Anyone want to be my Valentine?
I pick the answer is, “No.”

I was originally going to use my intro to rant and rave about how embarrassing the Notre Dame men’s basketball team has been this year and then finish it off by calling for Mike Brey to be fired using not-so-hard facts and a lot of personal grudges. Then I remembered that it is Valentine’s Day.

Today is not a day for harsh treatment of others, but rather a day for us all to show how much we care for one another. Today is a day to be happy, even if it is a fake holiday that was created by big corporations to make profits, just like Flag Day! (Okay, don’t quote me on the Flag Day thing.)

So, instead of calling for a major universities head coach to be canned at the end of the year, I will instead sing the praises of those who have earned it.

First of all, I am throwing love to the Warsaw and Wawasee girls swim teams. Both squads won sectional last weekend and are sending several swimmers to State Finals this weekend in Indianapolis. Brenna Morgan, Bre Robinson and Paige Miller are three swimmers to really keep an eye on. Good luck, ladies!

Now, let’s give some love to our former local standouts Clay Yeo and Nic Moore. Yeo, a freshman at Valparaiso was named Horizon League Freshman of the week this past week after he hit a game-winning shot for the Crusaders on Sunday to beat Oakland.

Moore has not been up to much since transferring to Southern Methodist University, except leading his team in scoring (13.8 PPG) and assists (4.7 APG). Not to mention helping SMU crack the top-25 for the first time since 1985. Oh, let’s not forget how cool his first name is, even if he does spell it wrong.

Finally, how about some love for Stacey Page Sports on Facebook!? Go to www.facebook.com/sposports right now and “Like” the page!

Okay, that’s all the love I’m passing out this week. I don’t want to over-do anything. (Side note: I tried to pass out Valentines at work, like everyone used to in elementary school, but apparently that just makes you the “weird guy” at the office. So, now I have a lot of wasted Batman Valentines and no clue what to do with them.)

Last Week: 9-1
Overall: 157-74

High School Girls Basketball Sectional 2/14

Warsaw (10-9) at Northridge (16-4), Northridge Sectional Semifinals, 6 p.m.
The Scoop: The Lady Tigers were 2-7 at one point this season. They took losses to two-win Wawasee and a below .500 Huntington North team. The season looked like it would be a very long one for coach Michelle Harter and company. But something has lit a fire under Warsaw since late December.
The Lady Tigers have gone 8-2 since their loss to Wawasee, only dropping games to Fort Wayne Carroll and No. 6 Penn. Nikki Grose is playing like an all-star right now. (No, I’m not promoting her to be an Indiana All-Star, just describing her current level of play.) Northridge only had one loss in conference, and it was to Warsaw. I think the tides are different tonight. Warsaw certainly can win if Grose goes off again, but that is a tall task playing in Middlebury against the Raiders.
The Pick: Northridge 42, Warsaw 34.

Whitko (15-6) v. Lakeland (9-11), NorthWood Sectional Semifinals, 6 p.m.
The Scoop: The Lady Wildcats are on a hot streak right now. Whitko has won four straight and six of its last seven. They escaped with an overtime win against West Noble on Tuesday night and will play a so-so Lakeland team. Head Whitko coach Brandon Bradley is convinced the nerves and butterflies are no longer a factor for his team after getting its first sectional game out of the way. I don’t know if I agree.
Whitko looked lost at times on Tuesday night. Maybe it was nerves that will not come back, or maybe being one step closer to a title will only enhance Whitko’s butterflies. Lakeland should not pose a threat to Whitko, the Lady Wildcats are a solid team with great all-around play. If Whitko can get four players into double-digits like it did on Tuesday, then you’ll see this team in Saturday’s title game. But if the Lady Wildcats start slow and give Lakeland any rhythm, it will be a big upset.
The Pick: Whitko 51, Lakeland 37.

