Wawasee beat Garrett and Lighthouse CPA to claim the title of the Wawasee Holiday Invitational. (Photo provided)

WAWASEE BOYS 57, GARY LIGHTHOUSE CPA 44

Wawasee rallied from a halftime deficit to claim the title of its home Wawasee Holiday Invitational Saturday night.

In the first-ever meeting between the two teams, Lighthouse held a 21-16 lead at the half, only for Wawasee to respond with a 24-point third quarter to take command.

Austin Miller had a huge tournament, scoring 20 points in the final, which matched his total in the morning session against Garrett. Miller added four steals, three rebounds and a pair of assists. Keaton Dukes added 15 points and four rebounds and Ethan Hardy chipped in 13 points and six boards.

Davarius Stewart led the Lions with 20 points, six rebounds and five steals.

The win gives Wawasee six on the season, which matches its total from each of the last three seasons. The Warriors (6-3) are also three games over .500 for the first time since it was 4-1 in December of 2016.

WAWASEE BOYS 60, GARRETT 27

Wawasee’s Jaydon Boyer flies in for a layup against Garrett. (Photo by Mike Deak)

A 22-2 run to open the game was all she wrote in the morning contest between Wawasee and Garrett Friday morning at the Wawasee Holiday Invitational.

The Warriors opened by scoring the game’s first 19 points, then after Bryce Wilson ended the run with a layup, Jaydon Boyer immediately drilled a three for the Warriors to keep the pressure on.

Miller didn’t miss a shot until the second half, finishing 8-10 from the floor and with a game-high 20 points. Miller, Jack Stover and Kam Salazar all combined to record 13 steals, part of a 18-steal game for the Warriors. Stover led the way with seven picks. Hardy had a solid game inside for Wawasee, finishing with 11 points and five rebounds.

Wawasee held Garrett’s leading scorer, Jayden Broadnax, to half his season average with just nine points. Broadnax got into foul trouble in the first half, getting his second and third fouls just before the half. Jarrett Bailey, who came into the game averaging 10.6 points per game, was 0-12 from the floor and had just two points.

FORT WAYNE CANTERBURY BOYS 76, LAKELAND CHRISTIAN 50

The Cavaliers were the better side between the two teams in the opening round of the LCA Cougar Classic boys basketball tournament Friday morning at Grace College. LCA, however, was more excited to get one of his best players back on the court.

Freshman standout Seth Martin returned to action after missing nearly a month due to an ankle injury. Martin hit just two field goals but finished with 10 total points and five rebounds. Cam Shepherd led the Cougars with 15 points.

Noah Drapala scored a game-high 26 points for the Cavs, with Jack Royster not far behind with 18 points.

“We are working our way back into game shape not having had any since before Christmas,” said LCA head coach Chris Hohm, whose team hadn’t played since Dec. 21. “Seth is working his way back as well. He had some nice moves, but was also pressing a little bit. That’s to be expected when you’re out for a while, you want to get back to where you left off, and he’s going to have to get there with some game speed. Our team learned how to play without him, and now we are learning how to play with him again.”

CLINTON CHRISTIAN BOYS 64, LAKELAND CHRISTIAN 37

Cam Shepherd goes up for two against Clinton Christian. (Photo by Mike Deak)

LCA fell behind to Mike Durr and the Couriers quickly in the Cougars’ second game of the Lancer Classic. Durr scored 12 of his 20 points in the first half, several of his total coming of the acrobatic variety that included a pair of hammer dunks.

Seth Shetler followed up with 16 points, DuMarrion Williams with 10 points and Alan Snyder with nine points for the smooth-shooting Couriers, which led 16-4 after a quarter and by 24 at the half.

Shepherd scored 11 of his 15 points in the second half, and Martin continued to recover in tossing in 11 points.

“The first game we actually played well, we just had some moments where we got caught watching,” said Hohm. “Some of it was watching, some being a little intimidated. In Clinton’s case, they are also a lot more experienced than we are, they have eight seniors. They know what to do in situations and have been around the game more than a lot of our guys have. We are still trying to figure some situations out.”

