By KENZIE WINSTEAD
Content Editor

For the third straight year, Hanover College claimed the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference postseason tournament and will head to the NCAA Division III National Tournament.

Cam Fails, of Cincinnati, led the Panthers (21-6) with 30 points. Kevin Williams, who played at Columbus East, added 19 points and 10 rebounds.

New Albany product Isaac Hibbard, a 6-foot sophomore, had 13 points for the Panthers.

Hanover got off to a slow start to the season, going just 5-3 to start the year. The Panthers now have won 13 of their last 15 games.

“We knew we had to win the tournament (to get into the national tournament),” said Hibbard, who has been part of the last two Hanover teams. “That was our goal. It’s tourney time, so anything can happen.”

Hanover will know its postseason destination and opponent Monday afternoon.

Hibbard, who won a Class 4A state title at New Albany, is majoring in economics but admitted he wants to coach basketball after college.

“I love the game,” Hibbard said. “I can’t get enough of it. Economics is my back-up plan, and I do have a good back-up plan.”

Hibbard said the team will watch the selection together Monday afternoon and order some pizza.

The Pioneers finished 17-10.

Heartland Collegiate Tournament Championship
HANOVER 76, TRANSYLVANIA 73
Transylvania (73) — Jefferson 15, Schuh 3, Schmitt 15, Theobald 5, Gentry 25, Twenty 7, Turner 3.
Hanover (76) — Fails 30, Hubbard 13, Cloncs 5, Williams 19, Ratts 5, Harp 3, Reed 1.
Halftime: Hanover 34-31.

By KENZIE WINSTEAD
Content Editor

The Class 4A Seymour Sectional is back to normal, and now everyone believes they have a chance.

Romeo Langford and Sean East — who helped New Albany secure a stranglehold on the sectional — have graduated. During their four years, the Bulldogs went 100-10, including one state championship and two regional titles.

With some normalcy back, Floyd Central will try to do something it hasn’t in 30 years — win a sectional of its own.

The fourth-ranked Highlanders (20-2), winners of 11 straight, certainly have the resume and they have the sectional’s best player in Indiana State signee Cobie Barnes.

Floyd Central coach Todd Sturgeon has confidence in his group. “I’m not surprised by it,” he said of the 20-win regular season. “I think our guys are hungry, motivated and excited. (But) it will be a challenge.”

The Highlanders are led by Barnes and guard Jake Heidbreder. They’ve got plenty of seniors but those seniors didn’t have a lot of varsity experience before this season, other than Barnes.

Floyd Central drew Jennings County (8-14) in the first round. If they advance, the Highlanders would take on county rival New Albany (16-6).

Although they’ve won 11 of their last 12 games, the Bulldogs lost one of their best players in Julien Hunter, who was recently sidelined with a broken foot.

“We haven’t had much time to sulk,” said New Albany coach Jim Shannon. “I felt bad for Julien because he’s one of the nicest kids I’ve been around.”

On the top side of the bracket, awaits Jeffersonville (15-5), co-champions of the Hoosier Hills Conference with Floyd Central.

In fact, Jeff beat Floyd Central 46-43 on Jan. 11.

Jeff’s only conference loss came at Bedford North Lawrence, a team the Red Devils likely will play in the semifinals.

The Red Devils are led by a trio of solid juniors Tre Coleman (16.9 ppg), Darin Starks (12.9 ppg) and Jacob Jones (11.1 ppg) and Will Lovings-Watts, one of the best freshmen in the state.

Jeff coach Joe Luce said the key to his team’s success is Jones, his point guard. “When he’s on and his mind is right, we’re tough to beat,” he said.

KENZIE’S FAVORITE: Floyd Central. The Highlanders are one of the best defensive teams in the state and they’ve got a solid Division I player in Barnes, certainly an Indiana All-Star candidate. Floyd Central is allowing just 43 points a game.

KENZIE’S CONTENDER: Jeff. If they can stay out of foul trouble and keep its five starters on the floor, the Red Devils are as good as anyone. They own wins over their two biggest rivals, Floyd and New Albany (60-49) and Louisville Ballard (77-73).

KENZIE’S DARKHORSE: New Albany. Even with the absence of Hunter, the Bulldogs have showed they can still win by beating BNL and Evansville Central. New Albany now must lean on Derrick Stevenson and Chris Johnson.

