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Steve Johnson predicted Saturday night would be rough because of what happened Friday night.
What happened Friday night was Warsaw's basketball team lost at Marion 73-41. Johnson coaches Elkhart Memorial. Elkhart Memorial had to play Warsaw Saturday after that 32-point loss.
This is what Johnson's 6-7 Crimson Chargers faced: A mad and refocused team. A mad and refocused 12-2 team. A mad and refocused 12-2 team playing on its home floor.
Add to that Johnson was missing starting senior forward Aaron Maurer, who averages 14 points and 7.3 rebounds per game, to a viral infection. Another part-time starter, sophomore guard Keidrick Stout, hurt his ankle and would see little playing time against Warsaw.
The game smelled like a mismatch before it started, and it was a mismatch as Warsaw, ranked ninth in 4A, won 77-51.
"With (Warsaw) getting nailed last night, they were ready," Johnson said. "I had one word on our board before the game started: Ready. I said Warsaw would come out quickly. That's exactly what happened.
"They had to ride that bus home knowing they got to come back and play here at home (Saturday)."
Said Warsaw coach Al Rhodes: "It was a good win, especially considering our circumstances of playing poorly (Friday) night. We came back and controlled the paint.
"Did anybody look like they were feeling sorry for themselves? No. We lost that game. It wasn't the end of the world."
The Crimson Chargers faced two problems Saturday night: They couldn't score and they couldn't stop Warsaw from scoring.
The Tiger offense scored in two ways all evening, by pounding the ball inside to center Zach Nelson and forward Steve Siebenmorgen and by guards Chris Wiggins and Ross Kesler slashing to the basket for layups.
And when they weren't scoring those two ways, they were scoring from the free-throw line, where they hit 32 of 40.
Wiggins scored 23 to lead Warsaw. Siebenmorgen added 17, Kesler 12 and Nelson 10. While Warsaw had four players finish in double figures, Elkhart Memorial had but one, forward Nick Slabaugh. Slabaugh scored 25, but he alone couldn't keep Elkhart Memorial in the game.
The Crimson Chargers tried to stop Warsaw inside by mucking up the middle with a 2-3 zone, but they were physically overmatched. Once Warsaw got the ball inside, the result was either a field goal or a trip to the free-throw line for two points.
"That is a big, big part of their game," Johnson said. "They're strong. I love the way they pass the ball. Their guards have great timing. They pass the ball to open people.
"Our purpose was to start with the zone to see if we could somehow slow down the inside game and then see if we could get something going ourselves. We had nothing going ourselves, so we couldn't get anything going."
"Memorial was trying to collapse and shut off Siebenmorgen and Nelson," Rhodes said. "Their wing player was a little high in trying to help, which created the lane to drive. Both Chris and Ross took advantage of that. Rob Kesler did a good job of getting the outlet pass and throwing it up ahead to them."
The Tigers helped themselves at the free-throw line in the first half, as they hit 16 of 19 en route to a 36-22 halftime lead.
Wiggins led with 12 first-half points, and Siebenmorgen added 11. Slabaugh had 14; seven other Memorial teammates who saw first-half action combined for eight.
As soon as the third quarter started, the Tigers squelched any thoughts Elkhart Memorial had of climbing back into the game.
Warsaw started the second half on a 13-0 run to take a 49-22 lead. Point guard Rob Kesler opened the half with a three-pointer. The next 10 points were scored on five layups, two by Wiggins, two by Ross Kesler and one by Nelson.
The Tigers cruised to the end.
Elkhart Memorial and Warsaw are in the same sectional, so they could meet again. Johnson hopes to have Maurer healthy by then, but he realizes facing Warsaw a second time would still be a challenge.
"They have to be awful good compared to anyone on our schedule," he said.
Said Rhodes: "With one important player gone in Maurer, and with Stout injured, we realize that's not the same team we could potentially play in the sectional."
