On The Court

NO. 6 (4A) WARSAW AT NO. 2 (3A) NORTHRIDGE

Tip-off: 6:15 p.m. Friday in Middlebury

Coaches: Al Rhodes (Warsaw), Steve Austin (Northridge)

Records: Warsaw 4-1, 1-0 NLC; Northridge 4-0, 0-0 NLC

Last game: FW North 64, Warsaw 60; Northridge 76, Elkhart Memorial 49

Last year: Warsaw 64, Northridge 55

Matchup: This is the contest most would say will decide the Northern Lakes Conference championship. Warsaw's offensive attack is spearheaded by 6-4 senior Chris Wiggins and his 12.6 points per game. Wiggins scored six points in Warsaw's last game, a 64-60 loss to Ft. Wayne North, but severely sprained an ankle. His status remains unknown. Steve Siebenmorgen is the only other Tiger in double figures at 11.8. The 6-6 Siebenmorgen leads the team in rebounds with 6.2 per game. Six-foot-7 senior Aaron Thomas, who will play Division I-A college basketball for Robert Morris in Pennsylvania, leads Northridge with 20.3 points per game. Jayme Fazi adds 15.1 points per contest. Two other Raiders - Justin Anderson and Todd Pletcher - average 10 points per game.

Rhodes: "Chris' (Wiggins) status is unknown. We hope we can play him for a couple of minutes. You have to really concentrate on Aaron Thomas. They have other people who can hurt you too. We have to handle the whole situation. One, we're going to have a different lineup with different combinations. Two, the atmosphere there is going to be very hostile."

Austin: "Who wins this game gets the upper hand in the conference. Up until our last game, all five of our starters were scoring in double figures every game. We're not just Aaron Thomas. We have a combination of quickness and strength inside. A lot of teams double- and triple-team Thomas, but he's been doing a good job of recognizing and kicking the ball out to open people. We've been getting open looks ... I'm impressed with (Warsaw guard/forward Paul) Finnegan. It seems like every year Warsaw comes up with someone you haven't seen before. (Warsaw's) team may not be as fast as in years past, but they have the same disciplined team that plays smart. The number one thing that will decide the game is the boards. Warsaw is so big, and they always rebound well, but we've been rebounding well, too. The number two thing is turnovers. Our home-court advantage helps."

TIPPECANOE VALLEY AT WAWASEE

Tip-off: 6:15 p.m. Friday in Syracuse

Coaches: Bill Patrick (Valley); Robb Berger (Wawasee)

Records: Valley 3-2; Wawasee 0-4

Last game: Peru 100, Valley 80; Warsaw 61, Wawasee 40

Last year: Valley 53, Wawasee 45

Matchup: Both teams are coming off 20-point losses. Wawasee's regular season losing streak has reached 25 games. Wawasee is looking for its first win under Robb Berger and its first regular season win since February 1998. Brandon Eaton leads the Valley offensive attack. The 6-4 senior forward has scored 40 points or more twice this season, including 41 in Valley's last game where he was 15 of 15 from the charity stripe. Eaton has made 25 of his last 27 free throw attempts. Jeremy High leads Wawasee with his 13 points per game average. R.J. Wilson, Travis Klenke and Drew Gradle all average at least 7.0 points per game.

Patrick: "They have a new coach. They got beat by Angola in two overtimes. They got beat by Warsaw. They've been beat by three good, solid teams. Obviously they've been competitive. They've got a couple kids that can score. Berger in the past has had some good teams at Mishawaka Marian."

Berger: "Valley is a good team. We saw them play against Warsaw and Peru, two of the top teams in the state, and they played very well. They are aggressive offensively and defensively. They get in and go to the basket. Brandon Eaton, in the two games we have seen, scored 40 and 41 points. From the games we've seen, it looks like he is the best player in the state. He is an outstanding player, and it will be important for us to contain him."

