Staff Report
The Tribune-Star
TERRE HAUTE —
Carmel at Terre Haute North
The action — Terre Haute North’s Patriots play host to the Class 4A No. 4 Carmel Grehounds tonight.
The time — Varsity tipoff is approximately 7:30 p.m. EST.
The airwaves — No broadcasts are scheduled.
The coaches — Todd Woelfle is 74-46 in his fifth year at Terre Haute North. Scott Heady is 49-19 in his third year at Carmel and 265-146 in his 18th year overall.
Probable starting lineups — Terre Haute North’s starters are expected to be 6-5 seniors Calvin Blank and Austin Lewis up front, with 6-2 senior Stephen Davis, 6-1 sophomore Charlie Aimone and 5-10 senior Nate Jahn in the backcourt.
For Carmel, 6-2 sophomore Ryan Cline, 5-9 senior Michael Volovic, 6-0 senior James Crowley, 6-0 senior James Volovic and 6-6 junior Zach McRoberts.
Key reserves — For North, 6-5 senior Patrick Hart, 5-11 senior Casey Vickers, 6-2 senior A.J. Grady, 6-0 senior Charles Dillahunt, 6-2 senior Chris Schenck and 6-2 senior Evan Low could see action.
For Carmel, 6-4 senior Grant Goodman and 6-1 junior Parker Burnhold will see action off the bench.
Team leaders — Blank and Lewis score in double figures for the Patriots. For Carmel, Crowley and Volovic average in double figures in scoring, while McRoberts leads the team in rebounds and steals. For North,
Recent games — Terre Haute North has lost three of four, most recently a 65-45 loss at Center Grove. Carmel is coming off a 54-47 home win against Warren Central after losing last weekend to Hamilton Southeastern at home.
Last meeting — Carmel took last year’s game by a score of 56-40.
Coaches’ quotes — Woelfle on his team: “We are still striving for consistent play on both ends of the floor and want to be playing our best basketball when the state tournament begins.”
Woelfle on the Greyhounds: “Carmel is a very disciplined, fundamentally sound basketball team. They understand what it takes to win and have experienced a great deal of success as a team. They play well together and make you pay for making mistakes.”
Heady on the Patriots: “We have a lot of respect for Terre Haute North. They play hard and are very well coached. This will be another challenging MIC game on the road.”
— Compiled by Craig Pearson
West Vigo at North Central
The action — The West Vigo Vikings (9-10) will visit the North Central Thunderbirds (6-12 before tonight’s game at Linton) for a nonconference game Saturday.
The time — Varsity tipoff is slated for about 7:30 p.m.
The airwaves — None planned in the Wabash Valley.
The coaches — Joe Boehler is 63-49 in his fifth season at West Vigo, while Ryan Kamman is 85-95 in his eighth year at North Central.
Probable starting lineups — For West Vigo, 6-3 senior Aaron Kirby and 6-0 senior Lance Stonebarger at forwards, 6-1 senior Adrien Corenflos at center, 5-11 senior Cade Lindsey and 5-7 senior Kyle Stewart at guards.
For North Central, 5-10 senior Tod Lebeda and 6-3 sophomore Mitchell Peterson at forwards, 5-8 freshman Gavin Stanifer, 5-10 sophomore Andrew Nikirk and 5-10 junior Nick Stucker at guards.
Key reserves — For West Vigo, 6-1 sophomore Alex West, 6-0 sophomore Braiden Cardinal, 5-9 sophomore Tyler Hayes, 6-2 sophomore Grant Daley.
For North Central, 5-8 sophomore Austin Jewell, 6-3 sophomore Loren Drake and 6-3 freshman Neal Greene.
Team leaders — For West Vigo, Stewart is tallying about 13 points per outing. For North Central, Stanifer is tallying about 11 ppg and Nikirk is next at about 10 ppg.
Injury report — All regulars appear healthy.
