the season, coach Jeff Moore said.
“I don’t feel [DeMoss and Baker] were ever in good shape [due to the injuries],” Moore said. “They’re playing pretty well right now.”
Thompson is a big addition, leading the Arrows in rebounds since joining the varsity after six games on JV.
“He’s played real well, really giving us a boost on the boards,” Moore said. “He plays hard, rebounds. He’s tough.”
• Sunny days — Moore’s son and former player Jeffrey Moore is enjoying the sunny weather in Tampa, Fla., playing for Division II Tampa.
“We’re sitting here in a blizzard and he calls to tell us he’s going to Clearwater to the beach,” Moore said earlier this week.
• Senior night for Lions — Marshall (17-7) celebrates Senior Night tonight against Neoga. Marshall hopes to get back to 20 wins this year after a one-year lapse. The Lions went 25-4 two seasons ago with Iowa recruit Jake Kelly running the show. Kelly is now the leading scorer at Carmel.
Marshall will have to do it without one of the Eitel twins. Logan Eitel suffered a broken ankle a couple weeks ago and is out for the year.
• Chasing dad — Hutsonville-Palestine senior Ryan Roberts passed 1,000 points last week. He’s 300 away from the school’s all-time leader. But next on the list is his dad Greg Roberts.
• Casey playing well — Casey coach Brandon Miller hopes his team can bounce back tonight against St. Anthony — a team coming off a win against Teutopolis — after a loss to Red Hill on Friday. Brennan Ragon had16 points and 15 rebounds in that loss. The senior “has stepped up and played well the last couple weeks,” Miller said.
• Miners balancing work load — Linton has been led in scoring by six different players this season. Caleb Dunkerly, Kyle Herndon, Ethan Brewer, Aaron Davis, Logan Tharp and Dylan Hardisty have all led coach Darren Clayton’s team. Jayton Powell is another guy that has been in double figures multiple times.
On a side note, Logan Tharp’s sister Katie Tharp is a key piece of the record-breaking women’s team at Rose-Hulman.
• TRC race heats up — North Central’s loss at Clay City makes for an interesting race in the Tri-River Conference. North Central could have went to 4-0 in the TRC; instead they fall to 3-1. Linton controls its own destiny at 3-0 in the conference with its last two games at home. But the Miners (9-8) will have to beat North Central tonight and Clay City on Tuesday.
Linton suffered a seven-game losing streak during the middle of the season, but Clayton said he hopes these big conference games can help them build momentum heading into the Class 2A tournament.
TOP COACHING RECORDS
Of Wabash Valley coaches with more than 100 games under their belts, Pat Rady’s winning percentage of .670 is best. Here’s the list of Wabash Valley’s active coaches over .500 for their career:
• Pat Rady (Cloverdale), .670
• Mitch Lancaster (Northview), .662
• Jim Jones (Terre Haute North), .646
• Jeff Moore (Sullivan), .630
• Ron McBride (Bloomfield), .608
• Grant McVay (Clay City), .526
• Joey Hart (Turkey Run), .520
Given to Fly
February 15, 2007
Bounce Passes: Jones hanging on to one-win lead on Rady
- Given to Fly
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GIVEN TO FLY: Come to expect new standards of excellence
Records are definitely meant to be broken; athletes today are faster and stronger than those in the past in many endeavors in athletics.
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GIVEN TO FLY: ISU women have solid recruiting class
The caliber of athletes that the Indiana State women’s basketball coaching staff is bringing in is on an upswing.
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GIVEN TO FLY: Major leaguers John, Dorsett meet up at tonight’s game
Terre Haute’s only two big leaguers of the last 50 years — Tommy John and Brian Dorsett — will catch up with one another today.
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FOOT NOTES: Valley natives perform well on national stage
Several Wabash Valley natives continue to shine on the national track and field scene.
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'Til It's Over: Sycamores ‘in a good place,’ but searching for more in MVC
Can Teri Moren lift Indiana State, last year’s seventh-place team in the Missouri Valley Conference, to one of the league’s contenders in her first year on campus?
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'Til It's Over: Two sets of identical twins should keep North Central baseball a contender
The last high school baseball team standing in the Wabash Valley was the North Central, the Thunderbirds falling short 4-3 in the Class A Semistate on Saturday just one game shy of Victory Field.
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'Til It's Over: Jarvis, Anderson confident Olney, hard work leads to Division I dream
Olney, Ill., population 8,000-plus and known for its population of white squirrels, might not be the dream destination for high school basketball players in Indiana.
