No clear-cut favorite for the Shelby County Boys Basketball Tournament

In a balanced Shelby County Tournament field, it may take a legend-making performance to secure the championship.

Events like this are made for scorers like Morristown’s Kellen Crim, Southwestern’s Ben Kahler, Triton Central’s Eli Sego and Waldron’s Lucas Shaw to shine.

Or a player like Triton Central senior Silas Blair (photo) could secure a second-straight county tourney MVP to secure his legacy.

The semifinal games are Friday at Triton Central. In the opener, Morristown (4-5) takes on Southwestern (2-6). The two teams have not met this season.

Sego, Blair and the Tigers (5-5) face Waldron (5-5) in the second semifinal. Triton Central defeated Waldron, 60-47, on Dec. 5. Sego and Blair combined for 31 points while Shaw had a team-high 16 for the Mohawks.

The championship game is Saturday at 8 p.m.

At 4-5, Morristown if off to its best start in three seasons under head coach Cory Kreiger. The Yellow Jackets arrived at the last two county tournaments with just one win. And they are fresh off winning the Hoosier Shooting Academy holiday tournament that included wins over Indianapolis Herron and Western Boone.

Morristown does not have front-line size but has a veteran roster that is coming into its own under the stability of Kreiger.

“It helps a ton,” said Kreiger of a roster that includes six seniors and three juniors. “Colin (Kieninger) has played varsity for three years now. Jacob (Hawk) has played varsity for three years now. Brayden (Keithley) has played varsity for two-and-a-half years now. Kellen (Crim) is starting his second year now.

“We have experience through our entire rotation with a few newcomers. We know who we are and what we need to do to win every game. That’s a lot of taking care of our own problems, taking care of the basketball and rebounding the ball. We need execution. We can’t have mental lapses because our margin of error is so thin if we want to win and beat tough teams. We have to be locked in all those phases.”

Kieninger (11.3 ppg, 5.4 rpg), a senior, and Crim (18.1 ppg, 3.3 apg), a sophomore, are Morristown’s top scoring threats but players like juniors Owen Rinzel (5.5 ppg) and Dalton McMichael (7.1 ppg), and senior Brayden Keithley (7 ppg) help fuel the offense from beyond the arc.

Crim makes the offense go. After averaging 10.8 ppg his freshman season and making 53 3s, he is on pace for an even better sophomore campaign.

“He is a little bit of a safety outlet at times being able to handle the basketball with pressure because of how skilled he is,” said Kreiger.

Southwestern was winless when it trekked south to Crothersville for a two-day holiday tournament late last month. The Spartans put together wins over Traders Point Christian Academy (53-43) and Crothersville (61-53) before falling to New Washington, 61-53, in the championship game.

Kahler leads the Spartans in scoring (21.4 ppg) and rebounding (9.1 rpg). No other Spartan is averaging double digits in the scoring column.

Mitchell Clements (8.8 ppg), Jace Patterson (7.5 ppg) and Avery Dennison (6.1 ppg) are all capable of productive games.

Southwestern opened the season with five straight losses including at Edinburgh, 45-37, and at Waldron, 45-44. The program has arrived at the last two county tourneys without a win.

First-year Waldron head coach Jeb Stewart has had to be patient with a fluctuating roster limited by injuries and illness. The Mohawks won a pair of games at the same Crothersville Tournament – defeating Rock Creek Academy (61-57) and Traders Point (66-28). They also lost to New Washington, 66-64 in overtime.

Shaw and fellow seniors Parker Douglas and Max Jones did not suit up in Crothersville. Stewart had the trio back Friday in a 59-49 win at Brown County. The threesome combined for 47 points in the win, including 31 from Shaw.

Triton Central, the reigning two-time county champions, have struggled with consistency this season. The Tigers have won two games in a row just once this season.

A strong fourth quarter propelled Triton Central to a 13-point win at Waldron in early December. Blair and juniors Sego and Max Crouse combined for 41 points – four short of their season average.

The Mohawks got within two points early in the third quarter, but the Tigers outscored them 28-17 the rest of the way.

Only one other Tiger, sophomore Cael Butler (6.6 ppg), is averaging more than 3 ppg.

The last team to defeat Triton Central in the county tournament was Waldron, 51-50, in the championship game of the 2022 tourney.

All three games of the Shelby County Boys Basketball Tournament will air live on GIANT fm. Pre-game show begins at 5:30 p.m. Friday with game action to follow on 96.5 fm, 106.3 fm, 1520 am or go to GIANT.fm and scroll down to Shelby County and click on the WSVX 96.5 icon.