Falcons Aim For Regional Glory
GOSHEN – What to do for an encore?
That’s the question facing the regional-bound Fairfield boys basketball team.
The Falcons move into the second stage of the postseason state tournament series fresh off a stunning sectional run last week.
Fairfield upset No. 2 NorthWood and then topped West Noble, two teams that the Falcons had lost to during the regular season, to win the Class 3-A Wawasee Sectional crown.
Fairfield, sporting a 13-12 record, now heads to Marion Saturday to face No. 13 Fort Wayne Bishop Luers (17-7) in the first game of the regional at 10 a.m. New Haven (19-7) will meet Tipton (16-8) in the second semifinal at noon. The winners meet up at 8 p.m. for the regional title and a spot in the North Semistate March 18 at either Lafayette Jefferson or Huntington North.
The Falcons, who lost their final four games of the regular season, sent shock waves around the state last Friday night by knocking off the three-time defending sectional champion Panthers 59-51 in a semifinal game in Syracuse. Fairfield had lost to NorthWood 69-35 in a regular-season meeting and had not beaten the Panthers since 2009. Fairfield held NorthWood star Vinny Miranda, who was averaging 20 points-per-game, to just seven points by implementing a box-and-one defense him.
Fairfield then avenged a regular-season loss to West Noble in the title game Saturday by a 59-49 count. Junior Luke Stephens poured in 29 points, including hitting a half court shot at the final horn before halftime. The Falcons closed out the game on a 12-1 run to win the program’s first sectional title since 2010 and its ninth overall.
Stephens, who had 22 points in the win over NorthWood, leads the way for Fairfield as he averages 17.2 points-per-game and has hit a team-high 33 treys. Junior Shandon Miller, who had 18 points in the sectional win over NorthWood, averages 10 points and 6.4 rebounds per game. Sophomore Cordell Hofer averages 8.7 ppg. and Brady Willard, one of five seniors, averages 7.2 and has made 33 triples. Hofer scored 11 points in each of Fairfield’s sectional victories.
The Falcons, who have never played any of the other three teams in the Marion Regional field, average 52 points-per-game and allow 50.1 per contest for coach Troy Beachy.
Fairfield has won one regional championship in program history in 2007 in Class 2-A.
Luers beat Mississinewa 71-50 and Columbia City 45-35 to win the Bellmont Sectional title. The Knights, who have eight seniors, average 63 points and allow 56 points per outing.
Anton Berry, a 6-5 senior, leads the Luers offense at 17.7 points-per-game. Berry, who had 11 points in the sectional finale, also averages 9.3 rebounds per game. Senior J.J Foster Jr. averages 13.7 ppg., while senior Ray Walker Jr. is at 13.9 ppg.
Luers, whose last sectional title came in 2013, has made 172 treys this season. Foster Jr. leads the team from distance with 56 makes from beyond the 3-point arc.
New Haven sports a trio of players averaging in double figures. Senior guard Brecar Cark leads the way at 13 points-per-game. Senior forward Joey Rowan scores at a 12.5 per game clip and junior guard James Gardner averages 10.1 points-per-outing. New Haven, which won the Garrett Sectional, averages 63 ppg. and allows 56 per contest.
Tipton comes into regional play red-hot in the last few weeks with nine wins in their its last 10 games. The hot streak comes following a six-game losing skid. Tipton won three games, including a pair in overtime, to claim the sectional title at Marion.