Elkhart Memorial tops central in hoops for Longfellow Trophy

ELKHART, Ind. - High school basketball season is back in Indiana, and early season action once again meant a rivalry matchup between Elkhart Memorial and Elkhart Central.

The two battled back and forth at North Side Gym, but in the end it was the Memorial Chargers pulling away to win 70-61.

"It's going to be a fight every time," said Memorial head coach Kyle Sears. "Both teams come to play on this night, and give Central all the credit in the world. They played hard tonight and played all the way to the end. (My team) is going to be excited. It's something they've talked about."

Several Central players turned in impressive performances, including Laz Miller with 20 points. That was only outdone by Chargers senior Henry Smith, who caught fire in the second half on his way to 23 points.

"It's a good thing to have at the beginning of the year," Smith said of the rivalry. "It's a lot of people, a big game. It shows that we can just come out every night and we need to play hard in order to win. It means a lot. It's my senior year, so I really wanted it this year and I'm glad we got it."

With Memorial capturing the Longfellow Trophy with the win on the hardwood, the two schools split the two rivalry trophies as the Central football team won the Mangy Lion game in August.