On The Court...

VALLEY AT MANCHESTER

TIPOFF: 8 p.m. Friday at North Manchester

COACHES: Gregg Sciarra (Valley), Gary Goshert (Manchester)

RECORDS: Valley 8-6, 3-2 TRC; Manchester 8-6, 4-1 TRC

LAST GAME: Washington 94, Valley 65; Manchester 65, Whitko 47

MATCHUP:... Valley travels to Manchester High School, where the Squires have dominated the Vikings. The Squires have lost only once at home since their home season opener, 51-49, to Columbia City on a last-second shot. Valley is making lineup changes. JayDee Parker, who scored 11 last week against Washington, takes Nick Stutzman's place in the starting lineup. Stutzman scored zero against Washington. Valley's leading scorers are Jeff Brown (18.1 ppg), Eric Love (10.6 ppg) and Stutzman (9.9 ppg). Valley's leading rebounder is Brown (8.0 rpg), and the leading assists man is Darren Parker (6.6 apg). Manchester's top scorers are Eric Swan (12.2 ppg) and Chris Enyeart (10.9 ppg). The Squires' top rebounders are Enyeart (6.8 rpg) and Peden (5.3 rpg). Manchester's leaders in assists are Jonathan Price (4.1 apg) and Rex Reimer (3.5).

GAME TALK:

Sciarra... "Manchester plays hard on defense, which their team has to do. Their inside game is coming along. Anyone can score on that team. It's not just Peden, not just Enyeart, not just the guards. Now you can't go in there and say we have to stop this kid or that kid. You need to try to stop their inside game and just take your chances on their outside game."

Goshert... "I think Valley has a very athletic team. They are not necessarily the tallest team. They have boys with good basketball skills, boys who have savvy for the game. Their athletic ability overcomes their lack of height. They have extremely good shooters, different kids who can score. They have a tendency to give you a lot of defensive looks. You have to be into the mental part of the game when you play them. Brown is a key player. Love has an exceptional percentage shooting threes...With those two (Peden, Enyeart) doing what they did against Whitko, that helps solidify things. It makes teams feel like they have to key on an area of the floor defensively, I like the work ethic we're taking into each game. We have a chance to survive, as long as we work hard each night."

WHITKO AT WAWASEE

TIPOFF: 8 p.m. Friday at Syracuse

COACHES: Dave Henson (Whitko), Jerry Davis (Wawasee)

RECORDS: Whitko 5-8, Wawasee 4-9

LAST GAME: Manchester 65, Whitko 47; Wawasee 54, Triton 51

MATCHUP:...These are two teams heading in different directions after their last games. Wawasee broke Triton's 10-game home winning streak on a Ryan Mikel half-court shot at the buzzer. Manchester and Whitko is always supposed to be a game that showcases a classic school rivalry, but the Squires drubbed the Wildcats by 18 points. After the Triton game, Davis talked about how the last three games, his team is starting to put things together. After the Manchester game, Henson declared lineup changes are in store. Mikel leads Wawasee with 15.1 ppg, and Jay Haugh adds 10.2 ppg. Zach Henson leads Whitko with 24.3 ppg, and Bo Mullins adds 9.3 ppg.

GAME TALK:

Henson... "I know Wawasee had a transition time with a new coach coming in. They've played good teams close. Mikel is starting to play the way everybody knew he could play all along. They will be all we can handle up there. The guards seem to be their key. They spread the floor, try to penetrate and kick it out. They are the type of team that's given us the most trouble all year."

Davis... "Henson is a very good player. He presents tremendous matchup problems because of his height and ability to play on the perimeter. We have to find someone who can guard him on the perimeter. Mullins is a very solid inside player. That should be an interesting matchup between him and Stipp. I think maybe we go to Stipp a little more than they go to Mullins."

SOUTHWOOD AT WARSAW

TIPOFF: 8 p.m. Friday

COACHES: Steve McClure (Southwood), Al Rhodes (Warsaw)

RECORDS: Southwood 5-8, Warsaw 12-2

LAST GAME: Southwood 63, Blackford 62; Warsaw 71, Adams 53

MATCHUP: This matchup, which was created specifically for both teams to help themselves when sectional time rolls around, will be no more after this season. Southwood's leading scorer and rebounder, Scott Stumbo, sprained an ankle and is doubtful. Warsaw comes off a winning, albeit tiring, weekend in which it won a three-overtime thriller over Concord and then South Bend Adams. With two nonconference games on the weekend for Warsaw, the preparation is for the matchup Feb. 7 at Plymouth for the Northern Lakes Conference crown.

GAME TALK:

McClure... "As far as the emotions we will feel going into the Huntington Sectional, this game will be great preparation. Any time you have a chance to play against a program such as Warsaw, it is good. As a small school team coming into play that kind of program, it is going to stir up some emotions that we don't normally see during our regular season. We want to accept the challenge and use it in a positive manner. ... We are a very young team, and we have been up and down. One of our strengths is depth, and if Scott can't go, that is just an opportunity for another player to get a shot."

Rhodes... "It is a two-week program now, trying to get ready to play against Plymouth and be a better basketball team. We consider these two nonconference games (with Elkhart Memorial Saturday) aids to help us to get that done. ... Southwood will come in and play very hard. Coach McClure knows us well from his days at Northfield. He is a very good basketball coach. The reason we put this game together was to help them get comfortable playing on the big floor for when they got to Huntington for the sectional. They have decided not to play this game any more. The Marion Giants will replace them next year."

NEW PRAIRIE AT TRITON

TIPOFF: 8 p.m. Friday at Bourbon

COACHES: Tom DeBaets (New Prairie), Kevin O'Rourke (Triton)

RECORDS: New Prairie 5-7, 2-0 NSC; Triton 9-3, 4-0 NSC

LAST GAME: LaVille 45, New Prairie 32; Wawasee 54, Triton 51

MATCHUP:...New Prairie is coached by Tom DeBaets, who is in his first year at the school after leaving South Bend Clay. If Triton wins this one, the Trojans are two wins away from going undefeated in the conference. The Trojans look to start two new winning streaks. Wawasee ended their home win streak at 10 and their overall win streak at five. The Trojans can keep one streak going - they have won nine conference games in a row going back to last year.

GAME TALK:

DeBaets... "I've been telling everyone, and I've told my team this: Next to LaPorte, Triton is the best team we will have faced so far this year. They are very good ball handlers, very patient offensively, quick, well-coached, and they shoot the ball very well. We'll play them man-to-man, and hopefully we can come up with an exceptional effort. Sizewise, we match up well with them, except Triton is much quicker. This will be a big challenge to go down there and battle them in a conference game."

O'Rourke... "We've seen them play a couple of times. They have a nice ballclub. We're the only two undefeated teams left in the conference. They shoot well from the perimeter. They have three or four kids who are making better than 40 percent of their three-pointers. They are balanced, but Pete Gaff, a 6-2 kid, is their leading scorer. He shoots the three well and can go to the basket. John Dupont is doing a nice job in the post. They had 14 at the end of the first quarter of the LaVille game, then LaVille switched to a 3-2 zone, and they had 18 thereafter. They didn't get the shots they had been getting. They run a motion offense, and their movement, cuts and screens are as good as any team we've faced this year."