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'Til It's Over: Robinson 7-footer more focused in postseason; 6-foot Jones keeps producing
Robinson 7-footer Meyers Leonard is not going to be the No. 1 overall pick in the NBA some day, but his odds of reaching the league are pretty solid if his game continues to evolve as it has during high school.
- 'Til It's Over: ‘Stepping stone’ game points Sycamores in right direction Whether the win comes against a top-25 team or a conference pushover, ending a four-game losing streak is always a relief.
- 'Til It's Over: Indianapolis ISU recruit rolling along in senior season As Indiana State recruit Anna Munn approached Christmas with the Decatur Central basketball team, the senior guard didn’t seem to need much of a wishlist.
- 'Til It's Over: Magic’s still there for '79 Sycamores For the former Indiana State players who visited the National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame in late November, the weekend was a chance to relive memories with teammates and see Larry Bird’s career with the Sycamores celebrated again.
- CRAIG PEARSON: North has strong history in cross country state finals Vigo County is home to just four IHSAA state championships in team sports. Most recently, Terre Haute South won girls titles in basketball (2002) and tennis (2001).
- 'Till It's Over: It’s been rough year but no need to break up Cubs' core Chicago Cubs general manager Jim Hendry is only in the first year of a three-year contract, and aren’t back-to-back division championships enough to keep him around despite this year’s season filled with bad luck?
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- ‘Walking wounded’: ISU seniors return to provide spark All three ISU seniors will graduate in May, and all three will be in uniform today as Indiana State battles Bradley in the Missouri Valley Conference tournament quarterfinals.
- Given to Fly: Northview standout runner Thacker coming to ISU Doc Brown told an old-timer in a saloon in “Back to the Future III” that despite having automobiles in the future people run for recreation.
- Given to Fly: Schilli’s Rodman-like performance aids ISU With Indiana State’s women’s basketball team ranking eighth in the Missouri Valley Conference in field-goal percentage (36.5), the Sycamores need as many shot attempts as possible to maintain their standing on top of the league.
- Given to Fly: A classic in every sense of the word What tournament director and co-founder Gary Fears had in mind when creating the tournament came to fruition Tuesday. Marshall, with an enrollment of 438 students, became the smallest school to win the Pizza Hut Wabash Valley Classic in the ninth season of the tourney.
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Given to Fly: ISU women should build confidence off strong outing
Indiana State did not pull off the monumental upset Saturday against No. 23 Kansas State, but the Wildcats are —aside from Connecticut in 2005 — the best team the Sycamores have played in the Jim Wiedie era.
- Given to Fly: ISU women's hoops team slides onto commercial radio Coach Jim Wiedie expects the Indiana State women’s basketball team to have a bit of a retro feel this season, meaning the Sycamores have the potential to get back to creating havoc with their full-court press.
- Given to Fly: ISU vets hope to prove pundits wrong Indiana State’s only two seniors were surprised to see they were picked ahead of just three Missouri Valley Conference women’s basketball teams Tuesday morning.
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Footnotes: In first marathon, former Sycamore comes out a winner
Indiana State graduate Dani Prince made her debut in the event with a victory in the Columbus Marathon on Sunday.
Prince’s goal was a time under 2 hours and 50 minutes, and she ran a 2:48.56. -
Given To Fly: ISU volleyball turning things around
It was an extremely busy weekend for Indiana State athletics this weekend.
- Footnotes: Here’s hoping perfect weather is still around for Nationals in November The weather made for a perfect fall afternoon Saturday at LaVern Gibson Championship Course. For what it’s worth, the Farmer’s Almanac calls for more sunny conditions from Nov. 20-24, with the NCAA Championships falling on the 24th this year.
- Terre Haute natives cherish memories of ‘House that Ruth Built’ Yankee Stadium was packed as usual on Easter Sunday in 1979. George Steinbrenner’s Yankees were one loss away from being swept by the Milwaukee Brewers to start the season. That was no way for the two-time defending World Series champions to perform, so the boss had a conversation with his new veteran left-handed starting pitcher prior to the game.
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Footnotes: Oregon men and women have strangehold on preseason NCAA cross countryrankings
The Oregon men and women were almost both unanimous picks as the No. 1 teams in the nation in the preseason cross country national rankings released recently.
- Given to Fly: Bronze medalist has strong ISU ties One of the remarkable American medalists of this 2008 Olympics thus far also provided one of the most sparkling stories in the brief history of the LaVern Gibson Championship Cross Country Course here in Terre Haute.
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- Indiana State track sending strong group to NCAA regional Three sophomore women and three senior men lead a large Indiana State contingent of track and field athletes into the NCAA Mideast Regional this weekend at Fayetteville, Ark.
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