SEYMOUR SECTIONAL
Gym capacity: 8,110
Defending champion: New Albany
Tuesday: Jeffersonville (15-5) vs. Seymour (3-17), 6 p.m. Jennings County (8-14) vs. Floyd Central (20-2), 7:30 p.m.;
Friday: Jeff-Seymour winner vs. Bedford North Lawrence (12-9), 6 p.m. Jennings-Floyd winner vs. New Albany (16-6), 7:30 p.m.
Saturday: Final.

By KENZIE WINSTEAD
Content Editor

Silver Creek is loaded and the Dragons are ready to make a long run in the Class 3A state tournament.

However, for the Dragons (18-3), the first step won’t be an easy one. Silver Creek likely will face Brownstown in the first semifinal of the Charlestown Sectional.

Brownstown, Mid-Southern Conference champions, represents one of Silver Creek’s thee losses.

Back in January at Brownstown, the Braves slipped past Silver Creek 41-40.

Silver Creek coach Brandon Hoffman credited Brownstown but admitted the Dragons simply didn’t play well that night.

“As soon as that game was over, I think our kids were looking forward to playing them again,” Hoffman said.

The Dragons have plenty of offensive weapons at all five positions on the floor, led by dynamic sophomores Trey Kaufman (15.6 ppg) and Kooper Jacobi (13.8 ppg) and seniors Zane Gross (15.5 ppg) and Jack Hawkins (12 ppg).

Lead guard Ty Kessinger provides the leadership at the point. He has 135 assists so far.

In the meantime, the Braves must beat host Charlestown. Brownstown coach Dave Benter said they’re only talking about Charlestown.

“We struggle to score the basketball at times,” Benter said. “(But) I like our guys. They play smart and they’re really competitive. I really like the way our guys battle.”

KENZIE’S FAVORITE: Silver Creek. Even though the Dragons lost at Brownstown, Silver Creek has the most talent and the most weapons.

KENZIE’S CONTENDER: Brownstown. The Braves have 16 wins and they can shoot well from the perimeter — at times. However, the streaky Braves can have long stretches of offensive issues.

KENZIE’S DARKHORSE: If Silver Creek and Brownstown falter, Corydon could make a sectional run. The Panthers have a couple of guys who can really score — seniors Joey Wiseman (21.2 ppg) and Bradley Nalley (18.9 ppg).

CHARLESTOWN SECTIONAL
Gym capacity: 3,200
Defending champion: Silver Creek
Tuesday: Charlestown (9-11) vs. Brownstown (16-5), 7 p.m.
Wednesday: North Harrison (9-12) vs. Corydon (9-12), 6; Scottsburg (15-7) vs. Salem (12-9), 7:30 p.m.
Friday: Brownstown-Charlestown winner vs. Silver Creek (18-3), 6 p.m.; North Harrison-Corydon winner vs. Scottsburg-Salem winner, 7:30 p.m.
Saturday: Final.

By KENZIE WINSTEAD
Content Editor

At Crawford County, the two solid favorites drew on opposite sides of the bracket and it’s hard to draw much of a difference between host Crawford County (18-4) and rival Paoli (18-3).

However, the favorites could clear the muddled picture because they face each other in a regular-season finale Friday night.

For Paoli, its signature win came early in December, when the Rams hammered Christian Academy 65-40. The Wolfpack, meanwhile, went to Salem and whipped the Lions 45-30 on Jan. 5.

The Rams will open up against Henryville, who eliminated Paoli 73-60 in last year’s sectional. Henryville is led by one of the most diverse athletes in Southern Indiana, Kade Badger, who also plays tennis and soccer, is averaging 24 points a game.

In the bottom half of the bracket, town rivals Clarksville (6-14) and Providence (7-15) meet in the first round. Both are in the midst of retooling situations. However, both have had some highlights.

Clarksville suffered through a 10-game losing streak during the season but recently handled Class 3A foe North Harrison, 73-65.

The hard-luck Pioneers are riding a nine-game losing streak of the own, including overtime losses in their last three outings — Class 4A New Albany, Class 3A North Harrison and Class 3A Brownstown. Providence, however, seems to be turning the corner, considering it played toe to toe with New Albany, before losing 58-56 in overtime.

