Scecina Memorial against Indianapolis Howe is not the standard match-up in the Indianapolis City Tournament championship. It turned out to be a fantastic game with both teams playing an up-tempo style. Howe slipped away with its first City title since 1987. Here is how it happened.

With the transfer of Andre Jones, the injury of Delano Coffy and the ineligible Gary Bonds, Scecina only dressed eight players for the championship game. Howe plays at a tremendous pace and put pressure on all of Scecina's players. Scecina did a good job of limiting fouls and fatigue for most of the game.

The first quarter saw Harris Brown get off to a slow start. The Evansville-bound guard scored 44 points in the semifinal game Saturday. Brown was held to three points in the opening quarter. He picked up his scoring pace from there.

One constant throughout the game was DaKwon Brooks on the glass. Indiana Basketball Source had Brooks with 21 rebounds in the game with a good portion of them coming on the offensive end. Jake Okerson also did a good job of chasing down misses on the offensive glass for Scecina. The efforts of Brooks gave Scecina many multiple shot possessions. He finished with 10 points as well.

The final three quarters saw Howe build a six to ten point lead and Scecina answering. It was great action with Harris Brown and Brian Warren scoring most of the buckets for Howe. T.J. Henderson and Zach Rutland were the scoring catalysts for Scecina until Josh Rutland joined the scoring party late in the game. Those three players accounted for 54 of Scecina's 72 points.

There was plenty of talking between each side. Henderson and Brown played on the same travel program for the last couple years. They were going back and forth throughout the game. It seemed like the intensity in the game raised because of that. There were no cheap shots, it was a clean game but the players were locked into each other.

Late in the game, Scecina played the fouling game looking for Howe missed free-throws and stopping the clock. Howe - mainly Brian Warren - did a solid job of making clutch free-throws, but they missed enough to give Scecina a chance. It came down to a three point game with ten seconds left. Zach Rutland was able to get open after his teammate attracted two Howe defenders. When Rutland caught the ball, it looked like he was going to get a clean look at a game-tying three-pointer. 2018 wing Tony Hopkins was able to come from the lane to use his length and athleticism to get a clean block on Rutland's shot. 

The ball went out of bounds with 0.4 seconds left, but the Hopkins block essensially locked the game up for Howe.

Harris Brown finished with 35 points. 2016 guard Brian Warren added 17.

It was the third City Championship for Howe in its history and first since the 1986-1987 season. Scecina has never won a title.

Player Notes/Evaluation Updates:

Harris Brown, Brian Warren, Champ McGaw, Tony Hopkins, Dreon Lewis

T.J. Henderson, Zach Rutland, Josh Rutland, Gary Bonds, Delano Coffy, DaKwon Brooks

Howe  15  16  21  23  ---75

Scecina 16  7  24  25  ---72

Howe: Harris Brown 35 points, 4 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 turnover, 9-16 2FG, 3-8 3FG, 8-9 FT, Kip Warren 17 points, 5 assists, 2 turnovers, 2-5 2FG, 2-3 3FG, 7-10 FT, Champ McGaw 10 points, Tony Hopkins 2 points. Dre'on Lewis 11 points, 7 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 turnovers

Scecina: T.J. Henderson 21 points, 5 turnovers, 5-14 2FG, 3-5 3FG, 2-3 FT, Zach Rutland 19 points, 5 turnovers, 5-11 2FG, 2-4 3FG, 3-4 FT, Josh Rutland 14 points, 3 assists, 0 turnovers, 4-8 2FG, 6-8 FT, DaKwon Brooks 10 points, 21 rebounds, Jake Okerson 6 points, Jayron Brooks 2 points.