(Indianapolis) — Michiana basketball fans will have strong interest in the early session of Saturday’s Indiana High School Athletic Association State Finals at Gainbridge Fieldhouse.

Westview (27-1), a four-time state finalist and two-time 2A state champion (1999, 2000), faces Parke Heritage (26-4) Saturday afternoon at 12:45 for the Class 2A boys basketball state championship.

The Warriors boast a speedy, guard-heavy lineup that has rattled off 26 straight wins to return to state since finishing runner-up in 2014.

“The good part about going on a run this long is we have seen a lot of different things and been able to weather the storm through whatever it was, so we’ve got several different ways that we could guard,” Westview coach Chandler Prible said.

“We’ll be able to bounce through a few different things to try to make it tougher on them. I think our guys will be ready to adjust.”

Led by senior guard Kaden Grau (18.5 ppg) and junior guard Auston Schlabach (19.7 ppg), the Warriors defeated No. 7 Gary 21st Century, 63-59, to win their seventh regional title all time and later outlasted No. 9 Lapel, 65-62, to open the Muncie Central Semi-State.

Junior guard Daniel Yoder (11.7 ppg) converts 40 percent of his 3-point attempts just behind Grau, who buries long-range jumpers at 51 percent efficiency.

“It’ll be an interesting matchup because we are two very different teams, ” said Prible, who owns a 112-43 record in six seasons of coaching overall.

While contrasting in style, both programs have been building toward this opportunity with Parke Heritage posting a 94-25 record the last four seasons compared to Westview’s 82-24 mark over the same time.

“You always have to bring your best game, especially in the postseason because any bad game, you can be done,” Schlabach said. “It would mean everything to win because of the amount of support that we get. To bring that back for the community and to be in the history books, it’d mean a lot and something I always dreamed of doing.”

—

The opening game on Saturday at 10:30 AM is the 1A Championship with Triton (25-3) squaring off against Barr-Reeve (27-1).

The Triton-Barr-Reeve matchup represents opposite sides of the state, though historical parallels exist.  The Trojans captured the title in 2008; the Vikings have twice worn the 1A crown (2015 and 2021).

“We just believe in each other. We trust each other,” Triton guard Landon Patrick said. “Every single guy who plays can get the job done, so I think it’s just the chemistry we’ve built throughout the years. Just getting things done and knowing what to do.”

Julian Swanson, a 5-9 senior guard, leads the team in scoring (12.1), while 5-11 sophomore guard Brady Wood (11.6), senior forward Jayden Overmyer (10.1) and 6-foot senior guard Gage Riffle (9.4) give Triton one of the more-balanced teams among the eight state finalists. Patrick does his part with averages of 5.8 points and 5.4 assists; sophomore guard Jamison Swanson is good for 4.4 points per game.

All of it under the watchful eyes of head coach Jason Groves, who in 21 seasons has a 371-153 record that includes nine winters of 20 or more victories.

“Playing for (Groves) is really fun. It’s been a joy to have him as my coach,” said Riffle. “He demands effort, good attitude, respect each other and respect the coaches. He makes it fun. He knows what he’s talking about. He’ll never ask of you what you can’t give. The only thing he asks of you is your best.”

There is no TV for the state finals. Instead, the games are on a pay-per-view stream at ihsaatv.org