New Palestine High School

The New Palestine girls basketball team returns to action with a Thursday trip to Waldron for the first-ever meeting between the schools. Saturday afternoon, Southport visits to wrap up the penultimate week of the regular season. Tuesday New Palestine Dragons (8-10) at Waldron Mohawks (4-15) Time: 6 p.m. JV, 7:30 p.m. V Site: Waldron HS, Waldron (directions: https://goo.gl/maps/ytibMd8hr9ySrUsX8) Tickets: $6, cash at gate Saturday New Palestine Dragons (8-10) vs. Southport Cardinals (9-9) Time: noon JV, 1:30 p.m. V Site: New Palestine High School Audio: NewPalRadio.com Video: IHSAAtv.org/NewPalestine Tickets: $6, cash at gate or online at https://public.eventlink.com/tickets?t=25831 SETTING THE SCENE The Dragons finish a run of five consecutive games away from home Thursday with a trip to Waldron. It’s the first-ever meeting between the Dragons and Mohawks and the first between the Dragons and a current Mid-Hoosier Conference school since facing Morristown Dec. 6, 1988. Both teams are looking to get back on track as both enter this contest on three-game skids. Saturday, the Dragons and Cardinals meet in a game that has been rescheduled twice, most recently from Dec. 22 due to inclement weather. The Dragons will be playing their first home game since Dec. 20, when they met Lawrence Central. The Dragons lead the all-time series 8-4, including three straight wins. Last season, the Dragons won 64-55 in OT, with Gizzi scoring a school-record 40 points. DRAGONS NOTES The Dragons hit a season-high 11 3-pointers Tuesday at Triton Central in a 56-48 defeat. Isabella Gizzi scored 23 points and hit five triples. Vivian Miller drilled four 3-pointers and scored 12 points in the contest. Allie Blum tallied her career high with a 12-rebound game against the Tigers, her second double-digit rebound game of the season. Blum also had 11 boards against Lawrence Central. Against Pendleton Heights, Gizzi led the Dragons with 13 points and Blum 11. Gizzi reached the 1,500-point milestone in Friday’s game at PH and now has 1,509 career points. She becomes the second person in New Palestine basketball history - boys or girls - to reach that plateau, joining her brother Maximus, who scored 1,612 points from 2016-20. Gizzi has 425 points this season. She enters the week needing 43 points to break the single-season record of 468 set by her mother and coach, Sarah (Haynes) Gizzi from 1990-94. Miller has scored in double-figures eight times, including in two of the last three. She had a run of five straight double-figure games from Nov. 26-Dec. 9. At 23.6 ppg, Gizzi leads the HHC in scoring. She is also seventh in steals (2.8). Miller is second in the league with 2.7 assists per game. SCOUTING THE MOHAWKS Waldron enters the game 4-15 under first-year head coach Ilea Shipp. The Mohawks had four consecutive winning seasons coming into this year, including a 24-2 regional championship year last season. Junior Alyssa Benson (10.2 ppg) and senior Josee Larrison (7.4 ppg, 6.3 rpg) lead Waldron. SCOUTING THE CARDINALS Southport enters the weekend with a 9-9 mark. The Cardinals beat Speedway 61-52 Tuesday and face Beech Grove Thursday. They are led by sophomore Kassie McMasters (13.8 ppg, 5.4 rpg) and senior Cece Mitchell (12.4 ppg, 6.1 rpg). NEXT UP The Dragons close the regular season next week with a Tuesday trip to Greensburg and Thursday’s Senior Night against Yorktown.