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NOBLESVILLE – The outcome was all but assumed and scripted before the Class 4A Sectional 8 championship began on Saturday night.
The state’s top-ranked and lone remaining unbeaten team against a rival county powerhouse that hasn’t tasted tournament success since winning state in 2021.
The nationally ranked Fishers Tigers (24-1) versus Indiana’s 10th-ranked Carmel Greyhounds (18-5) inside Noblesville’s Mill for the title.
A program with 83 wins in three years and bragging rights after beating Carmel, 53-50, during the regular season over a month ago.
A Tigers team that maneuvered through a rotation of lineups due to injuries and other adversity to remain the favorite to return to the state finals, a destination they called home two years straight.
The outcome was almost predictable, but the Greyhounds don’t invest in assumptions.
Instead, defense and a clutch go-ahead 3-pointer by senior Ben Bremer with less than 30 seconds remaining shattered all prognostications, as Carmel pulled off the upset, 50-49, to halt Fishers’ attempt at a perfect state championship season.
“Process over perfection. It’s never going to be perfect, but as humans, as players, as workers, or whatever you dream to do, if you aspire, you got a dream, man, it’s never over,” Carmel coach Ryan Osborn said. “That’s what life is about. It’s where you find joy. Really being able to dig into a process of anything.”
The lessons learned from five losses – two in overtime and all essentially by two or fewer possessions – paved the way to Carmel’s redemption arc.
Physicality during the sectional final played into the Greyhounds’ strengths and proved vital with anything and everything happening over the course of 32 vigorous minutes.
Through 12 lead changes, six ties, a brief on-court skirmish and a player ejection late in the second quarter.
The outcome was far from inevitable.
“They believed for 32 minutes tonight,” Osborn said. “Process over perfection. The win is the outcome, right? It’s the win, but the joy is in the process. This whole season has been unexplainable, it really is. I’ve just been on a journey, and it means a lot.”
In front of a feisty sellout crowd, the Greyhounds mirrored their coach’s reinvigorated passion for the game and beat Fishers in the postseason for the first time since 2019.
Carmel disrupted Fishers from the opening tip, limiting the Tigers to 0-for-8 shooting and a 0-for-6 conversion rate from 3-point range to start.
As expected, the Tigers clawed back, but no lead was certain. Nothing was really.
“Me and the senior group told each other before this game, we have nothing to lose. We’re playing a 24-0 squad, and we just told each other, we’re going to give it our all, and we’re going to get Carmel back,” senior Evan Harrell said.
With 1:16 left in the first half, logic would argue otherwise, as Carmel junior point guard Cash Daniels, one of the team’s top scorers, was ejected for rushing onto the court from the bench during what was ruled a double technical foul.
Fishers junior Cooper Zachary and Carmel junior Vince Nover contended for possession with both players on the floor, and several Greyhounds surrounding the play.
Some Tiger players aided Zachary, who was engulfed by the scrum, which prompted officials’ whistles. Daniels ran onto the court. Carmel assistant coaches followed to prevent any further incident.
“That’s still a thing I don’t understand. How they came to the conclusion of that moment?,” Fishers coach Garrett Winegar said. “Somehow, we got a double tech. Cooper dove for a ball, did nothing, and got a double tech. I still have no idea. I couldn’t get anyone to give me an explanation for how they came to that conclusion. It’s not the reason we lost the game, but the whole moment, I don’t understand it.”
Zachary and Nover were issued technical fouls, which cancelled each other. Daniels’ ejection awarded Zachary two free throws, which had made to cut Carmel’s lead, 25-22.
Daniels exited the game with 6 points.
“I mean, he’s crushed. He’s such an unbelievable kid. There’s no excuse for it. It’s just emotion in the moment, made a poor choice, and it is what it is. I feel for him. He bawled at the end of the bench. It felt like he was letting his team down, and then we ended up pulling it out. They pulled it out,” Osborn said.
They stuck to the process.
“Basketball always rewards toughness, and we were the tougher team the entire game,” Harrell said. “Obviously, missing Cash in the second half was big, but we powered through it. We have a high state of mind, this entire team does, and we have the maturity to battle through it, just forget about it and move on.”
The Tigers showed their fortitude through hard contact. Zachary (8 points) left the game early in the first quarter after getting hit in the nose, which sparked taunts from the student section.
He returned and later in the fourth quarter drilled a dagger 3-pointer that put Fishers ahead 49-47 with 55.7 remaining before Bremer responded on the next possession.
Fishers senior Kai McGrew, who was playing with a dislocated patella, battled for a game-high 22 points and 5 rebounds. Junior Jason Gardner, who sat 18 games due to a fractured hand this year, returned during Friday’s semifinal and had 13 points in his second game back.
Saturday was just the second time Fishers had its full roster available and true starting lineup this year.
“I’m sure that’s a factor, but we also got good looks at the rim and good looks from three that we make a lot that did not fall tonight. Obviously, we had some turnovers late, but yeah, when you’ve got lineups out there that have never played together, it’s a unique situation,” Winegar said. “But can’t use that as an excuse.”
