In retrospect, it might have been the worst cheer in the history of Indiana high school basketball.
With the game still scoreless — scoreless! — and after top-ranked Warren Central had missed a shot, there came an “overrated” chant from somewhere in the Terre Haute South student section.
Any chance the Warriors might have been tired or emotionally drained from their overtime win over Ben Davis earlier Saturday was gone, and seven clock minutes later the score was 24-4 in Warren’s favor. Lunch money stolen. And although the Braves played better after that, the final score was 83-48 in the Class 4A regional championship game.
“[The Warriors] played with a lot of energy, a lot of fire,” coach Maynard Lewis of the Braves said later. “They all play defense, they play as a team ... they have a strong passion on the defensive end, and they made it tough on us tonight.”
Nate Bingham, former Indiana State University senior manager and now a Ben Davis assistant coach, had issued a scouting report on the Warriors early in the day. “They get up in you defensively and they try to get under your skin,” Bingham said, and the under-your-skin part resulted in three technical fouls against the Braves.
And though the one thing Warren Central is not noted for is offense, the Warriors were 22 for 33 in the first half, taking a 52-25 lead at intermission with more points than they’d scored in four quarters and an overtime period in the regional semifinals.
The closest South came after Warren Central’s opening flurry was 16 points at 35-19 midway through the second quarter. The 17-6 run for the Warriors that closed out the half was followed by a 14-2 burst early in the third quarter.
Craig Porter was South’s brightest spot, with game-high totals of 24 points, 12 rebounds and six blocked shots. De’Avion Washington, whose evening was shortened by two of the technicals, had 14 points and eight rebounds.
All five Warrior starters scored between 13 and 17 points.
“I’m really proud of the accomplishments we had,” Lewis said after the game. “The senior class did everything we asked them to do. They play hard, they exceeded expectations ... they set a legacy for themselves.”
South’s five seniors had similar thoughts.
“I thought we had a pretty good season,” Washington said. “We came up short of my goals, but the underclassmen ... I expect big things from them.”
“We did what the coaches wanted to do ... and we all fought,” said Porter. “It was a special team to be around, on and off the court.”
“It definitely sucks knowing I’m not going to play with these guys again,” added Dylan Turner. “We worked hard as a team and we came together.”
“We had a great year,” said Maleek Logsdon, “probably the best experience of my life. It was my first year [at South], but I feel I know all of them so good. I’ll miss it a lot.”
“It sucks to know we have to move on,” concluded Jevan McCoskey, “but our friendships are not gonna end just because basketball is over. I hope we left a good mark for the underclassmen. It was a great, great four years.”
TERRE HAUTE SOUTH (48) — Washington 4-16 6-8 14, Logsdon 1-1 0-0 2, Sholty 0-0 2-2 2, Porter 8-18 7-9 24, Bender 0-2 0-0 0, Deckard 0-0 0-0 0, McCoskey 1-4 0-0 2, Turner 1-4 0-0 2, Hanes 0-2 0-2 0, Johnson 0-0 2-2 2, Reddy 0-0 0-0 0, Comer 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 15-47 FG, 17-23 FT, 48 TP.
WARREN CENTRAL (83) — Bingham 5-7 4-8 14, Bell 6-11 2-2 14, Robinson 7-11 3-3 17, Tate 4-8 4-6 13, Cushingberry 6-7 2-2 16, Rsh 2-5 2-3 6, Beeler 0-2 0-0 0, Moore 0-5 0-0 0, Smith 0-0 0-0 0, Stanley 0-1 0-0 0, Stamps 1-1 1-2 3. Totals 31-58 FG, 18-26 FT, 83 TP.
Terre Haute South 7 18 12 11 — 48
Warren Central 26 26 18 13 — 83
3-point shooting — THS 1-11 (Porter 1-6, McCoskey 0-2, Washington 0-3), WC 3-9 (Cushingberry 2-2, Tate 1-4, Bingham 0-1, Robinson 0-1, Moore 0-1). Total fouls — THS 20, WC 16. Fouled out — none. Technical fouls — Logsdon, Washington 2. Turnovers — THS 15, WC 10. Rebounds — THS 36 (Porter 12, Washington 8, Bender 3, Logsdon 2, Turner 2, Deckard, McCoskey, Hanes, Johnson, Team 5), WC 37 (Bell 7, Robinson 7). Assists — THS 5 (Logsdon 2, Porter 2, Washington), WC 17 (Bell 4, Tate 4). Steals — THS 8 (Porter 3, Washington 2, McCoskey, Turner, Hanes), WC 12 (Bell 3, Tate 3). Blocks — THS 7 (Porter 6, Washington), WC 4 (Bell 3).
Next — Warren Central (30-0) plays New Albany next Saturday in a Class 4A semistate game. Terre Haute South finished 20-8.