Tippecanoe Valley (13-6) at NorthWood (17-5), NorthWood Sectional Semifinals, 7:30 p.m.
The Scoop: NorthWood is really good. The team is ranked No. 11 in Class 3A and have a powerhouse center named Morgan Olson. The Lady Panters coach, Steve Neff, is a living legend and is currently in his figurative “Swan song” season. (Pause for a minute and picture Steve Neff as a swan. Are you doing it? That’s hilarious, right!? That big head bobbin’ around on a swan’s body, wearing a bright red sweater? Classic.)
Moving on, the momentum will undoubtedly be in favor of the Lady Panthers. Valley has a great chance to hold back Olson with its own talented center, Anne Secrest. But Secrest is just a freshman and trying to guard a seasoned, physical senior like Olson could be too much. Valley is the only team I see with the ability to upset NorthWood in this sectional. I hope I see the upset, but hope is not enough to get my pick.
The Pick: NorthWood 51, Valley 39.

Lakeland Christian Academy (6-13) at Hamilton (3-14), Hamilton Sectional Semifinals, 7:30 p.m.
The Scoop: The Cougars won their first-ever sectional game on Wednesday night. Yes, it was against a very, very bad Howe team, but a win is a win. Tonight, however, the task is much greater. Hamilton is playing at home and already has LCA’s number, winning 54-23 earlier this season over the Cougars. LCA is a better team now than it was back in that first game against Hamilton, but I don’t know if it is 31 points better. It has been a fun season, Cougars, but I think the journey comes to an end tonight.
The Pick: Hamilton 43, LCA 34.

Argos (10-8) at Triton (14-6), Triton Sectional Semifinals, 8 p.m.
The Scoop: That’s right, in Bourbon they don’t mess around with normal tip times. No, no. They do things their own way and they will start a game at 8 p.m. if they feel like it. You know why? Because Bourbonites never rest! It doesn’t matter if you want to get beat at 1:30 in the afternoon or at 8:00 at night, the Lady Trojans will be glad to assist you. Don’t even try to mess around with this game, Argos. Triton has a date with Oregon-Davis in the championship game and the Lady Trojans are NOT getting beat on their home floor in the semifinals, not a chance. Kylie Mason and Krystal Sellers, you two ladies are going to lead the charge tonight, I’ve just got a feeling.
The Pick: Triton 67, Argos 45.

High School Boys Basketball 2/15-2/18

Wawasee (3-12) at Rochester (4-10), 1:30 p.m. 2/15
The Scoop: It is a rivalry renewed between the Warriors and Zebras on Saturday afternoon. Wawasee and Rochester used to face off annually when the Zebras were still in the NLC. Yes, the two teams played many games against each other, dating back to the 1968-69 season.
Who can forget the heart wrenching Warrior loss in the ’74 sectional? Of course, you can’t talk Rochester-Wawasee without mentioning the 57-54 Wawasee win in the ’82 sectional, that win propelled the Warriors to the title game in which they knocked off Warsaw in the Tiger Den!
But then came the 1986 regular season game. Gary Goshert’s Warriors embarrassed the Zebras, 66-46 in Rochester. Rochester left the NLC after that season, presumably because of Wawasee’s beat-down (don’t quote me on that, either). Since that time the Warriors have gone 8-2 against their former conference foe, with the last meeting coming in 1995, an 80-58 win by Wawasee (still under the watchful eye of Goshert at the time).
Saturday the 2013-14 Wawasee team needs to unload a lot of frustration, and I think they’ll do it. Wawasee has finally learned how to beat teams that it should beat outside of the NLC, this game falls into that category.
The Pick: Wawasee 54, Rochester 48.

