Warsaw Wins Semistate
July 28, 2016 at 4:25 p.m.
By Dale [email protected]
In front of a sold-out, standing-room-only crowd, the 5-foot-9 Moore came up big, going 9 of 12 from the field and 5 of 5 from the free throw line en route to a game-high 26 points, as the Class 4A No. 6 Tigers beat Carroll 58-53 in the boys basketball semistate at Huntington North.[[In-content Ad]]"That's why I think he's the best player in the state," said Warsaw coach Doug Ogle. "Just when you think he can't top what he's done, he does. Nic Moore is no joke."
Neither were sophomore Jordyn Coon or senior Justin Clemens, who combined to score the final four points of the game in pressure-packed situations, as the Tigers advanced to the state championship game for the first time since 1984.
With Warsaw clinging to a one-point lead, 54-53, Ogle wanted his players to run some clock and force the Chargers to foul them.
However, with 33 seconds remaining, Coon had a wide-open look at the basket and took a 15-foot jumper that swished through the net.
While it may not have been what Ogle was looking for, the eighth-year coach was all smiles after Warsaw won its first semistate championship since Ault led the Tigers to the state finals in 1996 in the one-class tournament format.
"We didn't want him to take that shot," Ogle said of Coon. "We wanted them to have to foul us. He made it though. You take that shot, you better make it, and he did."
Carroll had a chance to tie the game, but Clemens rebounded senior Stephen Jones' miss.
Clemens was fouled with 5.7 seconds remaining, and the player known as "Biggish" came up big again, converting both free throws to seal the deal.
"I shoot a lot of free throws," said Clemens, a four-year starter on the varsity team. "I didn't really feel any pressure, i just stepped to the line and focused."
With their 16th consecutive win, the Tigers improved to 23-2, while the Chargers' season ended with a 21-4 mark - two of the losses coming to Warsaw.
Warsaw will play third-ranked Indianapolis North Central (24-3) for the Class 4A state championship Saturday at Conseco Fieldhouse in Indianapolis at approximately 8:30 p.m.
North Central advanced to the title tilt with an 82-77 win over Jeffersonville in the Southport Semistate.
"Winning state would be huge for us," said Moore. "We're not the biggest team, but we've got big hearts."
To go with Moore's 26 points and five assists, Coon finished with 11 points and five rebounds, while Clemens chipped in with 10 points and six rebounds.
Clemens was 8 of 9 at the free throw line, while the Tigers were 14 of 17 at the stripe as a team.
Senior Zack Linky scored six points for Warsaw, hitting two big three-pointers.
Sophomore Lucas Grose and senior Andy Conrad rounded out the Tigers' scoring with three and two points, respectively.
As has been the case all season, Ogle got contributions - whether it was scoring, defense or a big rebound - from players up and down the roster.
"We have the parts," said Ogle. "When you have a player like Nic Moore, and when you have a player like Justin Clemens, you have the parts. And then you have guys like Zack Linky, and Andy Conrad, and Jalen Roscoe. We've got the parts. I'm just so happy for Tiger Nation. You look up in stands, and you see a sea of orange. That's really encouraging. Every where we've gone, North Side Gym for the sectional, Michigan City for the regional, here at Huntington, we've had more fans than anyone. All these people show up to support us, and we want to make it worth their while. We feel obligated to play well for them."
In front of a large crowd of Warsaw supporters, the Tigers did what they've done throughout their magical tournament.
They played as a team, played solid defense and didn't get rattled when things didn't go their way.
Carroll led 17-11 in the first quarter, but Warsaw scored the last five points of the opening quarter and went on to lead 33-30 at halftime and 42-38 after three quarters of play.
"We've had to fight like this before," said Moore, whose 26 points Saturday pushed his season total to 503 and made him the first player since Ault in 1996 to score 500 points in a season. "We don't get down, we just play through it and play together. We've been in close games before."
Carroll tied the game at 43 and then again at 47, but a three-point play by Clemens helped push Warsaw's lead to five, 52-47, with just under three minutes to play.
The Chargers cut the deficit to one, 54-53, with Jones' three-pointer, but the Tigers just made more plays down the stretch and rewarded their fans with a trip to Indianapolis.
"Carroll played really well," said Ogle. "But I'm just really happy for Tiger Nation, and all these people that showed up to support us. We had to battle, we had to show some toughness."
