By KENZIE WINSTEAD
Content Editor

SEYMOUR, Ind. — The Romeo Era is over, but the beat goes on for New Albany basketball.

With time winding down in a tied game, New Albany senior Derrick Stevenson took a left-handed slip pass from freshman Kaden Stanton and drilled a 3-pointer pointer from the left side just as the buzzer sounded, giving the Bulldogs a 39-36 win over No. 4-ranked Floyd Central 39-36 Friday night in the Seymour Sectional semifinals.

New Albany (18-6) now will face another rival, Jeffersonville (18-5), in Saturday night’s sectional final at 7:30. The Bulldogs will be going for their sixth straight sectional title.

New Albany coach Jim Shannon said Floyd Central — as the sectional favorite — had to endure a lot of pressure. “We’ve been in that situation,” he said. “It’s not always lollipops and rainbows. But I had a once-in-a-generation player who wouldn’t allow us to lose.”

As soon as it left his hand, Stevenson said he knew it was going in.

“I knew it was money,” he said. “That’s how it goes sometimes.”

Stevenson, who scored 17 of his 19 points in the second half, said it was his first ever game-winning shot.

Julien Hunter, one of New Albany’s best players who is sidelined with a broker leg, also said he knew it was in. “Derrick’s a big shot maker and a big shot taker,” Hunter said.

“I’m the biggest cheerleader right now,” Hunter said. “I’m losing my voice.”

Stevenson provided a bit of personal redemption after fouling Floyd Central’s Jake Heidbreder on a 3-point attempt with 8.6 second left.

Kenzie Winstead caught up with @NewAlbanyHoops’ Derrick Stevenson after his game-winning thriller: pic.twitter.com/BqqC4ZxSxV

— Matt Denison (@HoosierHills) March 2, 2019

Heidbreder hit all three free throws to tie the game.

Heidbreder and Cobie Barnes, an Indiana State signee, led the Highlanders (21-3) with 12 points each.

“We didn’t want Cobie going crazy on us,” Shannon said. “If you don’t put two or three guys on him, he’ll get 30 or 40. He’s as good as there is in the state of Indiana this year.”

Shannon said now he’s got to get his team grounded and ready for Jeff.

“A lot of things happened tonight,” Shannon said. “The stars were lined up and it was beautiful. Now I have to convince them (his players) they didn’t win the sectional. They think they won it. That’s not the case.”

Jeffersonville 75, Bedford North Lawrence 54: Point guard Jacob Jones, the engine who drives the Jeffersonville machine, poured in 21 points to lead the Red Devils past the Stars.

When Jones made his first shot, Jeff coach Joe Luce said he knew it was going to be a good night.

“(Jacob) is the key to our basketball team,” Luce said. “We’ve talked about it all year long. When he goes, we go. In all the five losses we’ve had, he’s scored four points or less.”

Jones got off to a sizzling start. He reeled off 13 points in the first quarter alone while hitting three from beyond the 3-point arc.

Jeff surged to a quick 25-12 lead after the first quarter and led 43-20 the half.

“We got off to a great start,” Luce said. “I thought it continued throughout the game.

“We were always the aggressor,” Luce said, “and it’s a big reason why we’ll be playing for a sectional championship tomorrow (Saturday) night.”

Luce said the his team just took “great shots . . . We shot the right shots.”

For the Red Devils, Darin Starks and Tre Coleman added 11 points each.

Trying to win their first sectional title since 2013, the Red Devils avenged a 67-61 loss to BNL on Jan. 25.

“That burned with the me the moment we walked off that floor,” Luce said of the loss at BNL. “I reminded them appropriately without overdoing it that we would see them again at some point. They played a good game to beat us.”

By KENZIE WINSTEAD
Content Editor

In a couple of nail-biters at the Class 2A Crawford County Sectional, Providence and Paoli survived.

Providence 62, Clarksville 60: Nick Sexton hit a a 3-pointer with 1.8 seconds left to lift the Pioneers past cross-town rival Clarksville.

Sterling Huber led Providence’s comeback effort with 26 points, including eight 3-pointers.

