BB 4A SECT. 8: #1 Carmel survives Noblesville on buzzer three, 43-40

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By Scott Hunt
National Sports Journalism Center Intern

CARMEL – Carmel senior point guard Michael Volovic drained a buzzer-beating 3-pointer to lift the Class 4A top-ranked Greyhounds past stubborn and determined Noblesville, 43-40, in the March 1 semifinals of the Carmel Sectional.

Volovic’s heroic hoist propels defending 4A state champion Carmel into a sectional championship matchup with neighbor and Metropolitan Interscholastic Conference rival No. 12 North Central (Indianapolis), a 70-66 winner over Fishers in the evening’s other semi.

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On Dec. 7, Volovic connected on a buzzer-beating trey as the Greyhounds stunned host North Central, 50-49. Carmel’s first MIC of the season was NC’s only conference loss, and it was the difference as the Greyhounds defended their MIC title.

“We just knew we were going to take the last shot,” third-year Carmel coach Scott Heady said in reference to his team forcing a turnover with just over a minute to play before foregoing a timeout to run the clock out and have the ball in Volovic’s hands. “I trust him – that’s why we didn’t call timeout. We didn’t need to set anything up.

“He’s like a coach on the floor, and it’s been like that for two years. We wanted the ball in Mike’s hands there at the end of the game and let him make a play.”

Carmel (20-2) grabbed the lead late in the first quarter and extended it to nine points before taking a 25-17 advantage into halftime.

The Millers cut that deficit in half after three quarters at 31-27 and eventually tied the game at 37 on a Sam Philpott three-point play with 2:27 to go. Philpott, a 6’7”senior, led Noblesville with 13 points.

The Millers tied it again at 40 with 1:39 remaining and had one possession to take the lead, but Noblesville turned the ball over to set up Volovic’s game-winning heave.

“Usually Coach would rather me drive, but (Noblesville guard Jordan) Goodman took a step off so I just pulled up and … It’s about time I hit a shot,” Volovic said.

North Central (16-5) had a rough time earning its way into the sectional final as well.

Fishers was determined to prevent bulky 6’6” senior Darius Latham from having his way in the paint. The Tigers held the nearly 300-pound Indiana football recruit to 13 points by using double- and triple-team defensive alignments in the lane.

With a majority of attention on Latham, Fishers lost track of sensational freshman Eron Gordon, who sank a trio of triples in scoring 16 of his game-high 27 in the second quarter.

North Central trailed 18-9 after one but scored 26 points in the second to lead 35-32 at halftime.

Fishers’ problems were much deeper than Latham and Gordon, however.

Standout senior guard Jaylon Brown picked up three first-half fouls and collected his fourth just 37 seconds into the third quarter. Brown, a 6-foot Evansville recruit, kept Fishers within striking distance by scoring 13 of his team-leading 17 points in the fourth quarter.

The Tigers also made just 18 of 32 free throws, including a horrid 6-of-17 effort in the first 16 minutes.

“Eron Gordon was tremendous – he put us on his back tonight and made some big shots,” said 20th-year Panthers coach Doug Mitchell.

Gordon scored all five of his field goals in that second-quarter outburst, but he also added 10 of 12 free throws in the final period when it really mattered.

A MIC title is a big accomplishment, no doubt. But cutting down a sectional net and advancing along in the storied Indiana state tournament is where memories are made.

The contrasting styles of Carmel and North Central will make for an intriguing battle of wills come Saturday night.

The Panthers want to press, create turnovers, and turn the tempo up, while the ’Hounds slow things down and make teams play their own pace and style.

“Our guys know it doesn’t matter who we play – we’re going to have to play well to win any game,” Heady said. “That’s kind of been our attitude.”

Added NC’s Gordon: “Basically, just have more heart than them because we’re playing on their floor and it’s the sectional championship. It’s more about heart.”

The box scores:

4A #1 Carmel 43, Noblesville 40
Team                Q1    Q2    Q3    Q4    Final
Noblesville        11     6    10    13    40
Carmel              12    13     6      2    43

Noblesville (12-9): Philpott 6 1-1 13, Goodman 3 0-0 9, Scott 2 2-2 6, Mills 2 0-0 6, Duncan 2 0-0 4, Trittipo 1 0-0 2, Pegues 0 0-0 0, McAuley 0 0-0 0. Totals: 16 3-3 40

Carmel (20-2): M. Volovic 4 4-4 14, Crowley 4 1-1 9, McRoberts 2 3-6 8, Cline 2 0-0 6, Goodman 2 0-0 4, J. Volovic 0 2-4 2. Totals: 14 10-15 43

3-point goals: Noblesville 5 (Goodman 3, Mills 2), Carmel 5 (Cline 2, M. Volovic 2, McRoberts)

4A #12 North Central (Indianapolis) 70, Fishers 66
Team                                           Q1    Q2    Q3    Q4    Final
Fishers                                        18    14    15    19    66
North Central (Indianapolis)    10    25    17    18    70

Fishers (15-7): Brown 5 7-12 17, Chaudion 3 5-6 14, Johnson 5 3-6 13, Fleming 5 0-0 11, Lonergan 3 3-7 9, Townsend 1 0-2 2, Schneider 0 0-0 0, Eaton 0 0-0 0. Totals: 22 18-33 66

North Central (16-5): Gordon 5 14-18 27, Latham 5 2-4 13, Stowers 1 4-6 6, Banks 3 0-1 6, Walker 2 1-2 5, Poindexter 2 0-0 4, Lesure 1 0-0 3, Loggan 0 2-2 2, Stallings 0 2-2 2, Rowe 0 2-4 2, Harris 0 0-0 0. Totals: 19 27-39 70

3-point goals: Fishers 4 (Chaudion 3, Fleming), NC 5 (Gordon 3, Lesure, Latham)

8. Carmel Sectional
Game 1: #1 Carmel 57, Zionsville 38
Game 2: Fishers 53, Westfield 39
Game 3: #12 North Central (Indianapolis) 78, #6 Hamilton Southeastern 68 (OT)
Game 4: #1 Carmel 43, Noblesville 40
Game 5: #12 North Central (Indianapolis) 70, Fishers 66
Championship: #1 Carmel 58, #12 North Central (Indianapolis) 38