AKRON — It’s been a few years, but the Tippecanoe Valley boys basketball team is back in a regional. After playing in three-straight regionals between 2005-07, the Tippecanoe Valley Vikings went 16-5 in 2007-08, then 19-44 between the 2008-09 season and 2010-11. Rebounding for a 16-5 mark last year, Valley return to glory this season, leading to a 20-3 record and berth in Saturday’s Blackford Regional. In Hartford City, the regional begins with No. 7 Fort Wayne Concordia (20-4) taking on Hamilton Heights (15-8) at 10 a.m. followed by the Valley game against defending regional champion Norwell (17-6). The championship game will be at 7:30 p.m. Against Norwell, the Vikings will be facing a squad that reached last year’s Class 3A state finals, where it fell 64-48 to Guerin Catholic. However, this year’s Norwell Knights look a little different. Graduated from that team are four starters, including Kyle Fillman (15.0 points per game), Caleb Featherston (11.8), Garrett Bucher (8.7) and Grant Baker (6.4). However, those four were the only seniors on last year’s team, and coach Randy Hawkins, returns his leading scorer in 5-foot-11 guard Josh VanMeter. On last year’s loaded squad, VanMeter averaged 18.7 points and 5.5 assists, and he’s only gotten better as a senior. “We have three tapes on them and VanMeter – he’s tough,” Valley coach Bill Patrick said. “There’s times when he’ll shoot balls from around the volleyball line. He’ll shoot anytime he gets past halfcourt.” To slow VanMeter, Patrick’s not sure which defender he’ll use, either senior Jacob Ritchey or sophomore Alex Thacker. “He’s pretty quick, so Thacker may have to guard him,” Patrick said. “He’s athletic. He’s a good player. When he shows up to play, he’s awfully tough.” Also concerning Patrick is 6-foot-6 Cam Denney, 6-foot-3 David Vogel and 6-foot-4 Drew Shively, but they aren’t the only ones. “They have four kids that can shoot the 3 and two or three kids come off the bench that are pretty good players,” he said. “They’re talented and they score a lot of points.” Norwell’s averaging 74.4 points per game, posting a 110-47 win against South Adams on Feb. 12 and a 97-72 victory over Eastbrook in the opening round of Sectional 23 at Norwell High School. “They get up-and-down the court,” Patrick said. “They’ll run the court and they’ll shoot the ball at any point. They’re not afraid to shoot it.” That run-and-gun offense has been tried against Valley, and it hasn’t been successful. When Wabash attempted to run the entire night, it was defeated 146-56 on Feb. 1 in Akron, then when Wawasee attempted to speed things up in the season finale, it was defeated 78-48 in Akron. “It could be to our advantage, depending on how we’re shooting and how they’re shooting,” Patrick said. Valley’s shown its able to score the ball, evidenced by its 68.2 points per game, which is 20 points better than its opposition’s 48.2 per game. That margin of victory led Valley to an undefeated Three Rivers Conference campaign, and just three losses, all of which came against eventual sectional champions. Valley lost 72-64 at Warsaw in its season opener on Nov. 21, then 63-46 at Plymouth on Jan. 5 and lastly, 65-59 on Feb. 15 at Triton. All three of those teams will be in regional action Saturday, so the Vikings can take some confidence out of those losses. “Those three games, we were in the game each time,” Patrick said. “At Warsaw, with two minutes to go, we were down three or four points. At Plymouth, we were tied near the end of the third quarter, then they banked in a couple 3s. At Triton, we’re up eight in the second quarter and I think we made them a little nervous when we got with four or six toward the end. In our three losses, we were in the game. It’s not like we were blown out, although the Plymouth score may show that.” Helping Valley all season has been senior Nick Kindig, who’s shooting has guided him to 18.5 points per game, nailing 39.3 percent of his three-point attempts. Junior Tanner Andrews has been the team’s most dangerous player inside, averaging 18.2 points, 6.5 rebounds and 2.3 steals per game. But in the Sectional 21 title run, a third scorer was needed. In their 65-42 first-round win over Wawasee, junior Ben Shriver had 13 and Thacker netted 12, followed by a 17-point game by Thacker in the Vikings’ 63-53 semifinal win against Lakeland. Against NorthWood in the final, Valley trailed 13-2 before sophomore Chainey Zolman came off the bench to get the team going, scoring 18 points on 4-of-4 shooting from behind the arc, leading his team to a 60-51 victory. “We don’t expect him to score 18 points, but I think he’s capable of scoring some points and getting some rebounds,” Patrick said of the 6-foot-5 Zolman. “He’s having a good week of practice. He’s going a lot harder and he’s been more aggressive, so I think he got some confidence.” With a win over Norwell, Patrick feels Concordia would most likely be awaiting in the championship, as its four losses have been to Fort Wayne Northrop, Fort Wayne North Side, Fort Wayne Snider and Columbia City. “They’re big and have kids that can score,” Patrick said of the Cadets, who have four players averaging more than 6.9 points per game. “They play a really good schedule.” Before that, Patrick’s concerned with a Knights’ team, but not afraid of it. “Norwell’s a good team, but they’re one we can play with,” he said. “It’s not like we can’t play with them or can’t beat them. We just have to play really well. It’s going to depend on how well be play defense and how well we rebound, because we’re giving up size.”
