After a rough weekend, the Red Devils are fortunate to be hanging on at #10 this week. A loss to Merrillville isn’t shocking, even at “The Pit”, but losing to Munster the night before raised more than a few eyebrows. It doesn’t get any easier in the next couple weeks with Andrean on the 2nd and EC Central seven days later.
#9
MARQUETTE BLAZERS
12-6/5-1
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LAST WEEK: #10
After suffering their first loss since January 7 (to Crete-Monee across the border), the Blazers have responded in solid fashion, routing Lake Station and handing Winamac just their third loss of the season. Marquette will continue to be battle-tested heading into the home stretch, as Bishop McNamara (15-5 in Illinois) and national powerhouse LaPorte LaLumiere are next on the schedule.
#8
LAPORTE SLICERS
13-4/2-2
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LAST WEEK: #6
The Slicer defense remains tough, but concerns about their offense being able to score with the elites of the conference are proving to be true. Holding Crown Point to 56 was impressive, but they could only muster 44 of their own. They’ll have to find some sort of offensive rhythm if they want to hang with the like of Valpo, Merrillville and state-ranked SB Riley – just three of their next five opponents.
#7
ANDREAN 59ERS
12-2/2-1
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LAST WEEK: #5
Here’s where it gets a bit tricky – Andrean beat EC Central, EC Central beat Griffith, Griffith beat Andrean. For now, the Niners find themselves in the lowest position of the three because out of the trilogy of games mentioned, their loss was the only one on a teams home court. With games against Lowell and Crown Point coming up, the Niners have ample opportunity to climb back up the rankings.
#6
GRIFFITH PANTHERS
14-2/4-0
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LAST WEEK: #8
By beating Andrean, the Panthers not only knocked off a quality opponent, they also put themselves in the driver’s seat for the NCC title in their final season in the conference; all they have to do is beat Munster, a team they defeated by 10 points already this season. Griffith should win out the regular, which would give them a nine game winning streak to close out the campaign – just the kind of momentum a program wants heading into March.
#5
EC CENTRAL CARDINALS
10-7
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LAST WEEK: #7
While the Cardinals overtime loss to Andrean may have sounded off a few alarms across the Calumet area, including ours here at RSN headquarters, one has to take into account that their schedule is a game in game out grind. It doesn’t get much easier to close out the season either, as the Cards travel to take on Lake Central, then host Lowell. On most nights, the team known by their home fans simply as ‘Central’, has the best player on the floor, which makes the Cardinals a bird to be reckoned with.
#4
MERRILLVILLE PIRATES
13-5/2-2
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LAST WEEK: #3
A second DAC loss, this time to Valpo, all but mathematically takes the Pirates out of the conference title hunt. But even though they won’t be taking home the regular season hardware, don’t for a second count out this team for post-season play – they still have the highest scoring offense in the DAC and the defense has been playing better as of late.
#3
MICHIGAN CITY WOLVES
15-5/2-2
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LAST WEEK: #4
With only four games remaining on their schedule, the Wolves don’t have as many tournament prep opportunities as other teams in Sectional #2, but with the way they’ve been playing as of late, that might not matter. MC won their last two outings by an average of 27 points and have won five out of six.
#2
CROWN POINT BULLDOGS
14-3/3-1
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LAST WEEK: #1
The 12 point win over ranked LaPorte was solid and there’s no need to worry about the 12 point loss on the road to Warren Central, which only has one itself. We’re already looking ahead to the 10th when the ‘Dogs host the team ahead of them, but first they have to get through Portage on Thursday and Andrean next Tuesday.
#1
VALPARAISO VIKINGS
16-2/4-0
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LAST WEEK: #2
It’s not just that the Vikings came away from the weekend with a 2-0 record in their two games. It’s that they held a Merrillville team that averages 68.75 points a game to just 56 points and that they beat an improving Munster team by 11, on the road. That’s why Valpo returns to the top spot after a week away.
