The Chesterton boys basketball team’s season came to a close this past weekend with a loss in the sectional championship against Crown Point. Despite the loss, the boys had an outstanding postseason performance.
The Trojans first matched up with Portage last Tuesday. With the only game between them this season being a 20-point blowout win for Portage, it was unsure whether Chesterton would even make it past the first round. As the Indians got out to a quick 8-2 lead, it was clear that Trojan fans’ morale was dwindling early. However, Coach Urban put his trust in his players, and by halftime, the game was a close one. Throughout the third, the Indians went up by 5 or 6 points a few times, but the Trojans battled right back. About midway through the third, with the Trojans down by 3, senior Justin Sims pinned a shot off the backboard. Sophomore Logan Pokorney then grabbed the rebound, left a Portage defender on the ground after a crossover, and hit sophomore Jaylon Watts in the corner. Watts laced the 3 and a roar of cheers followed. This was clearly the moment when the Trojans took charge of this game, and when it was all said and done, the Trojans beat the Indians 57-51.
In the second round, the Trojans played the Red Devils of Lowell. Going into the matchup, Chesterton fans were confident that the game would be a blowout, however, Lowell kept the game close all throughout the first quarter, even taking the lead at one point. This season, the Trojans had a tendency to start the game off slow in the first quarter, and then get rolling after the first 8 minutes. This was certainly the case against the Red Devils because after leading by just a couple of points at the first buzzer, Chesterton went back to the locker room sporting a double-digit lead at half. The second half was all Chesterton, as they continued to build their lead. In the fourth quarter, juniors Eddie Riordan and Josh Davis as well as sophomore Caden Schneider were able to get in the game. Davis made his presence known fast by splashing a 3 from the corner, and Schneider got himself a couple buckets in the paint. After running up the score during the second half, the Trojans came out on top by a score of 74-38. Senior Tyler Parrish led the scoresheet for the Trojans with 19 points and 5 assists, and Sims followed closely behind with 17, as well as 8 boards and a block. This game was not only an offensive marvel by the Trojans, but they took care of business on the defensive end, racking up 12 steals!
After a back-and-forth matchup between Valparaiso and Crown Point on the other side of the bracket, the sectional final was set to be Chesterton vs Crown Point. In their matchup against Valpo, CP Senior Jack Svetich was lights out from the 3-point arc, and it was clear that Chesterton would need to get a good defensive match on him. The game between the Bulldogs and Trojans started off pretty lopsided, and it only got uglier from there. Svetich started the game off with 4 buckets from 3-point land in the first quarter, and by halftime, the Trojans went into the locker room down 15. It was clear that they were struggling to guard Svetich, and they also couldn’t buy a shot. In the final quarter, Parrish and a player from Crown Point got tangled up and Parrish ended up receiving a flagrant foul and was ejected right after. It truly is an awful way to end such a highlighted high school career, but the crowd made sure that Parrish knew how much he meant to them. After embracing Coach Urban at half court, Parrish received a standing ovation from what seemed like the entire town of Chesterton. Sims and senior Nathan Nix were then subbed out and were given equal praise from the community. At the final buzzer, the Trojans fell to Crown Point 68-39. Svetich ended with 28 points and 7 3-pointers and sophomore Dikembe Shaw finished with 9 points, 8 boards, 7 assists, and 5 steals. Despite the tough loss, Sims finished with 15 points and 10 boards, and Parrish finished with 8 points and 5 boards.