With the win, the Pioneers snapped a 10-game losing streak.

Providence (8-16) will face Paoli (21-3) in the semifinal round on Friday.

Paoli 56, Henryville 54: In his last basketball game for the Hornets, senior Kade Badger did his usual stuff. He erupted for 28 points, including 16 in the final frame, in the losing cause.

Brett Bosley, an intriguing sophomore prospect, paced the victorious Rams with 22 points.

CLASS 3A AT CHARLESTOWN
Corydon 70, North Harrison 56: Bradley Nalley, an American University recruit, scored 27 points to lead the Panthers pass county-rival North Harrison.

The Cougars’ balanced attack was led by Langdon Hatton‘s 13 points.

Salem 59, Scottsburg 55: Landon Suvak paced the Lions’ scoring with 19 points. Shane Mahuron added 12 and Gavin Fleming 11 for the Lions.

Corydon (11-13) will face Salem (14-10) in a semifinal Friday night, preceded by Silver Creek (19-3) against Brownstown (18-5).

By KENZIE WINSTEAD
Content Editor

As expected, Jeffersonville and Floyd Central cruised in the first round of the Class 4A Seymour Sectional.

Jeff (17-5) now will face Bedford North Lawrence (13-9) in Friday night’s first semifinal. Fourth-ranked Floyd Central (21-2) will take on rival New Albany (17-6), winners of the last five sectionals, in the nightcap.

Jeffersonville 70, Seymour 44: The Red Devils trailed in the early moments of the game and then applied a 18-0 run to knock out the Owls in the first half.

The Red Devils were led by Tre Coleman‘s 16 points, and reserve Caleb Mason chipped in 12 points and Darin Starks 11.

Floyd Central 70, Jennings County 47: Indiana State signee Cobie Barnes poured in 30 points for the Highlanders. Nick Winchell added 18 for the winners.

Floyd Central has won 12 straight.

CLASS 3A AT CHARLESTOWN
Brownstown 80, Charlestown 52: The Braves (18-5) ripped host Charlestown (9-14) in the Class 3A sectional first round. They will meet Silver Creek (19-3) in the semifinals Friday night.

Isaac Johnson led Brownstown with 20 points.

CLASS 2A AT CRAWFORD COUNTY
Crawford County 68, Eastern Pekin 40: The host Wolfpack (19-5) smothered the Musketeers (1-23) as Trevor Harvey led a balanced attack with 14 points.

CLASS A AT BORDEN
Borden 35, New Washington 34: Sterling Mikel hit a shot at the buzzer as the host Braves (4-20) surprised the Mustangs. They will face Christian Academy (15-7) in the semifinals.

Before the win, Borden had lost 13 straight.

South Central 42, Rock Creek 39: Lucas Stewart scored 14 points to lead the Rebels (16-8) into the semifinals. They will face Lanesville (12-11) Friday night.

By KENZIE WINSTEAD
Content Editor

Jeffersonville is playing just about as good as anybody in Southern Indiana.

The Red Devils (16-5) have won eight straight, including wins over Castle on the road and Louisville (Ky.) Ballard.

In its last game of the regular season, the Red Devils traveled to Castle and dumped the Knights 58-48, giving Castle just its third loss since Christmas.

“We continue to get better each night,” Jeff coach Joe Luce recently said of his team.

Jeff has won 37 sectional titles and last won in 2013.

The Red Devils are led by Tre Coleman, one of the top juniors in the state. He’s averaging 16.8 points a game. Coleman has received a Big Ten Conference offer from Nebraska. It won’t be his last offer from a high-major college.

Jeff has plenty of balance. Junior point guard Jacob Jones is at 11.0 points per game, and classmate Darin Starks is averaging 12.9.

In the middle, the Red Devils have one of the most talented freshmen in the state in Will Lovings-Watts.

“Lovings-Watts gets better every day,” said Luce. “On the offensive and defensive end, he’s a great asset to our basketball team.”

“His upside is incredible,” Coleman said of Lovings-Watts.

Jeff will get the Class 4A Seymour Sectional started with a matchup with the host Owls (3-19). If they advance to the semifinals, the Red Devils will face Bedford North Lawrence (13-9), the only conference team to upend Jeff, 67-61 on Jan. 25.

