Indiana Women's Basketball Fab 15: Center Grove New No. 1; Roncalli Jumps

We are officially at the halfway point of the Indiana high school girls basketball regular season. Let’s rank the best teams in the area.

Please note that these rankings were compiled prior to Monday’s Marion County championship game.

1. Grove Center (9-0)

LB: 3

It’s a shame we didn’t get to see the Trojans travel to Bloomington South on Thursday, but they handled business against Plainfield, holding the Quakers to 44 points on 31% shooting. Gracyn Gilliard scored 24 points and Lillia Tapak and MacKenzie Pierce added 11. The next big tests will be at Carol Tumey on Dec. 30 with Brownsburg followed by North Knox or Silver Creek.

2. Lawrence Central (9-1)

Last week: 1

The Bears drop one spot to No. 2 after falling all the way to Ben Davis in the Marion County quarterfinals before falling to Roncalli on Saturday. It’s worth noting that they were without Aniyah McKenzie against the Royals, but they are still a team finding their way; however, the potential is obvious based on the resume so far: notable wins over Hamilton Southeastern, Pendleton Heights, Ryle (Ky.) and Cooper (Ky.). Great bounce-back opportunities this week with games at Brownsburg and Pike.

3. Hamilton Southeast (9-2)

LW: 2

The Royals scored fewer points for the second straight game Tuesday at Pendleton Heights and suffered their second loss of the season, losing a 49-44 decision to the Arabs. They bounced back Friday with a defeat of conference foe Avon. A critical two-game turnaround looms with Fishers playing Mudsock on Friday, followed by Homestead on Saturday. They return from the Christmas holidays with Valparaíso in North Central (KK Holman vs. Lilli Barnes will be exceptional entertainment).

4. Pike (8-1)

LB: 4

Franklin Central High School sophomore Riley Huotari (20) shoots while being defended by Pike High School sophomore Saniya Smith (1) during the second half of an IHSAA girls regional championship game, Saturday, Feb. 15, 2025, at Decatur Central High School. Pike won 61-50.

I was hoping to see Pike against Lawrence Central in the first round of potentially three on Monday, but instead it will be Pike against Roncalli, which honestly provides so much intrigue. The teams split their two most recent meetings (both in 2023-24) and the Royals arrive with all the momentum. Pike’s boasted a very balanced scoring attack thus far with three players averaging at least nine points and four more averaging 5-8 points per game.

5. Pendleton Heights (8-2)

LB: 5

The Arabs are 4-0 since Brownsburg beat them (I did that for the alliteration), and have big wins over HSE and Delta. They shot 43% against HSE and 41% against Delta. Aubree Warfel led the way with 14 points against HSE, Adah Hupfer led the way with 27 points against Delta, Warfel added 14 points and Grace Lee dished out six assists.

Senior standout Olivia Jones did not play against Delta.

6. Roncalli (10-2)

LW: 10

I wrote about the Royals in my Midseason What We Learned and went in-depth with Brennah Cerny and Elliot Leffler at The Scorers Table. Suffice it to say: this is a very good basketball team.

7. Westfield

LW: 8

The Rocks overcame an unusually shaky night offensively to hold off Carmel on Tuesday. I was really impressed with the play of senior MaKayla Hatcher, who hit several critical shots and provided invaluable leadership on the court, taking command and slowing down her teammates against Carmel’s multi-look defense. Freshman Gabby Bassett also stood out for the Rocks, who followed Carmel’s victory with a five-point win over Zionsville on Friday.

8. Plainfield (8-3)

LB: 7

The Quakers are 1-2 in their biggest tests of the season to date, beating Brownsburg and losing to Homestead (not very close) and Center Grove (the Quakers bounced back to make it competitive). They have one more tune-up before the Hall of Fame Classic: a Dec. 19 trip to conference foe Martinsville.

I’m very interested to see how they handle Norwell’s vaunted 1-3-1 defense in the HOF opener and how they compare to the firepower of Evansville Central (i.e. Maddy Shirley) and Warsaw (i.e. Joslyn Bricker, Brooke Zartman, Alexis Neely, etc.) in the cup.

9. Franklin Central (6-4)

LW: 6

The Flashes have been slipping a bit since late November and Wednesday’s loss to Roncalli marked their third in five games. They lost point guard Riley Houtari in the season opener and that kind of personnel change takes time to address, but I think we’ll start to see FC turn a corner in the next two weeks with games against Franklin and Zionsville before the Interra Classic in Northridge, which includes a Dec. 20 pool game against Homestead.

10. Brownsburg (5-3)

LB: 9

The Bulldogs got out of trouble with a 75-26 victory over Columbus North. My God. Read about them mid-season in my Monday Insider.

11. Lapel (10-0)

LB: 11

I’m very excited to see what could be Laniah Wills’ final chapter against Kenzie Koch when the Bulldogs host Eastern Hancock on Tuesday.

12. East Hancock (7-1)

LB: 13

Eastern Hancock Royals guard Kenzie Koch (1) drives to the basket Saturday, Nov. 22, 2025, during a Sneakers for Santa 2025 game between Valparaiso and the Eastern Hancock Royals at Brownsburg High School.

I’m very excited to see what the final chapter of Wills vs. Koch when the Royals travel to Lapel on Tuesday.

EH’s game against Cathedral was called off due to snow on Saturday, so I don’t have anything else. Let’s move on.

13. Carmelo (6-4)

LB: 12

The Hounds had an especially poor shooting night at Westfield on Tuesday, but their defense, which no one has been able to figure out yet, kept them in the game and gave them a chance to force overtime on the game’s final possession. They were also with a full-strength Fort Wayne Snider team on Saturday. I really like the direction first-year coach Jess Darmelio took.

14. Cathedral (6-4)

LB: 14

Keep an eye on the Irish who have won three straight, stringing together wins over Jeffersonville, Zionsville and Guerin Catholic. They scored at least 50 points and shot 46% or better in all three games, all well above their season averages. They are at Heritage Christian on Saturday.

15. Lawrence North (5-5)

HP: 15

The Cats cruised through Perry Meridian and then lost to a very good Pike team in the Marion County tournament. Tuesday’s game in Noblesville is shaping up to be a good measuring stick contest for both sides.

Follow Brian Haenchen on Twitter at @Brian_Haenchen. Get IndyStar’s high school coverage delivered right to your inbox with the High School Sports newsletter.

This article originally appeared in the Indianapolis Star: IHSAA girls basketball: Ranking the area’s top teams before Christmas

Source link