Fishers shot 2 of 12 from 3-point range and went 15 of 20 from the foul line. Carmel out rebounded Fishers 25-20 and were led by Harrell’s 18 points and 9 rebounds followed by senior Julian Vogt’s 9 points.
The Tigers had 12 turnovers. Carmel tallied 15.
“At the end of the day, we just got beat. They hit a huge three to take the lead. We helped off when we shouldn’t have. We had a two-point lead. Things that you really focus on throughout the year that we knew were issues for us. Not talking on defense,” Winegar said. “I don’t want to say they got covered up by winning because we addressed them, but they continued to be issues, and at some point, the ball’s not going to bounce your way.”
Fishers had possession for the final 18.3 seconds after each team turned the ball over. Four inbound plays resulted in two shot attempts by McGrew, who had the first one blocked out of play. The second with 2.3 seconds drew rim but rattled out as the clock expired.
“It’s pack the paint defense. Just keep them out of the paint. That’s how we win,” said Bremer, who finished with 8 points and 7 rebounds. “Closeout to the ball. Make them feel you when they’re shooting the ball. Have a hand, not to their face, to the ball, so they feel you. That was one of the biggest things we were trying to implement this week, this sectional tournament.”
The outcome took care of itself.
“Opportunities arise, and our seniors stepped up. It’s been the story of the season, and I’m just proud of it,” Osborn said. “Executing a defensive game plan takes a lot of mental toughness. It’s something that you can control. It’s effort. You always hear the phrase, defense wins championships. Defense travels, and that’s just kind of what we’ve hung our hat on. It’s been a trademark of some of our best teams, and these guys. It just shows.”
The method resumed where the Greyhounds once were with a state-title loss in Osborn’s first season in 2018, a title in 2019, a COVID-19 shortened run in 2020, another state crown in 2021 and setbacks for four consecutive years.
“I found coaching got so hard, so hard. You win, and then the wins aren’t as fun, and the joy, the losses are crushing. I hired a mental coach and really just learned to dream again,” Osborn spoke candidly about his personal journey the past few seasons. “Learned to have joy. Learned to pursue. I got in a rut. Over the last year, I’ve been able to enjoy it, and the kids are a big part of that.”
Osborn wiped tears from his eyes as his Greyhounds cut down the nets.
“One of the best moments of my life. Winning the sectional with all my brothers, all my best friends in the crowd, seeing us cut the nets down, great moment,” Bremer said. “Our goal is to not listen to anyone’s talk. I still feel like we’re the underdogs. When we play like this, we win.”
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: IHSAA basketball: Carmel knocks off top-ranked Fishers for sectional title
Continue reading...
The state’s top-ranked and lone remaining unbeaten team against a rival county powerhouse that hasn’t tasted tournament success since winning state in 2021.
The nationally ranked Fishers Tigers (24-1) versus Indiana’s 10th-ranked Carmel Greyhounds (18-5) inside Noblesville’s Mill for the title.
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A program with 83 wins in three years and bragging rights after beating Carmel, 53-50, during the regular season over a month ago.
A Tigers team that maneuvered through a rotation of lineups due to injuries and other adversity to remain the favorite to return to the state finals, a destination they called home two years straight.
The outcome was almost predictable, but the Greyhounds don’t invest in assumptions.
Instead, defense and a clutch go-ahead 3-pointer by senior Ben Bremer with less than 30 seconds remaining shattered all prognostications, as Carmel pulled off the upset, 50-49, to halt Fishers’ attempt at a perfect state championship season.
“Process over perfection. It’s never going to be perfect, but as humans, as players, as workers, or whatever you dream to do, if you aspire, you got a dream, man, it’s never over,” Carmel coach Ryan Osborn said. “That’s what life is about. It’s where you find joy. Really being able to dig into a process of anything.”
The lessons learned from five losses – two in overtime and all essentially by two or fewer possessions – paved the way to Carmel’s redemption arc.
Physicality during the sectional final played into the Greyhounds’ strengths and proved vital with anything and everything happening over the course of 32 vigorous minutes.
Through 12 lead changes, six ties, a brief on-court skirmish and a player ejection late in the second quarter.
The outcome was far from inevitable.
“They believed for 32 minutes tonight,” Osborn said. “Process over perfection. The win is the outcome, right? It’s the win, but the joy is in the process. This whole season has been unexplainable, it really is. I’ve just been on a journey, and it means a lot.”
In front of a feisty sellout crowd, the Greyhounds mirrored their coach’s reinvigorated passion for the game and beat Fishers in the postseason for the first time since 2019.
Carmel disrupted Fishers from the opening tip, limiting the Tigers to 0-for-8 shooting and a 0-for-6 conversion rate from 3-point range to start.
As expected, the Tigers clawed back, but no lead was certain. Nothing was really.
“Me and the senior group told each other before this game, we have nothing to lose. We’re playing a 24-0 squad, and we just told each other, we’re going to give it our all, and we’re going to get Carmel back,” senior Evan Harrell said.
With 1:16 left in the first half, logic would argue otherwise, as Carmel junior point guard Cash Daniels, one of the team’s top scorers, was ejected for rushing onto the court from the bench during what was ruled a double technical foul.