LCA will play in the fifth-place game against Granger Christian Saturday morning at 11:30 at the Manahan Orthopaedic Capital Center at Grace College. Clinton Christian and Covenant Christian (DeMotte) and will play in the boys championship at approximately 5:30 p.m.

NORTHWOOD BOYS 66, SOUTH BEND CLAY 50

Jason Borkholder scored just six points for NorthWood at South Bend Clay, but had the basket that swung the tide for the visiting Panthers.

A fast-break slam by Borkholder ignited a 15-3 NorthWood run in the first half, allowing the Panthers to hold off an athletic Clay side. Borkholder’s dunk over Anthony Neal set in motion a run that had NorthWood take a 24-17 lead and never look back.

Jamarr Jackson had a career-night for the Panthers, scoring 21 points. Brock Flickinger also added a season-high 14 points and Ben Vincent chipped in 11 points. Trent Edwards had nine points, 10 rebounds and seven assists.

COLUMBIA CITY BOYS 78, TIPPECANOE VALLEY 36

Mitchell Wilson scored a game-high 24 points to pace the Eagles at home against the Vikings.

Valley was held to just 11 first-half points while City exploded to a 26-point lead at the break.

Tanner Trippiedi led the Vikings with 12 points.

The Valley JV fell to the Eagles 49-15.

LAKELAND CHRISTIAN GIRLS 62, CENTRAL CHRISTIAN ACADEMY 22

Olivia Miller ties up a loose ball with Central Christian’s Natalie Sexauer during play in the LCA Classic Friday afternoon. (Photo by Mike Deak)

LCA stormed out to a quick lead and never looked back in its first game of the LCA Cougar Classic played in its home gym.

The Lady Cougars opened on a 20-2 run, exploiting Central’s lack of size inside to pound possessions near the cup. Tori Calizo started outside, hitting a three to open the game, then worked for easier shots and wound up leading the game with 17 points to go with seven rebounds.

Eight of the nine LCA players that suited up scored, with Olivia Miller owning one of her top games in her career with nine points, eight rebounds and a pair of steals. Both Jordan Gross and Finley Hobbs finished at seven points apiece and combining for 11 rebounds.

Ali Lance led CCA, which hails from southeastern Indianapolis, with 13 points. LCA held the red-clad Chargers to just six field goals in the contest, Lance hitting half of them.

“Our girls did a good job of adjusting to a different team,” said LCA girls head coach Allison Kauffman of the first-ever meeting between the two teams. “We always talk about every game is going to be played differently. Every game will be called a little different. They will always have different personnel. It’s something we have to adjust to, and I thought our girls did a good job adjusting to Central Christian.”

LAKELAND CHRISTIAN GIRLS 50, CLINTON CHRISTIAN 43

The host Cougars punched their ticket to the tournament championship with a win over the Couriers.

A hot start for LCA afforded an 18-4 lead after eight minutes, but Clinton kept chipping away, getting the lead down to five, 37-32, to start the fourth. Four LCA players reached double figures, as Kauffman eluded after the Central win, making the difference in the win.

Jessi Calizo led the way for LCA with a solid scoreline of 13 points, five assists, five steals and four rebounds. Tori Calizo had 11 points and eight boards, Natalie Norris stepped up with 10 points and four rebounds, and Hobbs had 10 points, five boards, and two assists, steals and blocks. Gross added eight rebounds and an assist.

Allison Snyder led Clinton with 16 points and Gracie Riegsecker had 15 points.

“We are definitely seeing a lot of girls stepping up for us, which is very exciting,” Kauffman said. “We saw Finley step up and hit some big shots, Jordan got to the basket and got some rebounds, Liv was hustling after loose balls. I think the girls are starting to see their potential when they are all in it. When they are involved in the offense looking to shoot, looking to play defense, they have the potential to be a great team.”

LCA advances to the 4 p.m. championship game at Grace College to face Covenant Christian (DeMotte). LCA knocked off Covenant in last year’s championship, 37-26.