2007 Girls Basketball Sectional Tournament Preview:  Andrean 59ers A USA-365.com Special Report by Mark Smith (02-03-2007)

3A Andrean 59ers (18-4)
Sectional titles (7) 1977, 79, 86, 1999, 2001, 2002, 2006
Regional titles: (1) 1999


CLASS 3A at Calumet
2/6 (Tu) Griffith [14-6] vs. Calumet [13-7]
2/6 (Tu) Hammond [14-8] vs. Clark [3-16]
2/9 (F) Griffith or Calumet vs. Hammond
2/9 (F) Gavit [4-15] vs. Morton [8-12]
2/10 (S) Sectional championship game - 7:30 p.m..

Class 3A at Kankakee Valley
2/6 (Tu) Gary Roosevelt [13-8] vs. Kankakee Valley [9-11] 6 p.m.
2/9 (F)  Wirt [1-14] vs. Lew Wallace [2-14]
2/9 (F) ANDREAN [18-4] vs. Roosevelt or KV
2/10 (S) Sectional championship game - 7:30 p.m..

Class 3A at New Prairie  (EST)
2/6 (Tu) Knox [14-5] vs. Culver Academy [4-16] 6 p.m.
2/6 (Tu) St. Joseph's [18-2] vs. New Prairie [3-15]
2/9 (F) Knox/Culver vs. St. Joseph's  - 6 p.m.
2/9 (F) Plymouth [13-6] vs. (Mishawaka) Marian [10-12]
2/10 (S) Sectional championship game - 7:30 p.m..

Class 3A at Twin Lakes (EST)
2/6 (Tu) Western [13-8] vs. Maconaquah [16-4]
2/6 (Tu) Twin Lakes [16-5] vs. Frankfort [11-9]
2/9 (F) Western/Maconaquah vs. Twin Lakes/Frankfort
2/9(F) Benton Central [17-4] vs. West Lafayette [14-7]
2/10 (S) Sectional championship game - 7:30 p.m..

Class 3A at Twin Lakes Regional (EST)
2/17 (Sat) Twin Lakes winner vs. New Prairie winner (Plymouth or St. Joseph's) 11 a.m.
2/17 (Sat) KV winner vs. Calumet winner - 1 p.m.
2/17 (Sat) Regional championship game - 7 p.m.

Strengths:  Experience.  The core of this team has played together for three years.  Size.  6-foot-2 center Annie Hovanec allows the Niners to match up with tall teams.  Val Tyburski is a natural scorer.  Michelle Hynes and Courtney Piskur are good distance shooters.  Kelleigh McCrea is very athletic at both ends of the floor.  The seniors and McCrea have played together for much of three years.

Weaknesses:  Personnel-wise, they don't have any.  All the positions: 1-thru-5 are filled and that's not the case with most teams.  The 59ers are a step slow in comparison to top teams.  If they fall behind, I don't think they can press good teams.  The foul shooting comes and goes.  Expectations are very high.  Nothing short of a regional title is going to be good enough for the seniors.  That's a lot of pressure, but they should welcome that.  If you feel no pressure, you aren't any good.

Outlook:  Good.  An upset loss to Gary Roosevelt last week will force the Niners to focus on the sectional instead of looking ahead.  The wins in the four-team Wheeler tournament and the 16-team Lake Athletic Conference (LAC) tournament have prepared Andrean for a single-elimination tourney and the top-level non-conference games (St. Joseph's, Merrillville, Gary West Side) have confronted the Niners with the level of foe they'll see at the sectional and regional level.  This team has all the pieces in place.  They have a strong floor leader, good wing shooters, a scoring forward, a scoring guard and a tall post.  They will talk about playing one game at a time, but if Andrean does not have somebody at New Prairie scouting St. Joseph's, I'd be very surprised.

Andrean's Key Players:

1. Meagan Stickler - 5-8 senior guard

Stickler is the lead guard for the 59ers and she's another three-year starter.  Her confidence level seems to have risen this year and she posted seven more assists last Saturday in the win over Hobart.  Meagan is very athletic and her foul shooting has improved.  Meagan is No. 1 here because she would be the most difficult Niner to replace.

2. Val Tyburski  - 5-10 senior forward

Tyburski (12.3 ppg.) is the No. 1 option for Andrean.  She is a confident offensive player who will shoot the ball with the game on the line.  Val is also a strong rebounder and a three-year starter.  With Hovanec in the game, Tyburski can play forward where she is a difficult defensive match up.  Few have played more basketball than Val Tyburski.

3. Annie Hovanec -  6-2 senior center

Hovanec is the low post center that few teams have.  She makes all layups difficult for the other side and if she blocks you out, you stay blocked out.  Because she took two years off from basketball, her offensive skills are limited, but Hovanec is the major reason Andrean allows just 44 points a game.



MERRILLVILLE -  The pressure is on Andrean at the sectional level because they are supposed to win.  But the loss 44-43 this month at Gary Roosevelt is a blessing in disguise, because it allows the 59ers to be the underdog, a position kids can naturally handle.

Andrean is good enough to win post-season titles, but not so good as to think it will come easy.  The key for Andrean will be the first four minutes of each half.  That's when teams that have played together a long time and have playoff experience can make a run.  Also, Niner shooters like Courtney Pishkur and Michelle Hynes need to fire away with confidence.  Andrean has the rebounders and it's very important for outside shooters not to pass up open shots in the post-season because it makes defending inside people much easier.  Andrean has the best and most experienced squad at the KV Sectional and they should be bold and act like it.  Timid teams don't win no matter how good they are.

I suspect that the 59ers' goal is to reach the state finals.  They can't talk about it, but you don't achieve goals you don't set.  Andrean will not see a team at the sectional or regional that has as much experience or a team that has played together as long as they have.  The 59ers could lose at the sectional level, but they won't.  I've said this before, but I'd be very surprised if Andrean isn't looking across the floor at South Bend St. Joseph's the night of Feb. 17 at Twin Lakes high school.

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Revised: February 03, 2007 .