2018 IHSAA Boys Basketball State Tournament Pairings Are Set

Press release from the Indiana High School Athletic Association Rising Sun and Jac-Cen-Del could meet up in the 1A Sectional 60 championship game. Photo courtesy Mason Uhlmansiek/Rising Sun Athletics. (Indianapolis, Ind.) - Four-hundred three teams were drawn today and placed into brackets for the 108th Annual IHSAA Boys Basketball State Tournament presented by the Indiana Pacers and Indiana Fever. Sectional games are scheduled to begin Tuesday, February 27, and run through Saturday, March 3, with the regional round slated for March 10 and semi‐states on March 17. The four state championship games that make up the state finals will be played at Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis on Saturday, March 24. New Albany is this week’s top‐ranked team in the single class poll from the Indiana Basketball Coaches Association. The Bulldogs drew a bye into the Friday semifinal round of Sectional 15 and will meet the Seymour‐Jennings County winner. In the Associated Press poll, the Warren Central Warriors hold the No. 1 position in Class 4A and will host Indianapolis Arsenal Technical in the second game of Sectional 10. Class 3A’s top‐ranked team, the New Castle Trojans, will host Hamilton Heights in the Sectional 24 opening game. In Class 2A, the No. 1 Covington Trojans drew a bye into the semifinal round in Sectional 38 at Fountain Central and will await the Delphi‐Clinton Prairie winner. The University Trailblazers, the top‐ranked team in the Class A poll, also drew a bye in Sectional 58 at Bethesda Christian and will take on the International‐Bethesda Christian winner in the semifinal round. Among last year’s big winners, the defending Class A champion Tindley Tigers picked up a bye and will await the Indianapolis Lutheran‐Central Christian Academy winner in Sectional 59 at Lutheran. The Frankton Eagles, last year’s Class 2A champ, will face Monroe Central in the Sectional 40 opening game at Lapel. The Indianapolis Crispus Attucks Tigers, which claimed their fourth state title a year ago, will meet Brebeuf Jesuit in the first round of Sectional 27 hosted by Guerin Catholic. And the Ben Davis Giants, now a three‐time state champion after winning last year’s Class 4A crown, drew into the semifinal round and will host the Southport‐Roncalli survivor in Sectional 11. Lafayette Central Catholic (Class A) continues to lead the state as winners of 16 consecutive sectional championships. Greensburg (Class 3A) and Liberty Christian (Class A) follow with six in a row.   About the Draw To conduct the random drawing for the boys basketball state tournament, the IHSAA places ping‐pong balls representing each school in a given sectional into a lottery‐style air mix machine. A motorized fan in the bottom of the machine blows the balls around the inside of the transparent container and air then forces each ball up through a tube in random order. For example, the first ball retrieved from the machine will be the visiting team in game one with the second ball representing the home team in game one. The third ball to come out is the visitor in game two and the fourth ball the home team in game two. That same method is followed through all 64 sectionals and 16 regionals.   4A Sectional 14 at Columbus East (6 teams) G1: Shelbyville vs. Columbus North. Tues G2: Bloomington South vs. Bloomington North. Tues G3: Columbus East vs. Winner of G1. Fri G4: East Central vs. Winner of G2. Fri Championship: Winner of G3 vs. Winner of G4. Sat   3A Sectional 29 at Greensburg (7 teams) G1: Rushville Consolidated vs. Batesville. Tues G2: Madison Consolidated vs. Franklin County. Wed G3: South Dearborn vs. Lawrenceburg. Wed G4: Greensburg vs. Winner of G1. Fri G5: Winner of G2 vs. Winner of G3. Fri Championship: Winner of G4 vs. Winner of G5. Sat   2A Sectional 45 at  Southwestern (Hanover) (6 teams) G1: Milan vs. North Decatur. Tues G2: South Ripley vs. Southwestern (Hanover). Tues G3: Switzerland County vs. Winner of G1. Fri G4: South Decatur vs. Winner of G2. Fri Championship: Winner of G3 vs. Winner of G4. Sat   1A Sectional 60 at Southwestern (Shelbyville) (7 teams) G1: Jac‐Cen‐Del vs. Southwestern (Shelbyville). Tues G2: Waldron vs. Morristown. Wed G3: Rising Sun vs. Hauser. Wed G4: Oldenburg Academy vs. Winner of G1. Fri G5: Winner of G2 vs. Winner of G3. Fri Championship: Winner of G4 vs. Winner of G5. Sat