LAFAYETTE, IN - On the evening of Thursday, March 14, storms ripped through east central Indiana and left destruction in their path. One of the towns in its wake was Selma, Indiana, where a tornado touched down and caused severe damage to houses and other buildings.
Power Lines covered roads and law enforcement was on full alert. The community evaluated the damage while the people impacted began to go through what was once their homes.
However, on Saturday, March 16, most of the community did not worry about the issue. They were not cleaning up trash or clearing debris. They were almost 100 miles away at Lafayette Jefferson High School.
They surrounded the gym, rooting for the Wapahani boys’ basketball team, who were one game away from going to the first IHSAA State Championship game in school history.
“I’ve spent 40 out of 50 years of my life in Selma, Indiana,” head coach Matt Luce said. “Nothing surprises me. People came together just like our basketball team.”
After 32 minutes of basketball, the Raiders gave their community something to take their minds off the recent weather as the black and red defeated Fort Wayne Blackhawk Christian 60-49, punching their ticket to Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis by winning the program’s first-ever semistate championship.
“It’s a dream come true,” Wapahani senior Isaac Andrews said. “I have been dreaming of this since I was in elementary school and saw Wapahani basketball.”
Coming into the contest, Wapahani (26-2) once again did not win the eye test. However, height was something the Raiders tried to remove from the game. With guys like sophomore Nate Luce – who was all over the place and assisted his teammates – the Braves could not catch up, especially in the first half.
“It takes a lot of leadership [in that role], but this is a good team,” Nate said. “They trust me and I trust everybody on the team.”
While the Raiders went into halftime up 27-19, the Braves were not ready to quit. They scored four straight points to open the third quarter and only trailed 34-31 at the end of the period. Going into the fourth, Blackhawk Christian (27-5) kept the pressure.
While the Raiders offense looked good in the first half – they ended the second quarter with three straight 3-pointers – they began to struggle. A missed shot there, a turnover here; the Raiders were in trouble.
However, the black and red continued to battle with the Braves. After the lead changed multiple times in the final two minutes, Andrews – who led the Raiders with 29 points – drained two free-throws to give Wapahani a 42-40 with eight seconds remaining in the game. Yet the Braves were able to hit a wide-open layup, sending the game to overtime.
After that, something changed, and it started with Andrews.
“[I told myself] I’m not going home,” he said. “I’m not going home”
The senior opened the extra period with a 3-pointer, giving the Raiders a 45-42 lead. Then he hit another one, and then another one. Andrews drained back-to-back-to-back 3-pointers to give black and red the push they needed.
“He wasn’t going to lose,” Matt said. “Just the composure, the mentality, and the attitude. He wasn’t going to let us go down like that. He wanted to play in Indianapolis."
After clutch free-throw shooting, the Raiders celebrated after the final buzzer completed the victory. Once the trophy was in their hands, the Wapahani student section rushed to them, grabbing players.
“I’m overzealous and I was crying,” Nate said. “It means so much and [this team] has meant so much for years.”
To get to the celebration, the Raiders had to buy in. Not just in games, but in practice. It’s the one thing sophomore Camden Bell believes helped them the most.
“We got so many guys that put in the work every day,” he said. “We play together and we’re like a family. The sky’s the limit for us.”
While the Raiders themselves were thrilled, it was no surprise how much the accomplishment meant for Matt. After hugging players and his coaches, the 27-year head coach and 17-year Wapahani head coach gave hugs left and right and made sure young fans received pieces of the net.
“My best hugs were from my family… and my coaches,” he said. “We spent a lot of time together with our youth program. These are the guys who we have coached since kindergarten and first grade… That makes it even more fun because these guys are our family.
The Raiders will move on to the 2A state finals at Gainbridge Fieldhouse. They will face Brownstown Central (27-4) with the tip-off at 12:45 p.m.
In other Delaware County scores, the Delta Eagles (23-7) fell to South Bend St. Joe (20-9) 44-41 in three overtimes in the 3A semistate finals.
Contact Zach Carter with comments at zachary.carter@bsu.edu or on X @ZachCarter85.
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