Senior Jordan Stookey has helped his Warsaw squad win three in a row. The Tigers play Friday in a tournament at Hamilton Heights.

WARSAW – The Warsaw boys basketball team headed into the holidays on a roll.

The Tigers look to continue that recent trend Friday.

Warsaw will take part in a four-team tournament at Hamilton Heights High School. The Tigers, who are 4-2 on the season, face Bloomington North (3-3) in a first-round game.

The opener at Hamilton Heights Friday at 10 a.m. pits the host Huskies versus Indianapolis Shortridge (4-1). The Tigers will then play North at approximately 11:30 a.m. The consolation game is slated for 6 p.m. with the title tilt to follow.

Warsaw, which finished 13-11 and won a Class 4-A sectional title last season, defeated Huntington North (50-46), Manchester (42-35) and Wawasee (67-49) in succession before the break. The Tigers topped county rival Wawasee at home on Dec. 20 in their Northern Lakes Conference opener and last game before the break.

The Tigers, whose two losses to Tippecanoe Valley and Homestead have come by a combined total of just three points, have been led by senior Jordan Stookey and junior Rashaan Jackson thus far.  Jake Mangas, a 6-2 junior foward, has been a pleasant surprise for coach Doug Ogle’s team.

Warsaw, after playing at Hamilton Heights Friday, will return to action at home Jan. 3 versus Triton. The Tigers then play at Northridge in a big NLC contest on Jan. 10. The Raiders are undefeated at 6-0 going into the NIC/NLC Shootout Friday and Saturday.

Tippecanoe Valley, off to a 4-1 start, returns to action Jan. 3-4 in the Winning Edge Holiday Tournament. Coach Bill Patrick’s talented team will face undefeated NorthWood (5-0) in the opener of the tourney Jan. 3 at Rochester High School. Rochester (2-3) meets Fairfield (3-2) in the other first-round contest. The consolation and championship games will be played Jan. 4 at NorthWood High School.

The Vikings, who are led by senior Tanner Andrews, opened Three Rivers Conference play with a 59-40 win at Whitko in their last game before the break on Dec. 20. Valley went 20-4 last season, including winning the TRC title at 7-0 and also claiming a Class 3-A sectional title.

Valley won the Winning Edge Holiday Tourney title a year ago. The Vikings, who hosted both nights of the event, defeated Fairfield 57-40 and then topped NorthWood 59-53 in the championship game. The win over Fairfield gave Patrick his 700th career win.

Both Tippecanoe Valley and NorthWood received votes in the latest Class 3-A poll.

Whitko, 1-5 on the season, will play in the Miami County Tournament at Maconaquah High School Friday. The Wildcats play the hosts at approximately 4 p.m.

Lakeland Christian Academy will host its own Cougar Classic on Jan. 3-4 in Winona Lake. The Cougars are 0-6 on the season after two losses in the Bethany Christian Holiday Tournament last weekend.

Triton, ranked No. 4 in Class 1-A,  is slated to play a makeup contest and its Northern State Conference opener at New Prairie Saturday night. The Trojans, who were Class 1-A state runner-up last season, are off to a 4-1 start. Coach Jason Groves’ squad will play in the annual Bi-County Tournament from Jan. 21-25.

Wawasee, 1-6 under first-year coach Steve Wiktorowski, is idle until hosting Columbia City on Jan. 4.

Four teams from the NLC, Concord (2-2), Elkhart Memorial (2-3), Northridge (6-0) and Goshen (4-3), will take part in the NIC/NLC Shootout Friday and Saturday.

Tournament Pairings

Hamilton Heights Tournament
At Hamilton Heights High School
Friday, Dec. 27
10 a.m.: Indianapolis Shortridge vs. Hamilton Heights
11:30 a.m.: Bloomington North vs. Warsaw
6 p.m.: Consolation Game
7:30 p.m.: Championship Game

Miami County Tournament
At Maconaquah High School
Friday, Dec. 27
4 p.m.: Whitko vs. Maconaquah
5:30: Peru vs. North Miami

Winning Edge Holiday Tournament
At Rochester High School
Friday, Jan. 3
6 p.m.: Tippecanoe Valley vs. NorthWood
7:30 p.m.: Rochester vs. Fairfield
At NorthWood High School
Saturday, Jan. 4
6 p.m. Consolation Game
7:30 p.m.: Championship Game

Cougar Classic
At Lakeland Christian High School
Friday, Jan. 3
1:30 p.m.: LCA vs. Clinton Christian
4:30 p.m.: Covenant Christian vs. Clinton Christian
7:30 p.m.: LCA vs. South Bend Trinity

Saturday, Jan. 4
11:30 a.m.: South Bend Trinity vs. Clinton Christian
2:30 p.m.: South Bend Trinity vs. Covenant Christian
5:30 p.m.: LCA vs. Covenant Christian

NIC/NLC Shootout
At Bethel College
Friday, Dec. 27
6 p.m.: Elkhart Memorial vs. Mishawaka Marian
7:30: Concord vs. Mishawaka
At Northridge
Friday, Dec. 27
6 p.m.: Penn vs. Goshen
7:30: South Bend St. Joseph vs. Northridge

At North Side Gym
Saturday, Dec. 28
6 p.m.: Marian vs. Concord
7:30: Elkhart Memorial vs. Mishawaka
At Penn
Saturday, Dec. 28
6 p.m.: Goshen vs. South Bend St. Joseph
7:30: Northridge vs. Penn