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As the Triton boys basketball team prepares for what it hopes are two semi-state games at Lafayette Jefferson High School on Saturday, the group is sporting a new look while doing so.
After defeating Marquette Catholic 53-51 in a regional game for the ages last Saturday, the Trojans headed for their local hair salon and collectively bleached their hair on Sunday. The idea, which was credited to senior guard Julian Swanson, was to both celebrate winning a regional title for the second straight season, while also to promote the team’s unity.
“It’s something that I feel like you see some teams do when they make a long run. It’s a way of showcasing our brotherhood,” the senior said. “We were able to convince everybody on the team to do it so it’s really cool to see that.”
As for head coach Jason Groves, he isn’t quite sure how to feel.
“I’m not sure if I like it or not, but who am I to comment on anyone’s hair?” The coach asked with a laugh. “It’s something they wanted to do as a way of team-bonding, so why not. Maybe it’ll cause a matchup problem or two.”
The Trojans will take any advantage they can get this weekend, as the team looks to advance to the state finals for the fifth time this century, all under Groves. Triton’s most recent opportunity to return to Indianapolis came just last year, when the blue and gold dropped their opening semi-state game 62-47 to eventual state runners up Clinton Prairie in the same building. Groves believes his team’s mindset is in a much different place than last year’s unit.
“Last year, I think our guys were excited to be there, not really sure about their chances to win. This year, I think our approach is a little bit different,” he said. “We want to win this thing and get to the state finals.”
His players agree.
“I don’t want to say we were complacent in making it to semi-state last year, but the vibe definitely felt different,” senior point guard Landon Patrick said. “We definitely want to make it to Gainbridge this year, that’s been our goal all year long. We have a great class of seniors and we want to keep this going.”
In order to do so, the Trojans (23-3) will have to win a pair of games, the first of which coming against Tri-County (16-10) at noon. On the other side of the bracket, playing in the first game on Saturday morning is Monroe Central (21-4) and North Vermillion (16-11). The two winners will face off at 8 p.m.
While Groves says that a large chunk of this week’s prep time will be spent getting ready for the opener against the Cavaliers, he admits that needing to win two games does add a unique wrinkle.
“This is a tough week, the regional is relatively easy, you have one opponent and that’s it. This week, you have to prepare for three teams,” he said. “Most of our practice time and preparation this week will definitely be focused on Tri-County, but as coaches, you have to be ready for anything in that next game if we’re to make it that far.”
In stark comparison to the Trojans, the Cavaliers are making their first ever appearance in the semi-state round this weekend. It’s been a season full of ups and downs in Wolcott, as the team has two losing streaks of at least three games or longer, but Tri-County is getting hot at the right time. Winners of six in a row, the Cavaliers are similar to their opponent in terms of team demographic. The top five scorers for Tri-County are all seniors, whereas four of the top five scorers for Triton are 12th graders.
The Cavaliers also do a great job of sharing the rock. Drew Foster (13.4 PPG) and Gabe Miller (12.3) both average double figures, while three more players, led by Clayton Atkinson’s 9.8 PPG, average at least seven. Averaging nearly 30 rebounds and 10 steals a night, Tri-County’s tenacity and aggressiveness was cited by everyone asked about what to expect.
“When you get to this point in the tournament, everyone is good. They play hard all the time, they’re big, they’re long,” senior Gage Riffle said. “They know how to play as a team, but fortunately, so do we.”
“They have scrappy guards and play good defense. They rebound like crazy,” Groves said. “They’re a well-coached group and we’re going to have to play hard to win.”
Groves also mentioned that starting the game strong and putting the pressure on a team making its first ever appearance in this round could end up paying dividends.
“That’s always what we want to do. It all starts with fundamentals. We know that it's a big game for us too, I don’t care that we were there last year. When you’re nervous you have to start with doing the little things the right way,” he said. “It all starts with our defense, I think we can be much better defensively than we were last week, and when you’re playing great on that end, it opens up a lot of things for your offense.”
