Warsaw coach Al Rhodes, a staunch opponent of class basketball, will certainly get his chance to prove his point in this year's Warsaw Sectional.

The theory that the little school beating the big school is what makes Hoosier Hysteria great is getting put to the test this week.

The Tigers, a school of almost 2,000, just got past Argos 59-43 Tuesday in a battle that was tougher than the score shows, have little time to regroup to face a tougher small school challenge in the upstart Trojans of Triton Thursday in the sectional semifinals.

"They (Triton) have a nice basketball team so it should set up a Thursday night game," Rhodes said.

The Tigers battled the Dragons for three-plus quarters before putting them away in the fourth. Warsaw led only 40-38 midway through the fourth when P.J. Wiley, 0-for-2 from three-point range on the season, nailed a trey from the corner to give the Tigers a five-point lead. But more importantly, it seemed to take the wind out of the upstart Dragons' sails as Warsaw went on a 16-5 run to end the game and win going away.

"P.J. Wiley's three was a backbreaker," Rhodes said. "They don't expect him to shoot it, and he makes it. That started us on our way to opening the game up."

The Tigers certainly had their problems with the Dragons, but if they would have just taken care of business and converted on some opportunities it probably wouldn't have been even close.

Warsaw made only 3 of 11 shots from the field in the first quarter, but still led 10-7. Warsaw was a little better in the second quarter at 4 of 8, but still couldn't shake the Dragons and led only 21-19 at halftime.

"We didn't shoot the ball well in the first half," Rhodes said. "Basically it is an even half because of that. If we shoot a good field goal percentage, then we are probably up 10 at the half with the turnovers that we had created.

"We just didn't score any points out of the turnovers," he said. "That was the difference in the first half."

Argos stayed close by not trying to get out and run with the more-athletic Tigers and being patient on offense.

"Argos played a real smart game," Rhodes said. "They really slowed the tempo down on offense. Argos played a fine game. They had a good game plan. We are fortunate to win."

Any other year, the Tigers could have been accused of looking past Argos to a possible matchup with Triton. But with the tournament inexperience for the Tigers, with only three players with postseason play under their belts, it was just as important for Warsaw to get on the court and just win a game.

"We have had a good year, but the sectional does add extra pressure," Rhodes said. "I don't think we looked past Argos. I thought our players were ready to play. It was just a well-played ball game. It allows us to advance and play again. Whether you win by one or 30 in a tournament, all that matters is that you move to the next round. That is all you try to do, and that is what we will be looking to do on Thursday."

Tom Krizmanich led Warsaw with 15 points and six rebounds, while Tyler Charlton added 10 points. Eric Stults and Bill Redinger both had 13 for Argos (10-10).

Warsaw has a 7:30 p.m. date Thursday with Triton, right after the Wawasee-CMA game at 6 p.m. [[In-content Ad]]