New Palestine High School

The New Palestine boys basketball team hits the road Friday night to face Shelbyville. FRIDAY: (10/3A 5) New Palestine Dragons (19-2, 3-1 HHC) at Shelbyville Golden Bears (15-4, 3-2 HHC) Time: 6 p.m. F/JV, 7:30 p.m. V Site: Garrett Gymnasium, Shelbyville Tickets: $6 at gate or https://public.eventlink.com/tickets?t=115251 Audio broadcast: NewPalRadio.com SETTING THE SCENE The Dragons return to conference play to face Shelbyville. It will be the first visit to Garrett Gymnasium this season, but the Dragons will return in three weeks, as Shelbyville is the sectional host this season. This game is the third of five consecutive games for the Dragons against teams in the top 60 of Jeff Sagarin’s computer rankings. Shelbyville entered the week No. 52, while the Dragons were No. 6. NP leads the series 21-19 and has won seven straight meetings, but several have come down to the wire. From 2014-22, six of the nine meetings were decided by one possession. NP won a 72-52 decision a year ago, led by Julius Gizzi’s 26 points and Ben Slagley’s 11. DRAGONS NOTES The Dragons are 19-2 for the fourth time in school history, equaling the program’s best record through 21 games. They also posted 19-2 starts in 2022-23, 1988-89 and 1958-59. They are seeking the fourth 20-win season in school history - and third consecutive. NP won 22 games last year and 23 in 2022-23. The Dragons posted another ranked win Tuesday - their second in a two-week span - when they beat 3A No. 3 Guerin Catholic 66-51. Julius Gizzi had a strong all-around game with 26 points, seven rebounds and three steals. Moses Haynes added 10 points on 4-6 shooting, four rebounds, nine assists and six steals. Austin McMahan tallied nine points and seven rebounds. Defensively, the Dragons were strong against Guerin, holding them to 39% shooting from the floor. Gizzi posted his second straight 26-point game Tuesday, pushing his career total to 1,602 points. He needs 10 points to become New Palestine’s career scoring leader, a record currently held by his older brother Maximus, a 2020 graduate, with 1,612. Haynes already holds the school’s career steals record with 126. He has 48 steals this season and needs three more to equal his own single-season record of 51, which he set last year. Haynes is closing in on another mark. He has 413 career assists, 10 back of the record set by Blaine Nunnally in 2023. Haynes, who entered the week fifth in the state in assists with a 7.5 apg average, has 31 assists in his last three games. The Dragons have won 12 consecutive games, tying the third-longest winning streak in school history. The record is 15, set in 2022-23. The Dragons have posted nine double-doubles this season. Haynes and Ben Slagley have three each - one of Slagley’s is a triple-double and another is a rebounds/assists double-double. Both of Haynes’ are points/assists double-doubles. Gizzi has two and Austin McMahan one. At 26.6 ppg entering the week, Gizzi is fourth in the state in scoring and second in the HHC. He has scored 23 or more points in 11 consecutive games. SCOUTING THE GOLDEN BEARS Shelbyville is enjoying its best season in nearly a decade. The last time the Bears won 15 gamesm was 2018, when they went 16-9. Shelbyville has solid balance, with five players averaging at least 6.7 ppg. Juniors Caden Claxton (15.7 ppg) and Mar Nicholson (13.8 ppg) lead the Bears in scoring, while senior Damon Badgley adds 9.9 ppg. Nicholson also leads Shelbyville with 4.9 rpg, while Claxton dishes 4.3 apg. LOOKING AHEAD The Dragons will host Mt. Vernon next Friday for Senior Night. FOLLOW THE DRAGONS All Dragons games, home and away, are broadcast at NewPalRadio.com. The Dragons are also on Facebook and Instagram (@newpalestinedragons) and X (@NPHSDragons), and can be found online at NewPalestineAthletics.com. Photo credit: Aaron Smith