Saturday's semistate game featured six ties and eight lead changes.
Winning close games has been Warsaw's trademark in the state tournament this season.
Of the Tigers' five tournament wins, the biggest margins were eight- and nine-point victories last week in the regional.
Warsaw won the sectional with a two-point win over Concord and a five-point win over Elkhart Memorial.
"There's a reason we say toughness prevails," said Ogle. "These players have battled, and the teams we've beat in the tournament have a combined record of 97-25, that's pretty good. It hasn't been easy, but these kids have played hard and made a lot of people proud."
Tyler Ault and Shane Merryman led Carroll with 16 points each, while Jones chipped in with 13.
Merryman pulled down a game-high eight rebounds, but after scoring 13 points in the first half, Clemens and Grose put the clamps on him.
Grose led Warsaw in rebounds with seven.
WARSAW 58, CARROLL 53
W 16 17 9 16 - 58
C 17 13 8 15 - 53
Warsaw - Andy Conrad 1-2 0-0 2, Justin Clemens 1-9 8-9 10, Nic Moore 9-12 5-5 26, Jordyn Coon 5-7 0-1 11, Zack Linky 2-5 0-0 6, Lucas Grose 1-2 1-2 3, Jalen Roscoe 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 19-37 14-17 58.
Carroll - Stephen Jones 5-14 1-1 14, Erik Ward 1-1 0-0 3, Greg Schortgen 0-5 0-0 0, Tyler Ault 6-14 2-5 16, Austin Hille 0-0 0-0 0, Shane Merryman 5-8 6-9 16, Cam Wisley 0-0 0-0 0, Alex Hipskind 2-2 0-0 4. Totals 19-44 9-15 53.
Three-point goals - Warsaw 6 (Moore 3, Linky 2, Coon), Carroll 6 (Jones 3, Ault 2, Ward). Rebounds - Warsaw 29 (Grose 7, Clemens 6), Carroll 22 (Merryman 8). Turnovers - Warsaw 11, Carroll 7. Fouls - Warsaw 18, Carroll 15. Fouled out - Hipskind. Records: Warsaw 23-2, Carroll 21-4.
In front of a sold-out, standing-room-only crowd, the 5-foot-9 Moore came up big, going 9 of 12 from the field and 5 of 5 from the free throw line en route to a game-high 26 points, as the Class 4A No. 6 Tigers beat Carroll 58-53 in the boys basketball semistate at Huntington North.[[In-content Ad]]"That's why I think he's the best player in the state," said Warsaw coach Doug Ogle. "Just when you think he can't top what he's done, he does. Nic Moore is no joke."
Neither were sophomore Jordyn Coon or senior Justin Clemens, who combined to score the final four points of the game in pressure-packed situations, as the Tigers advanced to the state championship game for the first time since 1984.
With Warsaw clinging to a one-point lead, 54-53, Ogle wanted his players to run some clock and force the Chargers to foul them.
However, with 33 seconds remaining, Coon had a wide-open look at the basket and took a 15-foot jumper that swished through the net.
While it may not have been what Ogle was looking for, the eighth-year coach was all smiles after Warsaw won its first semistate championship since Ault led the Tigers to the state finals in 1996 in the one-class tournament format.
"We didn't want him to take that shot," Ogle said of Coon. "We wanted them to have to foul us. He made it though. You take that shot, you better make it, and he did."
Carroll had a chance to tie the game, but Clemens rebounded senior Stephen Jones' miss.
Clemens was fouled with 5.7 seconds remaining, and the player known as "Biggish" came up big again, converting both free throws to seal the deal.
"I shoot a lot of free throws," said Clemens, a four-year starter on the varsity team. "I didn't really feel any pressure, i just stepped to the line and focused."
With their 16th consecutive win, the Tigers improved to 23-2, while the Chargers' season ended with a 21-4 mark - two of the losses coming to Warsaw.
Warsaw will play third-ranked Indianapolis North Central (24-3) for the Class 4A state championship Saturday at Conseco Fieldhouse in Indianapolis at approximately 8:30 p.m.
North Central advanced to the title tilt with an 82-77 win over Jeffersonville in the Southport Semistate.
"Winning state would be huge for us," said Moore. "We're not the biggest team, but we've got big hearts."
