INDIANAPOLIS - Warsaw's dream season ended in nightmarish fashion Saturday night.
When the Class 4A No. 6 Warsaw Tigers met the third-ranked Indianapolis North Central Panthers at Conseco Fieldhouse for the 100th annual boys basketball state championship, it was anything but a cat fight.North Central's aggressive, swarming defense forced Warsaw into 18 first-half turnovers, while on the offensive end, the Panthers used a 22-2 run that bridged the first two quarters as they beat the Tigers 95-74.
North Central's points total was the second-highest in the tournament's 100-year history and eclipsed East Chicago Central's Class 4A record of 87 points in 2007 - ironically against the Panthers.
The only team to score more points in a state championship game - single-class or four-class format - was the 1955 Indianapolis Crispus Attucks team, which beat Gary Roosevelt 97-74.
North Central, which led by as many 26 points, was just three points off the state record for margin of victory in a state championship game.
"Well, we just could not deal with North Central's quickness and aggressive defense," said eighth-year Warsaw coach Doug Ogle. "You really can't simulate it. They played very, very well in the first half and we did not. They're very good, I'd say they're not a normal high school basketball team."
The Tigers scored some buckets in transition early and took a 10-6 lead and then led 12-10, sending 4,000-plus orange-clad Warsaw fans into a frenzy.
The aggressive, athletic Panthers, however, responded with the knockout punch - a 22-2 run that gave them a 32-14 advantage with five minutes to play in the first half.
Warsaw trailed 46-26 at halftime and 69-49 after three quarters of play.
"They came at us in waves," said Ogle. "They're not like any team we've seen all year."
The Tigers, who entered the game on a 16-game winning streak, finished the season with a 23-3 record. This season marked the first time Warsaw has won 23 games in a season since Kevin Ault led the Tigers to the state finals in 1996 and they finished with a 25-3 record.
In winning its second state title and first since 1999, North Central won 20 of its last 21 games and finished with a 25-3 record.
"We finally wore them down," said 17th-year North Central coach Doug Mitchell. "It's what we've done to people all year long. We go 10 or 11 deep, and it paid off tonight. Our depth wore them down. Nic Moore is is a heck of a player, but we had four guys chasing him and thank goodness he fouled out in the third quarter."
After scoring 14 points in the first half, Moore scored 14 points in the third quarter for the Tigers, but was whistled for four fouls in the third quarter and fouled out with 41 seconds remaining in the period and Warsaw trailing 64-47.
Moore finished the game with 28 points and four assists. The 5-foot-9 junior was just one point short of tying 2006 Mr. Basketball Greg Oden's Class 4A state finals record of 29 points.
"I tried to leave it all out there on the court," said Moore, who is currently fourth on Warsaw's all-time scoring list with 1,319 points. "We're playing for a state championship in Indy, and there's a lot of people here. There's a lot of college coaches here. People who choose the All-Star teams are here. I just tried to help my team win."
The list of college coaches in attendance during Saturday's four state championship games included Roy Williams (North Carolina), Matt Painter (Purdue), Tom Crean (Indiana), Tubby Smith (Minnesota), Bruce Weber (Illinois) and Billy Taylor (Ball State).
Sophomor Lucas Grose added 18 points and 10 rebounds for Warsaw, while seniors Justin Clemens and Zack Linky scored 11 and eight points, respectively.
Sophomore Jordyn Coon scored five points for Warsaw, while senior Andy Conrad and junior Cody Bragg scored two points each.
North Central had four players finish in double figures, led by the 26-point, eight-assist performace of senior Terone Johnson, who will play for Purdue.
"Coach Ogle has said he thinks he has the best guard in the state, I think the best guard in the state is right over there," Mitchell said, pointing at Johnson.
Sophomores Ronnie Johnson and D'Vauntes Smith-Rivera scored 17 and 16 points, respectively, while freshman Darius Latham finished with 14 points.
"They don't have a big guy, but they're quick and quickness is more important than being big," Ogle said of North Central not having a player taller than 6-4. "So there's a lot to deal with and we didn't handle it very well."
NORTH CENTRAL 95, WARSAW 74
NC 19 27 23 26 - 95
W 12 14 23 25 - 74
N. Central - Darius Latham 5-7 4-4 14, Ronnie Johnson 6-14 2-2 17, Micah Smith 1-2 0-0 2, Terone Johnson 10-18 4-4 26, D'Vauntes Smith-Rivera 6-10 4-5 16, Aaron Bluitt 3-4 0-1 7, Jack Altice 0-0 0-0 0, Trip McFall 3-3 2-2 8, Jordan Williams 0-0 0-0 0, Tim Bass 0-1 1-4 1, Patrick Ingram 0-1 0-0 0, Dedric Griffin 2-3 0-0 4. Totals 36-63 17-22 95.
Warsaw - Justin Clemens 5-12 1-1 11, Lucas Grose 7-12 4-7 18, Nic Moore 10-17 5-7 28, Jordyn Coon 2-2 0-1 5, Zack Linky 2-4 2-4 8, Andy Conrad 1-3 0-0 2, Joey Sparkman 0-0 0-0 0, Brock Davis 0-0 0-0 0, Christopher O'Hara 0-0 0-0 0, Cody Bragg 1-1 0-0 2, Jalen Roscoe 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 28-51 12-20 74.
Three-point goals - N. Central 6 (R. Johnson 3, T. Johnson 2, Bluitt), Warsaw 6 (Moore 3, Linky 2, Coon). Rebounds - N. Central 30 (Latham 6, Smith-Rivera 6), Warsaw 27 (Grose 10). Turnovers - N. Central 17, Warsaw 24. Fouls - N. Central 22, Warsaw 18. Fouled out - Moore. Records: N. Central 25-3, Warsaw 23-3.
