NorthWood claimed its ninth sectional championship with a 49-32 win over Wawasee Saturday night. (Photos by Mike Deak)

NAPPANEE – Philosopher George Santayana is credited with the phrase “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.”

History is certainly repeating itself for the NorthWood Panthers, but the boys basketball team is well aware of the path it is creating.

For the sixth time since 2012, NorthWood heads into regional week holding a sectional trophy, the 2020 version having knocked off Wawasee, 49-32, in the Class 3-A No. 21 tournament at The Pit.

Wawasee’s Ethan Hardy heads to the bucket, defended by NorthWood’s Jason Borkholder.

Part of the history of NorthWood and Wawasee in recent vintage was an ugly spill Panther Jason Borkholder took in the matchup in early January. There, Borkholder landed on his head and had to miss time, forcing the Panthers to have to adjust on the fly. NorthWood would win the game at the Teepee on Jan. 10, 54-38.

In an eerily similar, and just as scary moment, Trent Edwards found himself on the deck after getting upended by Austin Miller on a loose ball scrum. Edwards got caught over top of Miller’s shoulder and flipped, landing on his head and back, needing several minutes to recover as The Pit went almost completely silent.

Edwards, NorthWood’s leading scorer at over 16 points per night and does a lot of the little things, left the game at the 3:34 mark of the first quarter and did not return. It would force NorthWood to have to scramble against the Warriors again.

And scramble they did.

Ben Vincent set the tone early, hitting three three-pointers right out of the gate before the Edwards injury. NorthWood would run out to a 13-1 lead to start the game.

Wawasee would hang around, fighting back to trail by just six at 23-17 when Keaton Dukes hit a three as the half was coming to a close.

As NorthWood has done on so many occasions this season, it would put together a run to spread out a lead and force an opponent to chase. The Panthers would score seven of the first nine points of the third quarter, fueled by another Vincent three, and after Dukes hit a triple on the other end, Brock Flickinger would connect on an and-one and Vincent hit a smooth eight-footer to put the Panthers up 13.

“I don’t even know what was going through my mind, I didn’t think I would ever get the looks I got early on, let alone hit three in a row,” said Vincent, who scored a game-high 16 points. “I was so wide open on a couple of them that it felt like practice. I couldn’t believe that the stage would set like that. I just stepped up and was confident with the shots.”

NorthWood’s Trent Edwards is helped from the floor by NorthWood athletic trainer Paul Widner after taking a fall in the first quarter. Edwards would not return to the game.

Vincent’s sharpshooting was impressive on one end, but it was his defense on the other end against Wawasee gunner Austin Miller that may have locked up the title. Miller, who crushed Lakeland with 28 points Friday night, never got into a rhythm Saturday night. Miller was just 3-11 from the floor in the game with Vincent hounding him, and his eight points saw three of those come in the final 30 seconds of the game.

“Ben Vincent set the tone right from the beginning of the game,” said NorthWood head coach Aaron Wolfe. “As much as he did it offensively, he was also tremendous on the other end of the floor. He was a two-way player today and we needed all 32 minutes from him.”

Borkholder finished with eight points and six rebounds and Flickinger had eight points, four assists and three steals for the Panthers.

Dukes led Wawasee with 10 points and Ethan Hardy had six points, three rebounds and three steals.

Wawasee finishes with 14 wins, its highest total since the 2010-11 season, and coach Jon Everingham noted the loss was yet another step in the right direction.

“We had all guys on our team reach a level that was probably maxed out,” Everingham said. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen that from a team before, and that led to the success we had. From where we’ve been, and these seniors that have been with me from day one, you wouldn’t believe some of the things you go through; you know some and you don’t know some. But they were pretty major-type things that those guys stuck with me through thick and thin, and I really owe them.

“Those guys, their loyalty to me as a coach and a program. They’ve set a new standard for Wawasee basketball.”

NorthWood (18-6) advances to the New Castle Regional, where it will play in the 10 a.m. game against Norwell (22-2). Game two will see Delta (20-4) meet Leo (19-7). The two winners will come back for an 8 p.m. championship at New Castle Fieldhouse. NorthWood is seeking its second regional title, the only other in 2007. The Panther boys have to look no further than its student section to see several of the Black Swish to know, history can repeat itself.

“Every year unfolds a new story,” offered Wolfe. “We try not to tie ourselves to the past or the future, and this was a journey that we had with this basketball team that faced some adversity. I could not be prouder of the group of guys that are in our lockerroom.”

NorthWood’s Ben Vincent hit four three-pointers and led the team with 16 points.