Trojans to play Borden in Class 1A basketball state finals
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Dale Hubler-dhubler@timesuniononline.com
LAFAYETTE – Late in the fourth quarter of Saturday’s Class 1A semistate game with No. 6 Lafayette Central Catholic, students in Triton High School’s cheerblock started chanting “this is our house.” Though Lafayette Jeff’s Marion Crawley Athletic Center is nearly two hours from Bourbon, the Trojans have certainly made themselves at home there in mid-March. For the fourth time in six years, Triton, ranked 10th in this year’s final 1A boys basketball poll, won the Lafayette Semistate and advanced to the state finals. With their 40-32 win over the Knights, Triton is 4-0 in semistate games with eighth-year coach Jason Groves, having won in 2008, 2009, 2011 and 2013. The Trojans beat Rockville in 2011, while the other three semistate wins came over Central Catholic, a school just down the road from where the game was played. “The kids have confidence,” said Groves, whose team improved to 20-5 on the season with its 12th-straight win. “They know how to come here and win these games. It never gets old.” Triton will play Borden (23-3) in Saturday’s 10:30 a.m. state championship game at Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. Borden, also ranked 10th in the 1A poll, advanced to state with a 47-44 win over University in the south semistate. “I wouldn’t want it any other way,” Triton senior Clay Yeo said when asked about his last game in a Trojans uniform being for the state championship. “This is what we’ve worked so hard for. This is what I’ve dreamt about.” The 6-foot-6 Valparaiso University-bound Yeo drew the focus of Central Catholic’s defense. Yeo, likely an Indiana All-Star, still finished with 16 points, eight rebounds, four assists, three blocks and a steal. Junior Cody Shively, who was 3 of 3 from the field and 1 of 2 at the free throw line added six points in the win, while senior Seth Glingle was 3 of 3 from the field and finished with six points and seven rebounds. Junior Tanner Shepherd and sophomore Joey Corder chipped in with four pionts each. “We did our job on the defensive end, we just didn’t make enough shots,” said Central Catholic coach Dave Barrett, whose team finished the season with an 18-9 record. “When you only give up 40 points, you’re gonna win most games. We played good defense, but we didn’t make shots.” The Knights held Yeo 12 points under his average of 28 and held the Trojans 15 points under their average of 55. Offensively, however, Central Catholic made just 11 of 50 attempts from the field overall and 4 of 21 from the arc. “Credit our kids,” said Groves, whose team was 15 of 29 from the field overall, 1 of 8 from three-point range, and 9 of 15 at the charity stripe. “They played defense. They battled and found a way to win. This was a grind, and the kids found a way to win.” The Trojans led 9-6 at the end of the first quarter, 20-17 at halftime and 30-21 after three quarters of play. Triton outscored Central Catholic 10-4 in the third quarter, holding the Knights to a 1-of-12 effort from the field. “Coach Groves is very defense-oriented,” said Yeo. “Sometimes the offense isn’t there, but you can always play defense. That’s something you can control. Coach always talks about playing defense.” Triton held Central Catholic 33 points below its average of 65 points per game. Senior Jake Churchill led the Knights with 12 points, while classmates Timmy Mills and Cowan Olinger scored eight and five points, respectively. “Losing sucks,” said Barrett. “Maybe one of these days we’ll figure out how to win one of these.” In his eighth season at Central Catholic, Barrett’s teams are 148-57 and have won eight sectional championships and four regional titles. Groves coached his 200th career game Saturday, improving his career record to 159-41. Under Groves’ guidance, the Trojans have won six sectionals, four regionals, four semistates and the 2008 state championship. “Credit the kids,” said Groves. “They bought in from Day 1. I’m just so happy for the kids. They work hard, and they deserve this. These kids just find a way to win.”
