

By Justin Sokeland
WBIW.com
BEDFORD – Coaches are the kings of cliches. They even have their own jargon, called “coach speak” with a hint of sarcasm, when they talk a lot without saying anything substantial. The higher the level, the more they engage in this empty rhetoric.
Jeffersonville coach Sherron Wilkerson was guilty of cliche use when discussing his racy Red Devils. He wants them to “put their best foot forward.” But in this case, he’s exactly right, so he gets a pass. The best foot is the surgically repaired right foot of star senior forward Tre Singleton, whose return after a lengthy absence makes Jeffersonville a legitimate threat for another deep postseason run.
Singleton, a Northwestern recruit and probable future Indiana All-Star, went down during off-season workouts in September. The surgery included the insertion of a plate and four screws to repair the damage. Now he’s back, and the full-strength Devils are hitting their stride as they prepare for a road trip to BNL Fieldhouse.
Forget about Jeffersonville’s 10-5 record, the result of a brutal schedule (ranked sixth toughest in the state) and Singleton’s recovery. With Singleton, and with two other Division I recruits in the starting lineup, the Devils are far better than that. Remember the Thor scene in Infinity War, when he heroically restarted the weapon forge? “You understand boy, you’re about to take the full force of a star.”
Bedford North Lawrence (8-5) could use a stormbreaker when they battle the Red Devils on Friday night.
Singleton, who made his belated debut in the Hall of Fame Classic, has been back for five games, averaging 13.8 points and 5.8 rebounds while getting up to speed. When added to the lineup with equal stars Michael Cooper (19.7 points) and P.J. Douglas (14.9), both of them are Wright State recruits, that’s a lot of weapons to defend. Singleton’s time on the sideline forced others to raise their games.

“He’s a leader, a vocal leader, a guy that leads by example,” Wilkerson said. “He’s our hardest worker and he covers so many of our program qualities. It’s so easy when you have a guy like that to lead your players.
“Physically, I think he’s 100 percent. The hard thing for most athletes, coming back from an injury like that, is the mental piece, learning to trust it again. When you go through a traumatic injury, there will be a few things that are sore when you come back, where you start to play at a high level. In the back of his mind, he’s wondering ‘Is it healed?’ He has to learn to trust it. There are still some hurdles there.”
Where does BNL start with its defensive strategy? Good question.
“You have to make sure you challenge everything they do, to the best of your ability,” BNL coach Kurt Godlevske said. “They look the part of Div. I recruits, and they’re skilled. Cooper is a phenomenal guard. Singleton, from watching him as a sophomore to a senior, has developed as much as any player in the state. He will be a terrific player in the Big Ten.”
Jeffersonville is already 3-0 in the Hoosier Hills Conference, thanks to a last-second Singleton shot for a 55-53 win at Columbus East last week. The Devils have been battle-tested by nine opponents that already have double-digit win totals.
“It was definitely done with intent,” Wilkerson said. “In the state of Indiana, if you’re going to make a deep run in the tournament, you have to prepare yourself during the season. The main part of the season we have called ‘the sprint.’ The tournament is ‘the marathon.’ We’re getting ourselves ready for the marathon. We feel like we will put our best foot forward the last seven games of the season.

“These guys have shouldered the brunt of the responsibility, especially after losing one of our main glue guys. It was a tough adjustment. We handled it well in spurts, but we needed to make some adjustments to get over the hurdle.”
BNL (1-2 in the league race) is coming off a quality win over Edgewood, posting its fifth victory in the last six outings. Jeffersonville is a different level.
“Going back and watching the Edgewood game, I thought we did a lot of really good things,” Godlevske said. “Once we got going, and saw the ball go in the hole, things flowed much easier. We defended well.
“It will be interesting, because no one has put a great amount of full-court pressure on us yet. I will be curious how we handle that. They’re quick, athletic kids. We have to limit them to one shot and make sure we take care of the basketball. It’s important for us to play well, so that we have a positive outlook going into sectional play. The kids know, we know it, but it won’t be easy because of the talent and size they have.”
BNL will counter with senior Patric Matson (21.3 points and shooting 50 percent from long range), senior Quincy Pickett (10.0) and senior post Logan Miracle (9.9). When the Stars get hot, they can compete with anyone.
“It’s the prototypical Indiana basketball team,” Wilkerson said. “They shoot it very well, they’re very organized, they’re highly disciplined. They understand how to play basketball. I will always be afraid of programs that understand how to play the game.”
The Stars did not handle Jeffersonville’s athletic superiority last season. Cooper had 26 points (hitting 12 of 15 shots), Singleton totaled 22 points and 8 rebounds, and Douglas added 15 points as the Devils rumbled to a 78-56 win. Matson had 16 points for BNL, which was guilty of 18 turnovers.
The history of this series is full of memorable moments, upsets and thrills. The Devils lead the series 34-29 after winning five of the last six games. They are also defending their share of the HHC title, although New Albany (2-0 in the league) is still part of that equation.

JEFFERSONVILLE at BNL
When: Friday, 7:30 p.m.
Records: Jeffersonville 10-5 (ranked No.13 in Class 4A), 3-0 in HHC; BNL 8-5, 1-2 in HHC
Sagarin ratings: Jeffersonville 90.41; BNL 76.12
Series: Jeffersonville leads 34-29
Last meeting: Last year at Jeffersonville, the Red Devils rolled to a 78-56 victory. Michael Cooper had 26 points while Tre Singleton added 22 for Jeffersonville. Patric Matson scored 16 points for BNL.
Previous game story: Fire of the Devils too hot for Stars
Game notes: Jeffersonville advanced to last year’s semistate final before falling to Ben Davis. The Devils have won five of the last six meetings with BNL.
Starting lineups
Bedford NL Stars
F – Dax Short 6-1 Jr.
F – Isaiah Sasser 6-0 Sr.
C – Logan Miracle 6-5 Sr.
G – Patric Matson 6-5 Sr.
G – Quincy Pickett 6-3 Sr.
Jeffersonville Red Devils
F – P.J. Douglas 6-4 Sr.
F – Tre Singleton 6-8 Sr.
G – Michael Cooper 6-3 Sr.
G – Terrence Nord 6-1 Jr.
G – Elijah Cheeks 6-0 Jr.