The Warsaw Tigers boys basketball team headed north Friday night to the scene of last year's Sectional #4 loss. The Tigers were looking to avenge last season's 58-41 loss to Elkhart Memorial at the famed North Side Gymnasium as well as capture at least a share of the Northern Lakes Conference championship.

Warsaw came into the contest controlling their own fate with a perfect 5-0 record in conference play. Both Elkhart Memorial and Plymouth remained right on their heels with 4-1 records. This rivalry game would be a determining factor in how next week's Warsaw vs. Plymouth matchup would ultimately decide the NLC title.

This was no ordinary game. This was the WHME TV46 "Game of the Week". Bob Nagle was on hand to cover this NLC title fight. Tiger fans who stayed home were going to be able to watch their team on TV just an hour after the game ended.

Warsaw leads the series history between these two teams 32-8 with the first meeting taking place in 1977.

North Side Gym has seen more great talent and great basketball action than most college courts have had the pleasure of witnessing. The famous "foul board" (see photo gallery) that keeps track of every player's fouls with little white light bulbs until a player reaches 5 fouls -- then the last bulb is red. C'mon, this place just wreaks of basketball history -- the round ball equivalent to the Smithsonian.

The Elkhart Memorial student section was out in full force on this night. The students coupled with the Memorial Pep Band made for a rocking' environment we like to call Hoosier Hysteria. Not to be outdone, the Tiger faithful poured into the gym to make their own noise for their Warsaw boys team.

Game Time.

The first 2 minutes and 16 seconds of this contest could not have been any worse for Warsaw. Elkhart Memorial not only held the Tigers scoreless over that time frame, they were perfect on the offensive end as well. Senior forward Mike Kibiloski connected twice from 3-point land and sophomore guard Todd Johnson swished his first long range jumper for Memorial. Fellow sophomore Urston Smith scored in the paint to cap an 11-0 run to start this contest.

Scoreboard reads: Q1 5:44 - Memorial 11 - Warsaw 0

After a Doug Ogle timeout, in which he assured his team they were fine, junior guard Nic Moore scored the next five points for Warsaw. Moore came into the contest averaging 18.8 points per game for the season. The first basket was on a steal and lay-up combo. The second a 3-point bomb from the right wing to pull his squad within six (11-5) at the 4:38 mark.

After Memorial senior forward Antonio Sanders scored his first basket of the game, Warsaw senior Zack Linky answered for the Tigers. Linky hit a triple from the top of the key on a nice kick-out pass from sophomore Jordyn Coon. Warsaw had cut the lead to just five with 3:53 remaining in the first.

The Tiger transition game began to get in the act. Much like the Concord game a few weeks ago, the tandem of Nic Moore passing to senior Justin Clemens proved to be the spark that would get Warsaw back into this contest. On consecutive possessions, Clemens sprinted the open court after Memorial missed shots. Moore, who seems to always find his open teammates, found Justin with beautiful outlet passes for easy transition baskets.

Antonio Sanders was proving he would be a tough matchup for the Tiger defense in the paint. Sanders scored four consecutive points to keep the Crimson Chargers from losing their lead entirely in the first eight minutes of action.

Warsaw outrebounded Memorial 8-4 in the frame.

End of First Quarter: Memorial 17 - Warsaw 14

The second quarter of play belonged to the visitors.

While the Chargers were busy firing up long range jumpers, Warsaw went to work on defense. The Tigers used full court pressure to disrupt the Memorial offensive rhythm. Memorial was unable to score any points for the first 5 minutes.

Nic Moore accounted for the 8 out of the next 9 Warsaw points as the Tigers put together an early 9-0 run. Moore stole the ball twice, scored two points on a coast-to-coast lay-up, and dished out 3 assists. The first pass was to Jalen Roscoe which gave its first lead of the game at the 5:07 mark. Moore then found sophomore Lucas Grose for a power finish and capped off the run by finding his favorite target, Justin Clemens, for an easy basket.

The Tigers led 23-17 with 3:40 left in the half.

Antonio Sanders was continuing his big first half for Memorial as he knocked down two baskets on back-to-back trips down the floor. These four points would be all Memorial would score in the entire 2nd quarter. Sanders scored a team high 10 first half points to pace the Chargers.

Nic Moore nailed a pull up jumper from the left baseline to extend the lead (25-21) with 1 minute left in the half. After a Memorial missed shot, Warsaw held the ball for the final shot of the quarter.

Zack Linky attempted a 3-pointer from the right wing with 7 seconds left. His missed shot was tapped backwards by teammate Jordyn Coon with just 3 seconds remaining. Coon's tip fell into the hands of Tiger forward Lucas Grose who had the ball knocked loose with 2 ticks on the clock.