“You’re playing Seymour in the first game on their home floor. You better be ready to play because anything can happen, and it has happened before,” Luce said. “Bedford provides a challenge there because they beat us. It’s definitely a revenge game in lots of ways. We didn’t feel like we ready to play when we played them, but we will this time.

“Whoever we play Saturday, our guys will be ready to play their best game of the year, if we get that far,” Luce said.

By KENZIE WINSTEAD
Content Editor

At just about every turn he takes, Floyd Central senior standout Cobie Barnes hears about the Highlanders’ 30-year sectional drought.

Floyd Central hasn’t won a sectional since 1989, when the Highlanders went all the way to a one-class final four. They fell to Kokomo 73-70 at Market Square Arena.

Barnes, who has signed with Indiana State University and is a logical choice to make the Indiana All-Star team, said the Highlanders won’t make the mistake of overlooking any team.

“That will get you beat,” he said. “If you do that on Tuesday, you won’t be playing on Friday. If you do that Friday, you won’t be playing Saturday night.”

Barnes and the Highlanders (20-2) will start their postseason march Tuesday night in the Seymour Sectional against Jennings County (8-15). If Floyd Central wins, they will face Floyd County rival New Albany (17-6) in the second semifinal Friday night.

As sectional week begins, Floyd Central is riding an 11-game winning streak. Barnes has done his part, averaging 27.3 points an outing.

Still, Barnes said the Highlanders have sights on a deep run in the state tournament in his last go-around.

“It’s bittersweet,” Barnes said of his final season at Floyd Central. “We haven’t had the success that we’ve wanted for this team.

“We want to change the narrative (of Floyd Central basketball),” he said.

Barnes said the Seymour Sectional is loaded with talented players.

“It’s not going to be easy,” he said. “We’re going to get tested every game. It (winning the sectional) is important to everyone, not just us.”

The Highlanders have lost just four times in the last two seasons.

One of Floyd Central’s losses came at Jeffersonville on Jan. 11. The Red Devils prevailed 46-43.

“They’re a very talented team,” Barnes said of Jeff. “When they’re shooting it well, they can really shoot it.”

Jeff is led by Tre Coleman, who Barnes said is his “best friend.”

Barnes said the Highlanders don’t get a lot of credit because “our style of basketball isn’t flashy. We just play hard and get after it at both ends of the court.”

By KENZIE WINSTEAD
Content Editor

Henryville’s Kade Badger has emerged as one of the top scorers in Southern Indiana.

Part of Badger’s emergence came out of necessity with the graduation of a slew of Hornets, including top scorer Nick Walker, who averaged 21 points a game last year.

Badger knew he had to take a lead role in this young Henryville team. He’s averaging 24.2 points a game as one of the most prolific scorers in Class 2A.

“When we need a basket or free throws, I want the ball in my hands,” Badger said.

Badger, a multi-sport athlete, admits he’s quite the competitor.

In addition to basketball, Badger is the shortstop or pitcher on the baseball team, the All-Area striker on the soccer team and All-Area in singles tennis.

“I just love the competition,” said Badger, who wants to play basketball in college.

This week, Badger and the Hornets (10-13) have a tough assignment in the first round of the Crawford County Sectional. They’ll face sectional favorite Paoli (20-3) Wednesday night at 7:30.

Back on Nov. 30, Henryville lost at Paoli, but just 66-60.

Badger said he believes the Hornets can turn the tables on Paoli. “I’m pretty confident about the sectional,” he said.

Looking back on his career at Henryville, Badger said he loved playing for the Hornets.

“These have been the best four years of my life, honestly,” he said. “Everybody treats you like family here. When you go to a restaurant everyone calls you by name and thanks you for everything. It’s basically family.”

On and off the floor, Badger said he realizes he’s a role model for the Henryville kids.

“I really watch what I’m doing,” he said. “After games, I talk to the kids and thank them for coming.”

Now Badger will play his last sectional tournament.

“It’s pretty sad,” he said. “But we knew it was coming to an end.”