Recent games — Last Saturday, West Vigo broke a five-game losing streak by winning at home over Marshall, Ill., by a 47-37 score. On Feb. 7, North Central lost at Clay City 60-46.
Last meetings — On Feb. 18, 2012, West Vigo won at home over North Central 58-48.
Coaches’ quotes — Boehler on his squad: “We’ve kinda straightened some things out a little bit lately. We finished 1-1 last week, but we felt like we played two really good basketball teams [Sullivan and Marshall]. So we’ll go into this weekend feeling pretty good.”
Boehler on playing the Thunderbirds: “They’re very well-coached. They’re a young team, but they have a year of experience under their belt now. They shoot the ball really well.”
Kamman on his squad: “We’re a young team. We’ve got one junior and one senior. But the kids have been playing hard and working hard in practice. I just hope they can shoot the ball better and continue to give good effort on the defensive end Saturday.”
Kamman on playing the Vikings: “I really haven’t seen them much since Christmas. I think they have a good mix of guards and interior players. I noticed they battled Sullivan real well [in a loss] and they defeated a good team like Marshall, so we’ve got to be ready to play. It looks like they may have turned the corner a little bit.”
— Compiled by David Hughes
Terre Haute South at Evansville North
The action — Terre Haute South’s Braves (9-11) travel to northern Vanderburgh County to play Evansville North’s Huskies (9-8) in a nonconference game.
The time — Varsity tipoff is approximately 8:30 p.m. EST.
The airwaves — No broadcasts are scheduled.
The coaches — Scott Ridge is 17-26 in his second year at South. Scot Bunnell is 27-32 in his third year at Evansville North and 111-67 in his eighth season overall.
Probable starting lineups — Probable starters for the Braves are 6-2 senior Jeffrey Turner at forward, 6-4 sophomore Timmy Herrin at center and 5-10 senior Kevaris Gregory, 5-11 sophomore Conner Shipley and 5-11 senior Logan Steward at guards. Turner is questionable with illness, however.
Evansville North’s probable starters are 6-5 senior Brock Underwood and 6-7 sophomore Austin Elmore up front with 5-10 senior Damar Young, 5-11 senior Jaylen Chambers and 6-1 freshman C.J. Hedgepeth at guards.
Key reserves — For South, 6-2 senior Preston Tofaute, 5-11 sophomore Spence Tofaute, 5-10 sophomore Jared Wolfe and 6-4 sophomore Greg Newton. Shane Stanley is out at least another week with an ankle injury.
For Evansville North, 6-2 senior Mike Johnson, 6-1 senior Drew Watters and 5-11 sophomore Robert West.
Team leaders — Turner is averaging approximately 25 points per game and Gregory is also a double-figure scorer for South. Chambers averages 15 points per game, Watters is at 9.8 and Elmore at approximately 9 points per game for the Huskies.
Recent games — South’s only game last week was a 70-56 loss at home Saturday to Indianapolis North Central. Evansville North hasn’t played since Feb. 7, when the Huskies beat Tell City 61-42 on the road.
Last meeting — South won 60-53 last season. Evansville North hasn’t beaten the Braves since a 72-55 win on Feb. 16, 2007.
Coaches’ quotes — Ridge on the Braves: “We got off to a really bad start [against North Central] and couldn’t afford to. We played as well or better than [the Panthers] for a good portion of the game.”
Bunnell on the Huskies: “I don’t think we’ve played our best basketball yet … we’re 9-8 against a tough schedule [four of the losses to highly ranked Evansville Harrison and Evansville Bosse]. We’re still improving, hoping to play our best in February and the tournament.”
Ridge on the Huskies: “They’re good; athletic, with a lot of returning players. They’ve been a little up and down at times, but so are we.”
Bunnell on the Braves: “Turner is just a load … a matchup nightmare, and he really took us to task last year. We have great respect for them, because we know with the schedule they play they’re battle tested.”
— Compiled by Andy Amey
