Warsaw Tigers Draw Defending Sectional Champs

February 25, 2019 at 5:45 p.m.


Even before the IHSAA announced the sectional draw, Warsaw boys basketball coach Doug Ogle believed the road to the Class 4A Sectional 4 championship at historic North Side Gym would go through Elkhart Memorial.

Ogle and the Tigers get the first shot at the defending sectional champion Crimson Chargers when action in the seven-team sectional tips off Tuesday at 7 p.m.

Tuesday’s game will be the second time in seven days Warsaw and Memorial squared off with championship implications.

Last week, the Chargers beat Warsaw 48-45 in the Tiger Den, forcing the Tigers to share the Northern Lakes Conference championship with Memorial.

The Tigers didn’t want their fifth consecutive conference title to be a “share.” Now Ogle and his team are focused on returning the favor and knocking Memorial off on its home floor, which would put the Tigers a step closer to a third sectional title in four years.

“We’ve been working on playing Memorial for quite a while. In other words, I?thought to win the sectional we would have to beat them, I just didn’t know when,” said Ogle, who has led the Tigers to six sectional championships, two regional titles and the 2010 semistate crown in his 17 seasons at the helm of Warsaw’s tradition-rich program.

“I saw the sectional championship game last year, and Northridge was up 22 or 23 points in the third quarter, but Memorial eventually came back and won the game. The pressure that Memorial put on them really made an impression on me.

“We’ve been working on the assumption that we’d have to beat Memorial to win the sectional. I like playing them first, it’s fine to play them first.”

Concord and Northridge square off Wednesday at 6 p.m., followed by Plymouth and Goshen.

Friday’s 6 p.m. semifinal will feature Elkhart Central against either Warsaw or Memorial, and Wednesday’s winners will square off in the second semifinal at approximately 7:30 p.m.

The survivor of Saturday’s title game will advance to the Michigan City regional to play the winner of the Crown Point Sectional.

“I don’t think it’s a favorable draw, having to play both Memorial and Elkhart Central on their home floor, but I think we can make it work,” said Ogle, whose team beat the Blue Blazers 54-43 in overtime at North Side Gym on Jan. 26.

Memorial enters the seven-team sectional with the most wins with 16. Northridge has 15 wins, while Plymouth and Warsaw have 14 and 13 wins, respectively, this season.

Goshen, Concord and Elkhart Central have 20 wins between them.

Memorial and Warsaw are both 5-1 against the other six teams in the sectional.

Plymouth beat Memorial 61-57 in overtime on Jan. 4, while Warsaw’s only loss against the rest of the field was the three-point setback to the Crimson Chargers.

“The only thing that would have made the draw tougher is if we would have to play Memorial on Wednesday, and we’d have to win three games in four days,” said Ogle.

“I think if you’re Goshen, Concord, Plymouth or Northridge ... the four teams on the other side ... I think you’re loving life. If I’m one of those teams I’m thinking ‘it’s great we don’t have to beat both Memorial and Warsaw.’

“If you look at the Penn Sectional, the Wawasee Sectional, some of the other sectionals, the two best teams play each other in the first game. Penn and Riley play in the first game. Fairfield and NorthWood play in the first game (at Wawasee). Homestead and Huntington North play in the first game (at Wayne). We play Memorial in the first game. In all those sectionals, the two best teams play each other in the first game.”

Following a 48-41 loss at Crown Point on Dec. 15, the Tigers won nine of their next 10 games.

Warsaw, however, goes into postseason play on a three-game losing streak with losses to current 4A No. 1 Carmel, Memorial and Carroll.

“It’s not what you want. We don’t want to be on a three-game losing streak going into the tournament,” said Ogle. But that’s what it is, and our mission is to convince our guys that the regular season is over, and that we don’t have a losing streak ... we’re 0-0 like everyone else and we’ll play each game hoping for a one-game win streak.”

Even before the IHSAA announced the sectional draw, Warsaw boys basketball coach Doug Ogle believed the road to the Class 4A Sectional 4 championship at historic North Side Gym would go through Elkhart Memorial.

Ogle and the Tigers get the first shot at the defending sectional champion Crimson Chargers when action in the seven-team sectional tips off Tuesday at 7 p.m.

Tuesday’s game will be the second time in seven days Warsaw and Memorial squared off with championship implications.

Last week, the Chargers beat Warsaw 48-45 in the Tiger Den, forcing the Tigers to share the Northern Lakes Conference championship with Memorial.

The Tigers didn’t want their fifth consecutive conference title to be a “share.” Now Ogle and his team are focused on returning the favor and knocking Memorial off on its home floor, which would put the Tigers a step closer to a third sectional title in four years.

“We’ve been working on playing Memorial for quite a while. In other words, I?thought to win the sectional we would have to beat them, I just didn’t know when,” said Ogle, who has led the Tigers to six sectional championships, two regional titles and the 2010 semistate crown in his 17 seasons at the helm of Warsaw’s tradition-rich program.

“I saw the sectional championship game last year, and Northridge was up 22 or 23 points in the third quarter, but Memorial eventually came back and won the game. The pressure that Memorial put on them really made an impression on me.

“We’ve been working on the assumption that we’d have to beat Memorial to win the sectional. I like playing them first, it’s fine to play them first.”

Concord and Northridge square off Wednesday at 6 p.m., followed by Plymouth and Goshen.

Friday’s 6 p.m. semifinal will feature Elkhart Central against either Warsaw or Memorial, and Wednesday’s winners will square off in the second semifinal at approximately 7:30 p.m.

The survivor of Saturday’s title game will advance to the Michigan City regional to play the winner of the Crown Point Sectional.

“I don’t think it’s a favorable draw, having to play both Memorial and Elkhart Central on their home floor, but I think we can make it work,” said Ogle, whose team beat the Blue Blazers 54-43 in overtime at North Side Gym on Jan. 26.

Memorial enters the seven-team sectional with the most wins with 16. Northridge has 15 wins, while Plymouth and Warsaw have 14 and 13 wins, respectively, this season.

Goshen, Concord and Elkhart Central have 20 wins between them.

Memorial and Warsaw are both 5-1 against the other six teams in the sectional.

Plymouth beat Memorial 61-57 in overtime on Jan. 4, while Warsaw’s only loss against the rest of the field was the three-point setback to the Crimson Chargers.

“The only thing that would have made the draw tougher is if we would have to play Memorial on Wednesday, and we’d have to win three games in four days,” said Ogle.

“I think if you’re Goshen, Concord, Plymouth or Northridge ... the four teams on the other side ... I think you’re loving life. If I’m one of those teams I’m thinking ‘it’s great we don’t have to beat both Memorial and Warsaw.’

“If you look at the Penn Sectional, the Wawasee Sectional, some of the other sectionals, the two best teams play each other in the first game. Penn and Riley play in the first game. Fairfield and NorthWood play in the first game (at Wawasee). Homestead and Huntington North play in the first game (at Wayne). We play Memorial in the first game. In all those sectionals, the two best teams play each other in the first game.”

Following a 48-41 loss at Crown Point on Dec. 15, the Tigers won nine of their next 10 games.

Warsaw, however, goes into postseason play on a three-game losing streak with losses to current 4A No. 1 Carmel, Memorial and Carroll.

“It’s not what you want. We don’t want to be on a three-game losing streak going into the tournament,” said Ogle. But that’s what it is, and our mission is to convince our guys that the regular season is over, and that we don’t have a losing streak ... we’re 0-0 like everyone else and we’ll play each game hoping for a one-game win streak.”
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