IHSAA basketball: Carmel beats Lawrence North in OT for Class 4A title indystar.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from indystar.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
The body language as Carmel and Lawrence North left the court on Feb. 4 displayed an even greater disparity than the final score.
Carmel players, in a game that was effectively over in the third quarter of a 63-49 victory, ran off the floor together with confidence, heads high. Lawrence North looked fractured, like a team in disarray. Lawrence North senior D.J. Hughes called the loss a “wake-up call.”
“We were kind of on a high horse going into that game,” said Hughes, a 6-7 Butler commit. “We were playing selfish at the time. We weren’t playing as a team. Now, we’re a completely different team than before. We’re lifting up each other and we’re playing the best defense we’ve played all season. Carmel is going to see a different team in the state game, especially with all that is on the line.”
LOGANSPORT – Standing on the free-throw line with seemingly the weight of the world on his shoulders, Carmel senior guard Brian Waddell took a deep breath and then delivered some of his most important shots in a Greyhounds uniform.
After getting fouled down in the post, Waddell calmly drained two free throws with 17 seconds remaining in Saturday s Class 4A regional at Logansport to give his team a one-point lead against Lafayette Jeff. As the seconds ticked toward zero, the Bronchos had a chance to win the game, but Carmel’s Connor Gioia swiped away a pass by Lafayette Jeff’s Brooks Barnhizer as time expired.