Warsaw senior Kyle Mangas will be shooting for his 1,000th point this Friday at the Hall of Fame Classic, where Warsaw will open against defending Class 4-A state champion New Albany. (File photo by Mike Deak)

WARSAW – “O Romeo, Romeo wherefore art thou Romeo.”

William Shakespeare may have penned that famous line is his classic tale of Romeo and Juliet.

But come Friday it will be the Warsaw boys basketball team who wants to know at every moment where another Romeo is on the hardwood.

Romeo Langford is that hoops character.

The Tigers face the New Albany superstar in a first-round clash in the City Securities Hall of Fame Classic at the 9,325-seat New Castle Fieldhouse, the World’s largest high school gym.

Langford, a 6-5 junior shooting guard, is ranked as the second best prospect nationally in the Class of 2018. He led the Bulldogs to the Class 4-A state title last year by averaging 30.3 points-per-game. Langford is averaging 29.3 ppg so far this season for his Class 4-A No. 4 team, which is 5-2.

Warsaw coach Doug Ogle, whose team features All-Star candidate Kyle Mangas, knows what awaits his squad.

“This is going to be a nice challenge for our guys,” said Ogle, whose team sits at 6-2. “If you’re a competitor and I think that our guys are, this is fun. These type of games should fuel your competitive spirit.

“There’s a lot of reasons to want to play in this event and a lot of good that can come from it for our team. It’s the most prestigious tournament in the state and just to be invited is a nice compliment to our program. This will be beneficial to us down the road in terms of our development. We will get to see what we need to do better to compete at this level.”

Ogle got a first-hand look at Langford in a game versus North Central back on Dec. 10. The Bulldogs lost that contest by an 84-60 count.

“He’s the best player that we have seen in my time here as a head coach,” said Ogle, who is now in his 15th year in charge of the Tigers. “He’s got shooting range and the ability to go to the basket and finish. He’s patient, long, athletic, a good defender and has a steady demeanor. There’s a lot to like about him. He’s an NBA player down the road.”

Langford, who has already received offers from the likes of Kentucky, Indiana, Duke, Louisville, Kansas and UCLA, broke the school scoring record this past week during a 55-52 overtime win over Carmel. He then went over 1,500 points for his career Thursday by scoring 34 points in a 72-63 win over Evansville Bosse. He drained 40 points in an 85-63 loss to No. 2 nationally-ranked LaLumiere out of LaPorte on Dec. 15.

Langford, who had 28 points in the 62-59 state title game win over McCutcheon last season, is averaging 24.7 ppg through his first 61 high school games and has totaled 1,508 career points. A total of just 46 players in state history have scored 2,000 or more points. Damon Bailey tops the list with 3,134 with Marion Pierce of Lewisville second with 3.019 and Deshaun Thomas of Fort Wayne Luers third with 3,018.

New Albany likes to play an uptempo style. The Bulldogs average 63 ppg and allow 59. Warsaw is averaging 51 ppg and giving us just 35 points-per-outing. Isaac Hibbard, the 6-0 senior point guard for the Bulldogs, is also a key for New Albany. Hibbard netted 17 points in the state title game win last season.

“We need a game in the 40s or 50s against New Albany,” noted Ogle. “Our best defense will be to have longer offensive possessions against them. We need to complete passes and take care of the basketball. They are quick. And their other players are capable.”

Mangas, who has committed to play at Indiana Wesleyan University next year, will look to reach a milestone moment on the big stage. The 6-3 guard has 983 career points and would become the 12th player in program history to score 1,000. Mangas, who is averaging 20.7 ppg this season, sits just outside of the top 10 all-time with Marty Lehman at No. 11 with 1,004 points and Jason McKenzie at No. 10 with 1,021 points.

“I think that we are still evolving as a team,” said Ogle, who returned two starters from last season’s 25-2 team that lost to McCutcheon, 40-37, in the semistate. “I thought that we would be better offensively as a team than we have been so far, but I’m not worried. We have time to shore that up.”

The Tigers, who have lost at Homestead (50-37) and at home to Lake Central (34-31), also count on senior guard Ross Johnson (6.4), senior forward Jeremy David (5.0) and junior forward Asher Blum (4.0). Warsaw boasts a roster with eight seniors, while the Bulldogs have three seniors.

Warsaw will make its third appearance in the Hall of Fame event. The Tigers won the tourney title in 1994 and claimed the consolation game in 2010.

The opener Friday pits No. 3 Logansport (7-0) versus No. 8 Lawrence North (6-1) at 11 a.m. Logansport, which finished 15-9 last season, has four players averaging double figures. Seniors Jalen Adaway and Matt Jennings lead the Berries at 18 ppg each.

Lawrence North boasts one of the state’s all-time winningest coaches. Jack Keefer is 749-303 in his 45th season overall, including a 688-277 mark in his 41st year at North. His 749 wins is fourth all-time in state history. Tippecanoe Valley coach Bill Patrick ranks third with 758, while Pat Rady is second with 761 and Jack Butcher first with 806.

Logansport averages 75 ppg, while allowing 54. Lawrence North scores at a 65 ppg clip and gives up 56 per outing.

Warsaw topped Triton 46-33 in its last game on Dec. 21. New Albany defeated Evansville Bosse on Dec. 22. Logansport beat Caston 84-38 and Pioneer 64-41 in the Cass County Invitational on Dec. 23, while Lawrence North topped Detroit Jesuit 67-64 in overtime on Dec. 23.

The tourney tips at 11 a.m. with the Logansport-Lawrence North tilt, followed by Warsaw-New Albany. The consolation game is at 6 p.m. with the championship contest to follow.

All four of the games on Friday can be seen on WHME-TV (Channel 46).