“We’ve played some really good basketball and played with a lot of fight,” said Providence coach Sean Smith. “We’re right there in these game. It just comes down to a play here or there . . . We’re starting to turn the corner a little bit. I couldn’t be more proud of them.”

Both Providence and Clarksville are young. Providence has one senior; Clarksville has just one player who played any minutes in last year’s sectional.

“Our kids are excited,” said Clarksville coach Brian McEwen.

The Generals are led by sophomore Dae’von Fugua (19 ppg), who also plays football and is one of the most athletic basketball players in Southern Indiana.

On Jan. 4, Providence edged Clarksville 54-48.

KENZIE’S FAVORITES: Paoli and Crawford County.

KENZIE’S DARKHORSE: Austin. The defending champions have one of the top offensive players in Southern Indiana in Drew Buhr, who is averaging 27.7 points.

CRAWFORD COUNTY SECTIONAL
Gym capacity: 4,000
Defending champion: Austin.
Tuesday: Eastern Pekin (1-21) vs. Crawford County (18-4), 7 p.m.
Wednesday: Clarksville (6-14) vs. Providence (7-15), 6 p.m.; Henryville (9-13) vs. Paoli (18-3), 7:30 p.m.;
Friday: Eastern-Crawford winner vs. Austin (9-12), 6 p.m.; Clarksville-Providence winner vs. Henryville-Paoli winner, 7:30 p.m.
Saturday: final.

By KENZIE WINSTEAD
Content Editor

At Borden, Christian Academy will try to repeat as sectional champions, and the Warriors are legitimate favorites.

A year ago, the CAI watched its season end at Loogootee in a heartbreaking 48-47 loss to Barr-Reeve in the regional title game.

“We’re on a mission to get back to Loogootee this year,” CAI coach Steve Kerberg said.

Riding a six-game winning streak, the Warriors certainly are playing their best basketball. Since Jan. 1, they’ve lost just twice — to Class 4A Jeffersonville 57-50 and to Class 2A’s No. 1-ranked Southwestern 66-44.

Recently, Kerberg saw the return of one of his best players. 6-foot-8 center Bailey Conrad, who suffered a non-contact broken foot while warming up for the New Washington game on Dec. 1, missed 16 games after scoring 23 points in the season-opener against Floyd Central.

“We’re starting to play well,” Kerberg said. “I don’t think we’ve gotten anywhere near where we can be, because of that injury . . . I have a group of young men who are getting tougher.”

In addition to Conrad, CAI is led by guard T.J. Proctor. “I think he’s one of the better guards in Southern Indiana,” Kerberg said. “He’s played unbelievably for us this year.”

KENZIE’S FAVORITE: Christian Academy. The Warriors are 9-0 against Class 1A schools and undefeated in five games against sectional opposition. If they do get through the sectional, don’t be surprised to see the Warriors back a deep run in the Class A tourney. Kerberg said it’s his deepest team as he plays up to nine players on a given night.

If they advance to Loogootee, No. 2 Barr-Reeve (20-2) could be waiting for the Warriors again.

KENZIE’S CONTENDER: South Central. The Rebels (15-7) have reeled off eight straight, including wins over Charlestown and Providence. South Central is led by sophomore Lucas Stewart (14.5 ppg) and Chase Schoen (11.2 ppg).

KENZIE’S DARKHORSE: Lanesville. The Eagles (11-10) have won four of the last five contests before losing to Class 2A power Crawford County. On Jan. 11, they only lost to CAI 40-35. Lanesville weathered an eight-game losing streak during the middle of the season.

By KENZIE WINSTEAD
Content Editor

The Hoosier Hills Hoops website is preparing for an exciting relaunch, starting soon as we approach the boys’ sectional basketball tournaments.

The site will include the most comprehensive coverage of basketball — both boys and girls — in Southern Indiana, from youth basketball to college.

Our content coverage area will include but not limited to Clark, Floyd, Scott and Harrison counties. However, we will not be limited to county boundaries. If a story takes us to Madison or Bedford or Bloomington, we’ll go there.

The site’s content editor is a name familiar with the basketball community. Kenzie Winstead has covered Southern Indiana basketball for more than 20 years. He knows the history, the coaches and the players, past and present.