Tippecanoe Valley (11-3, 6-0) at Southwood (10-4, 4-1), 2:30 p.m. 2/15
The Scoop: An outright TRC title is on the line on Saturday. If Valley wins, the TRC is all locked up for the Vikings. But, if Southwood pulls the upset, suddenly the Knights and Manchester are in play for a piece of TRC glory. This is a game where players like Tanner Andrews and Chainey Zolman HAVE to step up. It’s put up or shut up time for the Vikings. This should feel like a sectional game. You should feel threatened. There is a target on your back, Vikings. Go out and prove yourself this weekend. Southwood gives up 52 PPG, Valley average 51.8 PPG. The Vikings are only allowing 40 PPG while Southwood has only eclipsed the 60-point threshold twice this season, those are all things in Valley’s favor. It should be a good game, it will just be a better one for Valley fans.
The Pick: Valley 60, Southwood 48.

Whitko (1-14, 0-5) at Manchester (11-4, 4-1), 2:30 p.m. 2/15
The Scoop: I’m not going to get cute or anything with this pick. Manchester is simply not going to lose, especially with an outside shot of getting a co-TRC title. At this point it is all about making little improvement for the Wildcats. The season is far from over and the sectional is not as bleak as it may seem. Whitko could still draw winnable games against either Wawasee or Lakeland and make noise in the postseason. Until that time, work on chemistry and confidence. When you’re sitting at 1-14, chemistry and confidence have to be your biggest issues. Those are trademark flaws of a young team, which Whitko is. Keep grinding, ‘Cats.
The Pick: Manchester 71, Whitko 50.

Elkhart Christian Academy (13-3) at Warsaw (9-8), 7:45 p.m. 2/18
The Scoop: ECA soars in ranked No. 5 in Class 1A and demands your respect. The Eagles are every bit as good as their record indicates and the Tigers are in a world of hurt right now. Don’t believe me?
Remember that lackluster Elkhart Memorial team that Warsaw just lost to? Yeah, ECA already beat Memorial, 63-40,earlier this year. Memorial was the first of two 4A teams to fall to the Eagles, the other being Mishawaka. Former Concord head coach and Warsaw foe, Ryan Culp is the coach at ECA and he has history with the Tigers and Doug Ogle. Culp went 4-7 against Warsaw from 1999-2008 but was 4-3 against Ogle. You better believe Culp wants this win and until I see a sign of life from Warsaw, there is no reason not to pick the Eagles. This game needs to be a big one for Jordan Stookey and company, the Tigers have to get back on track. Do you have it in you, Tigers?
The Pick: ECA 56, Warsaw 50.

NCAA Basketball 2/15

Indiana (14-10, 4-7) at Purdue (14-10, 4-7), 4 p.m.
The Scoop: Oh my, what has happened to these two programs? Heck, what happened to Indiana colleges this year? Let’s run down a list of some major teams:
Ball State? Awful.
Notre Dame? Bad.
Purdue? Shameful.
Indiana? Pitiful.
Butler? Below average, at best.
Evansville? You didn’t even know they had D1 a team, don’t act like you did.
Indiana State and IPFW are carrying the torch for Hoosier State basketball this year, wow.
Anyways, about Saturday’s crap shoot, these teams are embarrassing this year. Purdue has beaten Minnesota, Nebraska, Illinois and Penn State this season in Big Ten play. IU beat Penn State, Illinois and somehow picked up wins over Michigan and Wisconsin. I was originally mad that this was the only game between the Boiles and Hoosiers this year, but now I’m glad. No state should be subjected to two underwhelming games by its top two programs.
The fact is, IU is inconsistent but they still know how to score. Purdue teeters on just being inconsistent. Terone Johnson leads the scoring attack with just over 12 PPG. A.J Hammons averages another 11 PPG  but is getting just under 11 rebounds per game, that should be higher for the sophomore stud. Yogi Ferrell averages 17.5 PPG for IU and basically does everything for this team, if not for him IU is not above .500. Noah Vonleh will go up against Hammons in what should be a very good match up between two talented big men. This game truly is a crap shoot. If either of these teams makes the NIT, a coached will have cashed in on a blessing. If either one makes the NCAA Tournament, a deal with Satan was undoubtedly made. I’m working towards a Purdue degree, but I’m a Hoosier at heart and there is no way I would pick against my boys in this game.
The Pick: Indiana 71, Purdue 65.