Nic Moore picked up the ball just beyond the free throw line and let go of a one-handed push shot in the direction of the Warsaw basket. Moore's "Hail Mary" hit the backboard and fell thru the hoop as the buzzer sounded to give his team a six point advantage heading to the locker room.

Tiger fans were jumping up and down celebrating Nic's dramatic buzzer-beater as the Warsaw boys ran off the court in front of their home crowd. Oh my, what a finish!

Warsaw outscored Memorial 13-4 in the period to take control of the game.

End of first half: Warsaw 27 - Memorial 21

The third quarter was an evenly contested battle overall. The first few minutes belonging to the Tigers...

Nic Moore again used his quickness to make two more steals to start the period. Moore stole the ball and drove the length of the court to extend the lead to eight. He then stole the ensuing in-bound pass before finding a cutting Lucas Grose. Grose was fouled and made both free throws to give Warsaw a 31-21 advantage just 22 seconds in. (Incidentally, Grose wears #22...gotta love numbers don't we Coach Ogle?)

Justin Clemens grabbed an offensive rebound and scored on the put-back to widen the Tiger margin (33-21) at the 6:19 point.

Nic Moore then came up with his 6th steal of the game before getting fouled on his way to the rim. Moore drained both charity stripe attempts. Moore then dished out an assist to Lucas Grose as Warsaw claimed its largest lead of the evening. Lucas's strong left-handed basket put the Tigers up 37-21 with 5:44 on the clock.

Memorial came storming back. The Crimson Chargers used an 11-2 run to close the 3rd period.

Charger guard Todd Johnson scored 7 consecutive points to pull his team up from the dead and back into this crucial NLC war. Johnson hit a big three to start his scoring binge and finished it with an acrobatic left-handed scoop over Clemens.

Warsaw outscored Memorial 12-11 in the frame.

End of 3rd Quarter: Warsaw 39 - Memorial 32

Senior Zack Linky started off the final eight minutes with his 2nd long ball of the night. Linky's 3-pointer put the Tigers back up by ten.

Mike Kibiloski answered for the Chargers with his third long range jumper as Memorial continued to pressure Warsaw. Kibiloski scored again on a lay-up to cut Warsaw's lead.

Todd Johnson then scored on a fancy scoop shot to bring Memorial within just 5 points (44-39) with 4:10 left in the game.

Warsaw turned to their star. Moore was fouled on an isolation play as he drove to the basket. Nic made both free throws. Warsaw led 46-39.

Antonio Sanders scored for Memorial as they tried to keep the game within striking range.

On the next play, Nic Moore drove the lane against 6'9" Mike Kibiloski. Moore twisted to the left as he hung in the air to create space before finishing the lay-up. Tiger faithful roared as their all-state candidate continued to amaze their expectations of what he can do.

Jordyn Coon calmly knocked down his first two free throw attempts on the night as Memorial was forced to foul. Jordyn's two points stretched the Warsaw lead to 52-41 with 2:34 left in this game.

After Moore made 1 of 2 free throws, Kibiloski proved he could give his Charger fans something to cheer about. Kibiloski took a pass and slammed home a power dunk as he drove down the center of the lane. Everyone in the gym got to see what this senior could do in the open court, though it was a little too late to help his team overcome a good Tiger performance on this night.

Warsaw took care of the basketball to secure their 13th win of the season and remain perfect in the NLC.

Nic Moore turned in a double-double on the night. Moore led all scorers with 24 points and had a season high 10 steals in this contest. Nic also dished out 6 assists to lead the Tigers.

Complete Scoring for Warsaw:

Nic Moore - 24, Justin Clemens - 12, Lucas Grose - 8, Zack Linky - 8, Jalen Roscoe - 3, Jordyn Coon - 2

Lucas Grose led the rebounding effort with 7 total boards while Jordyn Coon grabbed 6 of his own for the Tigers.

Final Score: Warsaw 57 - Memorial 46

The victory improved the Tiger record to 12-2 (6-0 NLC) on the season. Warsaw remains alone atop the NLC conference standings and can win the title outright with a victory over Plymouth next Thursday night (2/11) in the Tiger Den. Plymouth is alone in 2nd place at 5-1 in the NLC with their victory over Goshen Friday night. The Tigers and Pilgrims have split their last 6 meetings with 3 wins each. This "Highway 30" battle will be a great contest.

First, the Tigers will host the Marion Giants tonight (Saturday 2/6) at the Tiger Den. Tiger fans know the famous wars these two clubs have had over the years dating back to the Rick Fox vs. Bill Green days. Last year Warsaw beat Marion 69-66 on a last second shot. Get to the Tiger Den early and wear your Orange & Black for this classic matchup.

Continue to follow Tiger Basketball throughout the season. Complete coverage of all Warsaw games will be updated here at www.TigerSportsNation.com

Posted In: Boy's Sports > Basketball

Want to see more pictures? Click Here