IHSAA Class 1A, 2A boys basketball semi-state preview: can Triton, Jimtown keep seasons going?
Triton has been a model of consistency. Jimtown has had ups and downs.
Both have made it to the final eight of their respective Classes.
The Trojans will head to Lafayette Saturday to compete for an IHSAA Class 1A boys basketball semi-state title, while the Jimmies get to stay closer to home in traveling to Michigan City for the 2A semi-state. Both teams will have to win two games in one day to reach next weekend’s state finals.
Here is a breakdown of how Triton and Jimtown got here and its opponents.
Class 1A at Lafayette Jefferson
Saturday schedule: Kouts (23-4) vs. Monroe Central (19-6), 10am; Triton (23-4) vs. Clinton Prairie (24-2), noon; championship, 8 p.m.
If recent tournament experience matters, Kouts is the favorite. This is the Mustangs' third time in this position in five years, reaching the 2021 state finals.
For overall experience, the edge goes to Triton with veteran coach Jason Groves. This is the 10th time Groves enters a two-games-in-one-day format, winning four regional championships between 2008-13. He’s 7-2 in the first games of this setup.
“We draw on that,” Groves said. “I have experience being there; just that familiarity I have to help calm the kids’ nerves a little bit, realize there’ll be a lot of people there and they just have to relax and play basketball.”
Elite defense helps, and nobody has done it better in Indiana this year. Triton allows 33.8 points per game — 30.25 in its four postseason contests.
“If you want to get meaningful playing time, you have to defend,” Groves said. “That’s part of our culture, and it starts with our leaders emphasizing that. We’ve got guys who can keep others in front of them, and I think that starts with Dante’ Workman. … Julian Swanson is another one; he has a really strong lower body. It’s not just those two; it’s a team effort. Landon Patrick, Gage Riffle and Tanner Witt-Hoyo who can really help.”
Triton will have its hands full with No. 3 (1A) Clinton Prairie, winner of its first regional title while scoring 65.8 points and allowing 43 on average this season for one of the state's best differentials. Senior Jake McGraw is the program’s career scoring leader, surpassing 2,000 points in last week’s regional win.
Monroe Central last reached semi-state in 2010. Easton Foster averages 21.7 points and 10 rebounds for the Golden Bears.
No. 7 Kouts has the field's top offense at 69.1 points. It’s best win of the postseason came against No. 10 Washington Township in the sectional semifinals.
Class 2A at Michigan City
Saturday schedule: Gary 21st Century (20-6) vs. Wapahani (26-1), 11am ET/10 a.m. CT; Jimtown (16-10) vs. Manchester (23-2), 1 p.m. ET/noon CT; championship, 8:30 p.m. ET/7:30 p.m. CT
Jimtown does not go deep into its bench. When sickness and injuries struck in December, the Jimmies hit a skid of 10 losses in 14 games, capped by a 38-35 overtime defeat to Tippecanoe Valley in a de-facto Indiana Northern State Conference championship game. That marked the first time time in weeks Jimtown had all eight of its core rotation players.
The Jimmies have not lost since.
“We couldn’t really show anybody what we could be as a healthy unit,” second-year Jimtown head coach Tyler Leighton said. “We couldn’t really gel, team chemistry-wise. We battled in an overtime conference championship game with Valley, and I think that was a turning point for us.”
The current @JimtownHoops team has plenty of connections to its history. Another comes in assistant coach Ryan Woolwine, who was on the first regional winner in 2002. Now, he gets to coach his son, freshman Jackson Woolwine, in semi-state this weekend @JHS_Jimmies@CoachTyL8npic.twitter.com/6N2wQUYf1g
— Austin Hough (@AustinRHough) March 18, 2025
Seniors Branden King, Dylan Fey and Javen Jackson have led the Jimmies. King has elevated his game, averaging 19 points, eight rebounds and 2.8 assists in the four postseason games.
The Jimmies are the only unranked team in this semi-state. Wapahani was No. 1, Manchester No. 3 and Gary 21st Century No. 6 in the final USA Today Network statewide poll. It’s a role Jimtown has learned to embrace.
“We feel like the underdog ― we like that, we’re used to it,” Leighton said. “I think that’s a good thing. There isn’t any pressure on us ― we’ve kind of been picked to lose since the first game of the sectional. So, why change it now?”
Up first for Jimtown is Manchester, playing in its first semi-state since 1994. The Squires' 6-foot-7 senior Gavin Betten averages 26.1 points, 11.9 rebounds, 4.3 assists, 3.4 steals and three blocks. Classmate Ethan Hendrex (17.9 points) gives Manchester a second elite scoring option.
The first semifinal game Saturday should be exciting as well. Gary 21st had one of the more impressive regional wins, knocking off No. 7 FW Bishop Luers, 61-46. The Cougars play a tight rotation of impact players, led by junior Terrance Hayes (20.7 points, 7.6 rebounds, 5.8 assists, 3.5 steals 2.4 blocks) and senior Lemetrius Williams (15.6 points, 9.8 rebounds, 4.7 assists, 3.3 steals).
Wapahani is the defending Class 2A state runner-up. They also won a regional title in 2023, giving the Raiders plenty of tournament experience. Wapahani prides itself on defense, allowing 42 points per game. Offensively, junior Camden Bell, senior Nate Luce and junior Eli Andrews all average double-figures scoring.
Follow Austin Hough on X (formerly Twitter) @AustinRHough and on Facebook at "Austin Hough - South Bend Tribune." Hough can be emailed at ahough@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on South Bend Tribune: Triton, Jimtown look to extend seasons at IHSAA boys basketball semi-state
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