Senior Carter Campbell is capable of playing inside or outside for Greenwood.
Daily Journal file photo
Greenwood begins its second season just as it did its first — playing Center Grove on the Trojans’ home court.
Woodmen coach Joe Bradburn, no stranger to demanding first-round sectional draws whether here or any of his previous stops, simply adds this latest matchup against a county rival to the list.
“The draws are the draws,” said Bradburn, now in his 24th season as a head coach, the past six at Greenwood. “Center Grove is really good, and we know we’ll have to play well to be in a position to play with them. But we’ve gotten more defined. Gotten a little deeper.
“From an offensive standpoint, we know what our strengths are.”
Center Grove has dominated the recent series, winning 28 of the 32 games played against Woodmen teams this century. However, the latter tends to make things interesting at the sectional level.
The two played four consecutive times from 2018 to 2021, with Greenwood winning one matchup by 13 points; the Trojans were victorious the other three by a combined sum of 19 points.
“We love playing Center Grove, and they’re the team to beat in the area,” said 6-foot-5 Woodmen senior and three-year starter Carter Campbell. “It’s always a good game that’s high intensity.”
Campbell and junior guard Jake Mosemann lead Greenwood, which lost its opener to the Trojans in November, 66-49. The Trojans finished the regular season 20-2 — their best record since the 1933-34 team went 22-1 — and enter the postseason ranked fourth in Class 4A.
There are similarities between the Woodmen at the beginning of the season and now. And, naturally, differences.
Three months of practices and games have a way of maturing a team so that players are better suited to handle most situations, be it offensively or defensively.
“We’re pretty young this season,” Campbell said. “Jake Mosemann was really the only other guy on the team who played a lot of minutes last year. I feel we’ve come a long way since the beginning of the season.
“Just everyone having a role, and doing it to the best of their ability.”
Campbell, in particular, wears a number of hats for Greenwood — handling the basketball, working in the post, crashing the boards or knocking down a shot from the perimeter.
The experience he brings is invaluable.
“Carter has emerged as an awesome leader, and he just plays everywhere for us and been extremely vocal this season,” Bradburn said. “And he’s our cooler on the floor where he gets guys to calm down.”
Greenwood’s 8-14 record includes four losses by five or fewer points — including all three games it lost in January at the hands of Franklin, Decatur Central and Roncalli.
“We have a different set of skills this year, and I’ve seen some kids grow and get stronger,” Bradburn said. “Obviously, it’s been challenging being in a lot of games this season and not finishing them off.”
Tonight presents the Woodmen another opportunity.
IF YOU GO
Class 4A Center Grove Sectional
Today
Center Grove (19-2) vs. Greenwood (8-13), 6 p.m.
Friday
Center Grove/Greenwood vs. Bloomington South (16-8), 6 p.m.
Saturday
Championship, 7:30 p.m.
Class 4A Columbus North Sectional
Today
Franklin (10-12) vs. Columbus North (14-7), 7:30 p.m.
Friday
Whiteland (9-14) vs. Shelbyville/East Central, 6 p.m.
Columbus East (2-19) vs. Franklin/Columbus North, 7:30 p.m.
Saturday
Championship, 7:30 p.m.
Class 3A Northview Sectional
Friday
Indian Creek (12-8) vs. Owen Valley/Northview, 6 p.m.
Saturday
Championship, 6:30 p.m.
Class A Edinburgh Sectional
Today
South Decatur (11-11) vs. Edinburgh (12-9), 7 p.m.
Friday
Oldenburg Academy (6-15) vs. South Decatur/Edinburgh, 6 p.m.
Saturday
Championship, 7 p.m.
Class A Indianapolis Lutheran Sectional
Today
Tindley (11-13) vs. Greenwood Christian (16-6), 7:30 p.m.
Friday
Victory College Prep (3-18) vs. Tindley/GCA, 7:30 p.m.
Saturday
Championship, 7:30 p.m.
SCOUTING THE SECTIONALS
Class 4A Center Grove Sectional
Center Grove begins pursuit of a 17th sectional championship, and fifth in the past seven years, when it faces Greenwood this evening. Trojan teams have cut down the nets only twice inside their own gymnasium (1960 and 2019). Both sides of the sectional bracket feature intriguing matchups and potential matchups. Center Grove, ranked ninth in the Sagarin ratings, going up against Bloomington South (72nd), led by coach J.R. Holmes, the state’s career victories leader with 896, in a possible semifinal definitely warrants attention. Should the title game be the Trojans against 2022 semistate qualifier Bloomington North (31st), it would be a rematch of Center Grove’s 49-47 triumph on Dec. 2.
Class 4A Columbus North Sectional
Any so-called luck of the draw certainly was aimed at Whiteland this time around, with the Warriors earning a bye straight into Friday’s 6 p.m. semifinal. Whiteland plays tonight’s Shelbyville-East Central winner. In December, the Warriors won at Shelbyville, 72-65. Whiteland didn’t face the Trojans at any point in the regular season, but Shelbyville did, winning by nine. Franklin, which made it to the final of the Seymour Regional a year ago, takes on sectional favorite Columbus North in tonight’s second contest. The squads met on the same floor on Feb. 18 with the Bull Dogs victorious in double overtime, 70-58. Sagarin places Columbus North as the state’s 40th-best squad, followed by Franklin (99th) and Whiteland (122nd).
Class 3A Northview Sectional
Indian Creek comes in as the sectional favorite based on its Sagarin ranking of 220th, though this seven-team site is extremely balanced with West Vigo, Northview, Edgewood and South Vermillion rated between 268th and 292nd. The Braves drew the lone bye and won’t take the floor until Friday night’s first semifinal against the winner between two 8-15 clubs, Owen Valley and Northview. Indian Creek won at Owen Valley by 23 points early in the season and at Northview by 24 in January. Should the Braves face West Vigo in the championship game, it would be a rematch of a game won by Indian Creek, 57-45, in the regular season.
Class A Edinburgh Sectional
The host Lancers take the floor for tonight’s opener against South Decatur, a team that handed Edinburgh a 75-58 loss on Jan. 7. The Lancers began the season winning seven of their first nine games, but cooled off and are 6-7 since then. A victory places the hosts in a semifinal against Oldenburg Academy, an outfit the Lancers defeated 58-34 in their third game of the season. Every one of the four multi-class sectionals Edinburgh has won since the 2009-10 season played out in the Lancers’ own gymnasium. The Sagarin ratings place four teams between 221st (Jac-Cen-Del) and Waldron (273rd), demonstrating the balance in the six-team field. At 228th, Edinburgh carries the second-best ranking.
Class A Indianapolis Lutheran Sectional
This is essentially a three-team sprint to the finish line between the host Saints, Greenwood Christian and Indianapolis Tindley, all rated between 105th and 162nd in Indiana according to Sagarin. Conversely, Providence Cristo Rey, Eminence and Victory College Prep sit between 350th and 389th. GCA rides an 11-game win streak and is ranked seventh in the state in Class A; Lutheran is eighth. Tindley comes in two games under .500, but is definitely a factor after facing an incredibly difficult regular-season schedule filled with numerous 3A and 4A teams.