To go with Moore's 26 points and five assists, Coon finished with 11 points and five rebounds, while Clemens chipped in with 10 points and six rebounds.
Clemens was 8 of 9 at the free throw line, while the Tigers were 14 of 17 at the stripe as a team.
Senior Zack Linky scored six points for Warsaw, hitting two big three-pointers.
Sophomore Lucas Grose and senior Andy Conrad rounded out the Tigers' scoring with three and two points, respectively.
As has been the case all season, Ogle got contributions - whether it was scoring, defense or a big rebound - from players up and down the roster.
"We have the parts," said Ogle. "When you have a player like Nic Moore, and when you have a player like Justin Clemens, you have the parts. And then you have guys like Zack Linky, and Andy Conrad, and Jalen Roscoe. We've got the parts. I'm just so happy for Tiger Nation. You look up in stands, and you see a sea of orange. That's really encouraging. Every where we've gone, North Side Gym for the sectional, Michigan City for the regional, here at Huntington, we've had more fans than anyone. All these people show up to support us, and we want to make it worth their while. We feel obligated to play well for them."
In front of a large crowd of Warsaw supporters, the Tigers did what they've done throughout their magical tournament.
They played as a team, played solid defense and didn't get rattled when things didn't go their way.
Carroll led 17-11 in the first quarter, but Warsaw scored the last five points of the opening quarter and went on to lead 33-30 at halftime and 42-38 after three quarters of play.
"We've had to fight like this before," said Moore, whose 26 points Saturday pushed his season total to 503 and made him the first player since Ault in 1996 to score 500 points in a season. "We don't get down, we just play through it and play together. We've been in close games before."
Carroll tied the game at 43 and then again at 47, but a three-point play by Clemens helped push Warsaw's lead to five, 52-47, with just under three minutes to play.
The Chargers cut the deficit to one, 54-53, with Jones' three-pointer, but the Tigers just made more plays down the stretch and rewarded their fans with a trip to Indianapolis.
"Carroll played really well," said Ogle. "But I'm just really happy for Tiger Nation, and all these people that showed up to support us. We had to battle, we had to show some toughness."
Saturday's semistate game featured six ties and eight lead changes.
Winning close games has been Warsaw's trademark in the state tournament this season.
Of the Tigers' five tournament wins, the biggest margins were eight- and nine-point victories last week in the regional.
Warsaw won the sectional with a two-point win over Concord and a five-point win over Elkhart Memorial.
"There's a reason we say toughness prevails," said Ogle. "These players have battled, and the teams we've beat in the tournament have a combined record of 97-25, that's pretty good. It hasn't been easy, but these kids have played hard and made a lot of people proud."
Tyler Ault and Shane Merryman led Carroll with 16 points each, while Jones chipped in with 13.
Merryman pulled down a game-high eight rebounds, but after scoring 13 points in the first half, Clemens and Grose put the clamps on him.
Grose led Warsaw in rebounds with seven.
WARSAW 58, CARROLL 53
W 16 17 9 16 - 58
C 17 13 8 15 - 53
Warsaw - Andy Conrad 1-2 0-0 2, Justin Clemens 1-9 8-9 10, Nic Moore 9-12 5-5 26, Jordyn Coon 5-7 0-1 11, Zack Linky 2-5 0-0 6, Lucas Grose 1-2 1-2 3, Jalen Roscoe 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 19-37 14-17 58.
Carroll - Stephen Jones 5-14 1-1 14, Erik Ward 1-1 0-0 3, Greg Schortgen 0-5 0-0 0, Tyler Ault 6-14 2-5 16, Austin Hille 0-0 0-0 0, Shane Merryman 5-8 6-9 16, Cam Wisley 0-0 0-0 0, Alex Hipskind 2-2 0-0 4. Totals 19-44 9-15 53.
Three-point goals - Warsaw 6 (Moore 3, Linky 2, Coon), Carroll 6 (Jones 3, Ault 2, Ward). Rebounds - Warsaw 29 (Grose 7, Clemens 6), Carroll 22 (Merryman 8). Turnovers - Warsaw 11, Carroll 7. Fouls - Warsaw 18, Carroll 15. Fouled out - Hipskind. Records: Warsaw 23-2, Carroll 21-4.
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