Friday night basketball is important if you live in Indiana. To attempt an accurate description of what Friday nights mean to the good folks called "Hoosiers" would be the equivalent to drawing a picture on 1 post-it note of all the things your mother means to you - impossible. Take my word for it, basketball is HUGE.

School was cancelled due to blizzard-like weather. The basketball game goes on.

The 5-5 Goshen Redskins traveled uphill through the same snow that your parents describe while telling you how hard their walk to school used to be. After pushing the Tiger JV squad to a near defeat the major league (varsity) contest began.

The 9-1 Warsaw Tigers shot out of the gate to grab the early advantage. Senior Rhett Kesler scored 6 consecutive points to give Warsaw an 8-0 lead. Timeout Goshen.

To coach Brian Bechtel's credit, the Redskins settled down. I always tell people who have never attended a basketball game at the Tiger Den this simple message: IT'S INTIMIDATING!

You show up on a cold yellow bus as a visiting player. You get dressed and walk out onto a hardwood court that seems harmless during shoot-around. The next time you walk out with your game jersey on, you are taking a warm-up lap in front of 3,500-4,500 crazy Tiger Fans. Then you are forced to sit through a light show while the Tiger starting five gets announced. Students and fans are screaming like thirty thousand girls at a Justin Bieber concert.

Suddenly you seem to forget the scripted game plan. After the timeout Goshen remembered their coach's script. They executed it to perfection.

Goshen trailed by just 3 points at the end of the 1st quarter 16-13.

Despite a 10-0 run by the mighty Tigers during the second quarter, the Redskins were able to compose themselves again. A series of 3-point baskets once again cut the Warsaw lead to 3 points at the half (28-25).

The Tigers were unable to shake Goshen the rest of the way. In fact, Warsaw was outscored by 3 points over the next 15 minutes of action. The Redskin run was capped by a long-range shot from Austin Henke with less than 30 seconds left in the game. Henke tied the game 43-43.

Warsaw would get the last shot. Junior Jared Bloom caught the basketball in the right corner with 4 seconds on the clock. Bloom rose up and shot a 19-foot jumper that hit the front iron and bounced off. Goshen rebounded the ball with just less than 2 seconds to go.

The Redskins attempted an outlet pass that never made it to its intended target. Jared Bloom jumped in front of the pass and made an incredible steal. In Bloom's attempt to get off a shot before the buzzer, he was fouled hard by a Goshen player. The referee quickly blew the whistle. The clock read 00.6 - just six tenths of a second! Are you serious?

The 6'0" junior stepped to the free throw line with the game in his hands. For those of you unfamiliar with Jared Bloom, he is what basketball experts call a "pure shooter". His form, release, and (more importantly) dedication to practicing his shot make Bloom one of the best shooters in Northern Indiana. That's really GOOD if you are a Tiger Fan! Jared calmly sank two free throws with the game on the line.

Goshen's last-ditch effort fell short. Warsaw wins 45-43 to stay atop the Northern Lakes Conference chase for an NLC title at 3-0.

FINAL SCORING FOR WARSAW:

The victory improves the Tiger season record to 10-1 at the halfway point. This marks the 3rd time in the last four years that coach Doug Ogle's Warsaw team has started the season 10-1. The exception was the state runner-up team of 2009-10; which started 9-2 before making their historic run to Indianapolis.

Many of you have been asking us here at TSN how good this Tiger team really is. Of course, we all continue to say the same answer: REALLY GOOD - Ranked #15 in the entire state of Indiana as of today and probably moving up come Monday. Yet, you want more than our opinion, as you seem to think we are biased ;) You are correct, we are! We bleed Orange & Black.

Here is what we will do for you. We will give you a ton of data, considering this is the halfway point in the year, and you can make your own assumptions.

Leading Scorers through 11 games:

Leading Rebounders:

Assist Leaders:

3-Point Baskets:

Warsaw's 10 wins so far have come against teams that have a combined record of 52-58 (.473). Their next 9 games are brutal with teams currently combining for a 55-44 (.556) record. And if you throw out tonight's game against an 0-9 CMA team, the schedule takes on an even tougher turn over the final 8 games with teams having a .625 (55-35) winning percentage.

On top of that, Warsaw is forced to go on the road in the conference. The next 3 NLC games are at Concord, at Northwood, & at Elkhart Memorial. If the Tigers are to win their 3rd consecutive NLC title they are going to certainly have to earn it. This stretch of games is like running the 100-yard dash across hot lava rocks. BRUTAL!

Yet, as a writer who is close to the pulse of this team and these kids as budding adults, I can tell you that this team can pull it off. There comes a point during a long season (and this season is a marathon) that individuals begin to put their personal desires aside for the greater cause. A cause that is called TEAM!

What we have witnessed over the past 5 games of what many of you are calling "ugly basketball & sloppy wins" is two-fold.

#1 - Tiger Fans are spoiled rotten! Myself included. We often act like Duke or North Carolina fans when in fact there are hundreds of other teams out there that would kill, steal, and cheat to experience what Tiger fans get to experience. So enjoy it - ALL OF IT.

#2 - This 2011-12 group is becoming a team. Keep in mind how tough this idea of team is. The moment that each player leaves practices or games they hear the individual theme from the outside world. They hear "you deserve to play more" or "you should be shooting the ball way more" and "what is your coach thinking by letting that other kid play more minutes than you?"

It takes a concentrated effort for a young teenager to ignore and forget all of that "white noise" of individualism to focus on the greater goal of team.

I see team starting to take shape. I see kids becoming men and men leading in the direction of team. Together this group will either succeed or not. And their only chance is team. Much like the Justin Clemens led 2009-10 team that these current seniors were privileged enough to experience. That was team.

Go Tigers!

Posted In: Boy's Sports > Basketball

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