Fishers junior Cooper Zachary and Carmel junior Vince Nover contended for possession with both players on the floor, and several Greyhounds surrounding the play.
Some Tiger players aided Zachary, who was engulfed by the scrum, which prompted officials’ whistles. Daniels ran onto the court. Carmel assistant coaches followed to prevent any further incident.
“That’s still a thing I don’t understand. How they came to the conclusion of that moment?,” Fishers coach Garrett Winegar said. “Somehow, we got a double tech. Cooper dove for a ball, did nothing, and got a double tech. I still have no idea. I couldn’t get anyone to give me an explanation for how they came to that conclusion. It’s not the reason we lost the game, but the whole moment, I don’t understand it.”
Zachary and Nover were issued technical fouls, which cancelled each other. Daniels’ ejection awarded Zachary two free throws, which had made to cut Carmel’s lead, 25-22.
Daniels exited the game with 6 points.
“I mean, he’s crushed. He’s such an unbelievable kid. There’s no excuse for it. It’s just emotion in the moment, made a poor choice, and it is what it is. I feel for him. He bawled at the end of the bench. It felt like he was letting his team down, and then we ended up pulling it out. They pulled it out,” Osborn said.
They stuck to the process.
“Basketball always rewards toughness, and we were the tougher team the entire game,” Harrell said. “Obviously, missing Cash in the second half was big, but we powered through it. We have a high state of mind, this entire team does, and we have the maturity to battle through it, just forget about it and move on.”
The Tigers showed their fortitude through hard contact. Zachary (8 points) left the game early in the first quarter after getting hit in the nose, which sparked taunts from the student section.
He returned and later in the fourth quarter drilled a dagger 3-pointer that put Fishers ahead 49-47 with 55.7 remaining before Bremer responded on the next possession.
Fishers senior Kai McGrew, who was playing with a dislocated patella, battled for a game-high 22 points and 5 rebounds. Junior Jason Gardner, who sat 18 games due to a fractured hand this year, returned during Friday’s semifinal and had 13 points in his second game back.
Saturday was just the second time Fishers had its full roster available and true starting lineup this year.
“I’m sure that’s a factor, but we also got good looks at the rim and good looks from three that we make a lot that did not fall tonight. Obviously, we had some turnovers late, but yeah, when you’ve got lineups out there that have never played together, it’s a unique situation,” Winegar said. “But can’t use that as an excuse.”
Fishers shot 2 of 12 from 3-point range and went 15 of 20 from the foul line. Carmel out rebounded Fishers 25-20 and were led by Harrell’s 18 points and 9 rebounds followed by senior Julian Vogt’s 9 points.
The Tigers had 12 turnovers. Carmel tallied 15.
“At the end of the day, we just got beat. They hit a huge three to take the lead. We helped off when we shouldn’t have. We had a two-point lead. Things that you really focus on throughout the year that we knew were issues for us. Not talking on defense,” Winegar said. “I don’t want to say they got covered up by winning because we addressed them, but they continued to be issues, and at some point, the ball’s not going to bounce your way.”
Fishers had possession for the final 18.3 seconds after each team turned the ball over. Four inbound plays resulted in two shot attempts by McGrew, who had the first one blocked out of play. The second with 2.3 seconds drew rim but rattled out as the clock expired.
“It’s pack the paint defense. Just keep them out of the paint. That’s how we win,” said Bremer, who finished with 8 points and 7 rebounds. “Closeout to the ball. Make them feel you when they’re shooting the ball. Have a hand, not to their face, to the ball, so they feel you. That was one of the biggest things we were trying to implement this week, this sectional tournament.”
The outcome took care of itself.
“Opportunities arise, and our seniors stepped up. It’s been the story of the season, and I’m just proud of it,” Osborn said. “Executing a defensive game plan takes a lot of mental toughness. It’s something that you can control. It’s effort. You always hear the phrase, defense wins championships. Defense travels, and that’s just kind of what we’ve hung our hat on. It’s been a trademark of some of our best teams, and these guys. It just shows.”
The method resumed where the Greyhounds once were with a state-title loss in Osborn’s first season in 2018, a title in 2019, a COVID-19 shortened run in 2020, another state crown in 2021 and setbacks for four consecutive years.
“I found coaching got so hard, so hard. You win, and then the wins aren’t as fun, and the joy, the losses are crushing. I hired a mental coach and really just learned to dream again,” Osborn spoke candidly about his personal journey the past few seasons. “Learned to have joy. Learned to pursue. I got in a rut. Over the last year, I’ve been able to enjoy it, and the kids are a big part of that.”
Osborn wiped tears from his eyes as his Greyhounds cut down the nets.
“One of the best moments of my life. Winning the sectional with all my brothers, all my best friends in the crowd, seeing us cut the nets down, great moment,” Bremer said. “Our goal is to not listen to anyone’s talk. I still feel like we’re the underdogs. When we play like this, we win.”
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: IHSAA basketball: Carmel knocks off top-ranked Fishers for sectional title
Continue reading...
