With only a handful of league games left, it’s getting close to crunch time for Indian Lake’s boys basketball team and their goal of winning the Central Buckeye Conference Mad River division championship.
That makes Friday’s game at North Union a must win.
The Wildcats are undefeated at 15-0 and lead the CBC Mad River division standings at 7-0. The Lakers are 10-8 and currently sit second in the Mad River division at 6-1.
“It’s a big game for us because it’s the next game,” said IL head coach Zach Overturf. “Our mindset is to focus on one game at a time and go 1-0. Our kids understand that we are closing in on one of our team goals of competing for a conference championship, and this is the next step.”
North Union has been a balanced team, featuring explosive offensive play and strong defense to go with it.
The Wildcats, who are ranked eighth in the latest Division III state poll, lead the league in scoring with 62.5 points per game. They currently have three players averaging in double digits.
Junior Preston Crabtree leads leads the way at 15.1 ppg, while seniors Harley Day and Connor Terrill are both averaging over 10 ppg.
“North Union is really solid,” said Overturf. “They’re 15-0, very athletic, very well-coached and their full-court pressure really gives teams fits. If it’s not broke, don’t fix it, and I don’t think their formula for winning games is broke. I expect to see the same thing this time around.”
Indian Lake fell to North Union 69-52 when the two teams met earlier this season. It was the Wildcats’ closest division game this season.
“Our focus is taking care of ourselves,” said Overturf. “We fouled a lot the first time we played them and didn’t do a good job of taking care of the basketball against their press. I think defensively, our kids have made adjustments and are playing well and we have been executing offensively.
“I want to see our kids play really hard and play to our identity for four quarters. I feel if we do that we really give ourselves a chance late in the game to make something happen.”
Elsewhere around the area this weekend:
Ben Logan at Northwestern
Benjamin Logan looks to get back into the win column Friday when it travels to a struggling Northwestern team on Friday for Central Buckeye Conference Mad River division action.
The Raiders (5-13, 2-5) fell to Jonathan Alder 64-34 on Tuesday. They beat Northwestern 59-50 earlier this season.
The Warriors (4-11, 1-6) have lost five straight after falling to Springfield Shawnee 45-27 on Tuesday.
Northwestern is in the bottom half of the league in scoring with 53.7 points per game. Senior Matthew Hart leads the way with 12.3 points per game, junior Taliek Dennis scores 11.9 ppg and senior Korbin Spencer brings 11.2 ppg and eight rebounds per game.
WL-Salem at Fairbanks
West Liberty-Salem is fighting to stay in the league race and will have another battle Friday when it travels to Fairbanks.
The two teams are tied for first in the Ohio Heritage Conference North division.
The Tigers (10-5, 8-4) were surprised by Northeastern on Tuesday in a 55-54 loss, but did beat Fairbanks earlier this season 68-59. The Panthers (9-8, 8-4) held off Triad 50-45 on Tuesday.
Fairbanks has been very inconsistent in January and has not won back-to-back games since Dec. 20. Junior Braylon Green is carrying the Panthers with 14.2 points and 11.9 rebounds per game. Junior Wyatte Miller is adding 8.1 ppg.
WL-Salem hosts Graham (2-15) on Saturday in a non-league Champaign County battle.
Triad at Mechanicsburg
Triad will get a rematch with Mechanicsburg on Friday after the two teams met just over a week ago for Ohio Heritage Conference action. M’burg held off the Cardinals for a 59-51 win on Jan. 22.
The Cardinals (1-15, 0-12) came up short against Fairbanks 50-45 on Tuesday, while the Indians (4-9, 3-9) lost to West Jefferson 51-40 earlier this week.
Mechanicsbug had a close win with Triad (59-51) when the two teams met the first time. Junior Kyle Smith is currently leading the Indians with 14.8 points per game and seven rebounds per contest. Sophomore Jake Edwards adds 8.1 ppg.
Riverside at Houston
Riverside is off on Friday, but returns to action Saturday at Houston for a non-league meeting.
The Pirates (4-13, 2-4) slipped past Ansonia 62-61 on Tuesday with a last-second three pointer. The Wildcats (3-13) have dropped their last four games after losing to Anna 78-49 earlier this week.
Houston has been giving up an average of 56.5 points per game in their latest stretch of losses. Conversely, the Wildcat offense has only been scoring 37.5 points per contest.