TRITON VS. CASTON AT CULVER TOURNAMENT

Tip-off: 8 p.m. Friday in Culver

Coaches: Joe Bennett (Triton); Doug Hicks (Caston)

Records: Triton 3-3; Caston 3-1

Last game: Triton 69, Washington Township 52; Caston 66, Wabash 39

Last year: Triton 44, Caston 38

Matchup: After Triton defeated Caston in the championship game of the Culver Tournament last year, the Comets are looking to avenge last year's loss. Triton, on the other hand, is trying to win the tournament for the second year in a row. The Trojans will look to Brandon Zeider and his 20.2 points and 5.0 rebounds per game to lead the team. Brian Klingerman is Triton's rebounding leader with 5.5 per contest. Caston is led by Eric Walsh who scores around 13 points and pulls down about 7.0 rebounds per game.

Bennett: "We are focusing on what we do right now. Defensively, we need to be more consistent and more aggressive. Caston is a well-disciplined team, and they have good shot selection. They handle the ball well. They also have some good players."

Hicks: "Triton has two guards who are strong, (Austin) Unterbrink and Zeider. They also have good inside players in Klingerman and (Jim) Read. We will try not to turn the ball over. Triton uses a half-court defense, and they try to cause a lot of 5-second calls. I think the key is handling their dribble penetration. That could present a big problem for us."

WHITKO AT CHURUBUSCO

Tip-off: 6:30 p.m. Friday in Churubusco

Coaches: Steve Pickett (Whitko); Ross Hales (Churubusco)

Records: Whitko 0-6; Churubusco 3-3

Last game: Plymouth 62, Whitko 53; Churubusco 54, East Side 53

Last year: Churubusco 63, Whitko 49

Matchup: Whitko is searching for the first win of the season, while Churubusco is sitting at .500. After a hard-fought loss to Plymouth Saturday, the Wildcats are hungry for a win. Whitko will look to Shane Henderson, Byran Howard and Ben Ryan to lead the WIldact scoring drive. Henderson and Howard average 12.7 points per game each, while Ryan sits right at 10 points per game. Ryan also leads the team in rebounding with 5.8 per game. Churucbusco will look to David Keister, who leads the team in scoring with 15.3 points and 12 rebounds per game. James Ford is also a leader for the Eagles with 15 points and 7.0 assists per game.

Pickett: "I coached at Churubusco under coach Hales three years ago when Ford and Keister were freshmen. I was a varsity assistant, so I know the guys and coach Hales. They have made a lot of changes since I was there. They play a motion offense and some different offensive sets. They also have a half-court trap and play a 2-3 zone, and they never did that when I was there. Right now we are trying to instill confidence in our team. Even though our record is not where we want it to be, we can still do things to improve. Against Churubusco, we will try to shut down Keister and Ford.

Hales: "I've seen a bit of film on Whitko. They are a very talented group of kids. There are two or three kids who can really shoot the ball. We are preparing to guard against the three-point shot, and we will focus on dribble penetration."

NORTHWOOD AT CONCORD

Tip-off: 6:15 p.m. Friday in Dunlap

Coaches: Dan Gunn (NorthWood), Ryan Culp (Concord)

Records: NorthWood 3-0, 0-0 NLC; Concord 3-1, 0-0 NLC

Last game: NorthWood 70, Fairfield 66; Concord 53, Miskawaka 45

Last year: NorthWood 53, Concord 51

Matchup: This is the first NLC contest for both teams. NorthWood is on a three-game win streak, and Concord wants to be the first team to hand the Panthers a loss. NorthWood will look to three players for much of its offensive power. Charlie Roeder and Brock Doty average nearly 20 points per game each, while Ian Reed contributes 10 points per game. Concord will look to Ricky McKenzie, who is scoring 11.8 points per game to lead the offensive attack. John Morningstar, at 6-9, is Concord's leading rebounder.

Culp: "NorthWood is an aggressive team that is playing well right now. They have great senior leadership. They will probably use a lot of defensive presses, full court and half court. Offensively, they attack the basket. We have to be prepared to play that agressive defense and offense."

Gunn: "Concord is a good-sized team. They press most of the game, half court, full court. They play good defense, and I expect them to get much better as the season goes on. McKenzie is the point on the full-court press, and he is quick and athletic. Morningstar is 6-9 and poses a size problem. I expect this to be a fun, up-tempo game."