[OSUBasketballJunkie]

LINK


3/6/05

lawrence north 60, arlington 45
Oden's 18 blocks rock No. 1 Knights
Wildcats avenge earlier loss behind their 7-foot sensation

<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width=210 align=right border=0><TBODY><TR><TD width=10></TD><TD></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
By Jeff Rabjohns
<SCRIPT ********************><!--document.write(''+'jeff.rabjohns'+'@'+'indystar.com'+'');//--></SCRIPT>jeff.rabjohns@indystar.com
March 5, 2005


In one of the most anticipated high school basketball games in years, Lawrence North got its revenge.

Junior center Greg Oden blocked 18 shots, and the Wildcats survived a frenetic and physical test to stop top-ranked and unbeaten Arlington 60-45 Friday night in a battle of state title contenders.

The Lawrence Central Class 4A sectional semifinal was a rematch of Arlington's 70-60 victory Dec. 17 that knocked defending state champion Lawrence North from its perch as the top-ranked team and helped vault the Knights into the No. 1 spot.

Arlington, bidding to become the first Indianapolis Public Schools team to win a state title since Broad Ripple in 1980, ended the season 23-1.

In tonight's final at 7:30, third-ranked Lawrence North (19-2) plays Cathedral (13-8). The Irish turned a 12-10 first-quarter deficit into a 74-49 rout of Tech in the first game.

Six hundred tickets are available for tonight's game, and they go on sale at 6:30 p.m.

Lawrence Central's 3,000-seat gymnasium was overflowing, with fans sitting in the aisles and standing in the four corners.

Oden finished with 12 points and seven rebounds to go with his 18 blocked shots. Junior guard Mike Conley had a team-high 16 points to lead Lawrence North, which went on a 16-0 run to turn a 35-32 deficit into a 48-35 lead with 4:15 to play.

Indiana University recruit Deonta Vaughn, a senior guard, scored 18 points to lead Arlington. The Knights shot 8-for-30 in the second half and went scoreless for nearly eight minutes from the middle of the third quarter to the middle of the fourth.

People began lining up at 2:15 p.m. Friday for the 600 remaining tickets that went on sale at 5 p.m. When the doors opened, approximately 500 people were lined up at the front entrance and another 500 at the rear entrance, leading to hundreds being turned away.

The crowd included Wake Forest coach Skip Prosser, Ohio State coach Thad Matta and North Carolina assistant Joe Holliday. All three schools are among those ardently pursuing Conley. Oden is expected to be among the top picks in the 2006 NBA draft.

Oden had 10 of his blocked shots in frenetic and physical first half that ended with the Wildcats up 32-25.

Call Star reporter Jeff Rabjohns at (317) 444-6183.

<!-- Start Omniture Stats --><SCRIPT ********************>var pageName="Oden's 18 blocks rock No. 1 Knights"var server=""var channel="Headlines"var pageType="article"var pageValue=""var prop1=""var prop2=""var prop3="homepage/headlines"var prop4=""var prop5=""var prop6="news"var prop7="local_news"var prop8=""var prop9=""var prop10=""var s_code=' '</SCRIPT><SCRIPT src="http://www2.indystar.com/scripts/s_code.js"></SCRIPT><SCRIPT ********************>if(s_code!=' '){s_it('gpaper138')if(s_code=s_dc('gpaper138'))do cument.write(s_code)}elsedocument.write('<im'+'g src="http://gpaper138.112.2O7.net/b/ss/gpaper138/1'+'?[AQB]pageName='+escape(pageName)+'&server='+escape(serv er)+'&ch='+escape(channel)+'[AQE]'+'" height=1 width=1 border=0>')</SCRIPT>

Conley had a team high 16 points in the win.