Josh Kemper banked in the game-winning shot in the final seconds of the 2021 Class 2A, Sectional 44 championship game to give Triton Central its first boys basketball sectional title since 2012.
Triton Central head coach Kyle Ballard would not be surprised if there is another buzzer beater on tap for Sectional 44 in 2022.
Five points was the combined difference in the final three games of the 2021 sectional. Four of the five teams in this year’s sectional have between 10 and 12 victories.
“I really see this sectional playing out similar to last year,” he said Monday morning.
On Sunday, the Indiana High School Athletic Association revealed the sectional pairings for the 112th Annual IHSAA Boys Basketball State Tournament.
Triton Central (11-10) received a first-round bye at the Class 2A South Ripley Sectional and will face either North Decatur (10-10) or Milan (1-17) on March 4. Those two teams open the sectional on March 1.
The other semifinal on March 4 features South Decatur (11-10) and South Ripley (12-9).
The sectional championship game is March 5.
Triton Central defeated Milan, 49-33 on Jan. 15 and lost to North Decatur, 54-50 in overtime on Dec. 18.
The Tigers had a chance to seal the game against North Decatur but missed a late free throw and the Chargers hit a three-pointer to send the game into overtime.
“That was only the second game we had our whole team after Aiden Lindsey went out (with a season-ending knee injury) and we had some players out because of COVID-19,” said Ballard. “We were still trying to find our groove then.”
Triton Central is 1-2 against potential sectional opponents this season. The Tigers lost to South Decatur, 72-64 on Jan. 29.
The winner of the South Ripley Sectional advances to the Greenfield-Central Regional to meet the winner of the Park Tudor Sectional, which features No. 13 Park Tudor (14-5) and No. 14 University (13-8).
Greenwood Sectional
Shelbyville (5-15) will open the Class 4A, Sectional 13 on March 1 against Franklin (6-14). The Golden Bears defeated the Grizzly Cubs, 58-49 on Dec. 29.
The winner advances to the semifinal round to face Whiteland (14-8).
Also on March 1, Greenwood (8-12) battles Franklin Central (8-12) with the winner to face Center Grove (10-10) in the semifinal round.
Shelbyville head coach John Hartnett Jr. does not yet know if his Golden Bears will enter the sectional with leading scorer Ollie Sandman. The junior guard, who averages 21 ppg, injured his right ankle Saturday night in a 60-45 loss at East Central.
Sandman is in a walking boot today and Hartnett Jr. already ruled him out for Tuesday’s game with visiting Seymour and, potentially, Thursday’s regular-season finale against Batesville.
The winner of the Greenwood Regional advances to the Seymour Regional to face the Seymour Sectional champion. Five of the six teams at the Seymour Sectional are .500 or better including No. 6 Floyd Central (16-4).
Southwestern Sectional
Jac-Cen-Del (15-5) is 4-0 against potential sectional opponents. Waldron is 7-1, its only loss to JCD. The two teams are on track for a semifinal meeting on March 4.
Jac-Cen-Del opens the sectional on March 1 against Rising Sun (7-12). The Eagles defeated the Shiners, 82-48 on Feb. 15. The winner gets Waldron (11-9) in the first semifinal game at Southwestern.
On March 2, Morristown (3-16) looks to avenge a 61-36 regular-season loss to Hauser (8-13) while Southwestern (9-11) battles Oldenburg Academy (5-13) for the first time this season.
The two winners return for the semifinal game on March 4.
Southwestern is the defending sectional champion.
The Southwestern Sectional winner moves on to the Martinsville Regional to face the winner of the White River Valley Sectional that features No. 2 Bloomfield (17-4).
The semistate round of the state tournament is March 19.
The four state finals games will be played March 26 at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in downtown Indianapolis.
