LAKEVILLE - The 2023-24 high school basketball season is winding down. With just five games remaining in the regular season and the Indiana High School Athletic Association draw coming on February 18, the LaVille Lancers want to be playing their best basketball. In a Friday-Saturday doubleheader weekend, LaVille suffered its first Hoosier North loss of the season, 59-41, at Triton. The Lancers came out hot, jumping to a 12-2 lead and 16-7 to close the first quarter. Triton came back to take a 24-21 halftime lead en route to the HNAC victory. Last Saturday, the Lancers played host to Whitko in a non-conference game. LHS trailed 31-21 at halftime, before rallying in the third quarter to close the gap to 41-37. The two teams battled in the final stanza, with LaVille closing to 50-47. LaVille's Lance Edison was fouled and went to the charity line. Edison made the first, then missed the second and Lancer teammate Collin Czarnecki grabbed the ball and LaVille coach Michael Edison called a timeout with 1.4 seconds remaining. On the ensuing inbound, Lucas Plummer tossed a cross-court pass that was deflected by Whitko. Michael Good tried a touch pass to Czarnecki as the clock moved toward zero, but the horn sounded as Czarnecki attempted his shot. Edison's club is 8-10 overall following a 50-48 loss to Whitko on February 10. Collin Czarnecki led the Lancer offense with 18 points, including 14 in the first half. Michael Good had 9 points, all coming in the second half. "We just keep trying to get better as a team and battle through this rough stage of the season," Edison said when asked about the weekend games. "I thought the guys had a very good second half against a good Whitko team. I was proud of the way they battled and fought to the end, giving us a chance to get a win." LHS has lost four consecutive games, including two games by two points each - 45-43 at West Noble and 50-48 v. Whitko. "Those are all solid teams!" Edison said when asked about the recent stretch. "We have played some really good teams this year and it does not get any easier for the rest of the season as we have 5 before sectionals. We just need to continue to stay the course and battle every possession." Westville is 10-10 overall after a 54-39 loss at Warsaw on February 10. Kaden Pepper leads the Blackhawk offense at 16.1 points per game. Brian Jackson adds 10.5 and Josh Wert chips in 7.9. Pepper is also the lead glass man, cleaning up for 10.4 boards per outing. Kevin Hannon averages 4.4 assists per game. "They are quick and have a guy, (Kaleb) Pepper, who averages a double-double," noted Edison. "He is 6'4" and has long arms and can really do some damage. He is a great offensive rebounder who keeps his team in games. According to Edison, Westville prefers, "an up-tempo style of play where they like to penetrate and kick to open players. On defense they run man to man and get right up in you as they play tough one on one defense." Coach Kyle Sonaty's team averages 56.4 points per game and is 8-1 so far this season when they score at least 56 points. The Blackhawk defense allows 54 points per outing and is 7-1 when holding the opposition to 54 points or less. Edison's crew is scoring 54.0 ppg and is 7-0 when scoring 54 points, while the defense gives up 50.9 a contest and is 5-3 when the opponent scores 50 points or less. Westville starts a busy three-game week for Edison's crew, but the good news is that the remaining five games over the next two weeks will be played at home. "I don't know if it presents an advantage or not as I don't think we have played better this year at home than on the road," explained Edison of the five remaining home games. "But it does make it so I don't have to get on a cold bus and ride it for a considerable amount of time, which in my book is always a win! I do like playing in front of our home crowd and I know our guys want to finish up on a good note at home." Following Westville, the Lancers play host to Hoosier North rival Caston, non-conference with Elkhart Christian Academy, the HNAC finale against Knox, and Trinity Greenlawn closes the regular season next week. We asked coach Edison about the style of the five remaining teams. "They will have some similarities, but they are definitely different," said Edison. "Caston runs more sets and will be more disciplined than Westville. ECA will half-court trap and press everyone from the opening tip until the end of the game. They go kamikaze all over the court. All three games will definitely be tough ones for us." The Lancer boss says, "rebounding and not allowing Pepper, #32 to get to the rim for easy offensive rebounds. We also have to take care of the ball, preventing their guards from penetrating into the lane, and knock down shots," are keys to a Lancer victory over Westville. Game on. G A M E D A Y Teams: Westville (10-10) at LaVille (8-10) Site: Dale E. Cox Gymnasium, Lakeville, IN. Tip: JV - 6:30 p.m. | Varsity: 8 p.m. Coaches: Kyle Sonaty, 10-10 in 1st year at Westville. Michael Edison, 223-144 in 16th year at LaVille Last Outing: Westville lost to Warsaw, 54-39. LaVille lost to Whitko, 50-48 Series: LaVille leads Westville, 9-8 Last Meeting: Westville defeated LaVille, 67-59, Nov. 23, 2022. Streaming: JV: IHSAA Champions Network (ihsaatv.org) V: IHSAA Champions Network (ihsaatv.org)