Indiana girls basketball Fab 15: Center Grove new No. 1; Roncalli jumps

We're officially at the midway point of the Indiana high school girls basketball regular season. Let's rank the area's top teams.

Please note, these rankings were compiled prior to Monday's Marion County championship game.

1. Center Grove (9-0)

LW: 3

It's too bad we didn't get to see the Trojans travel to Bloomington South on Thursday, but they handled their business against Plainfield, limiting the Quakers to 44 points on 31% shooting. Gracyn Gilliard poured in 24 points and Lillia Tapak and MacKenzie Pierce both added 11. Next big tests come at Carol Tumey on Dec. 30 with Brownsburg followed by either North Knox or Silver Creek.

2. Lawrence Central (9-1)

Last week: 1

The Bears drop one spot to No. 2 after going down to the wire with Ben Davis in the Marion County quarterfinals before falling to Roncalli on Saturday. It's worth noting they were without Aniyah McKenzie against the Royals, but they're still a team that's finding its way — though, the potential is obvious based on the resume thus far: Notable wins over Hamilton Southeastern, Pendleton Heights, Ryle (Ky.) and Cooper (Ky.). Big bounce back opportunities this week with games at Brownsburg and at Pike.

3. Hamilton Southeastern (9-2)

LW: 2

The Royals scored fewer points for a second consecutive game Tuesday at Pendleton Heights and suffered their second loss of the season, dropping a 49-44 decision to the Arabians. They bounced back Friday with a rout of conference foe Avon. A critical two-game swing upcoming with Fishers in the Mudsock game Friday, followed by Homestead on Saturday. They return from Christmas break with Valparaiso at North Central (KK Holman vs. Lilli Barnes will be exceptional entertainment).

4. Pike (8-1)

LW: 4

I was expecting to see Pike vs. Lawrence Central round one of potentially three on Monday, but instead it'll be Pike vs. Roncalli — which honestly provides just as much intrigue. The teams split their two most recent meetings (both in 2023-24) and the Royals arrive with a full-head of momentum. Pike's boasted a very balanced scoring attack thus far with three players averaging at least nine points four more at 5-8 ppg.

5. Pendleton Heights (8-2)

LW: 5

The Arabians are 4-0 since being boat-raced by Brownsburg (I did it for the alliteration), boasting big wins over HSE and Delta. They shot 43% vs. HSE and 41% vs. Delta. Aubree Warfel led the way with 14 points vs. HSE, Adah Hupfer led the way with 27 points vs. Delta, with Warfel tacking on 14 points and Grace Lee dishing out six assists.

Senior standout Olivia Jones did not play vs. Delta.

6. Roncalli (10-2)

LW: 10

I wrote about the Royals in my midseason What We Learned and went in-depth on them with Brennah Cerny and Elliot Leffler on The Scorers Table. Suffice it to say: This is a very good basketball team. 

7. Westfield

LW: 8

The Rocks overcame an uncharacteristically wobbly night offensively to hold off Carmel on Tuesday. I was really impressed with the play of senior MaKayla Hatcher, who delivered a number of critical shots and provided invaluable leadership on the floor, taking charge and slowing her teammates down against Carmel's multiple-look defense. Freshman Gabby Bassett also stood out for the Rocks, who followed the Carmel win with a five-point triumph over Zionsville on Friday.

8. Plainfield (8-3)

LW: 7

The Quakers are 1-2 in their biggest tests of the season to date, beating Brownsburg and losing to Homestead (not very close) and Center Grove (Quakers rallied to make that one competitive). They have one more tune-up ahead of the Hall of Fame Classic: A Dec. 19 trip to conference foe Martinsville.

I'm very interested to see how they handle Norwell's vaunted 1-3-1 defense in the HOF opener and how they match up against the sheer firepower both Evansville Central (i.e. Maddy Shirley) and Warsaw (i.e. Joslyn Bricker, Brooke Zartman, Alexis Neely, etc.) in the nightcap.

9. Franklin Central (6-4)

LW: 6

The Flashes have been slipping a bit since late November with Wednesday's loss to Roncalli marking their third in five games. They did lose point guard Riley Houtari in the season opener and that sort of personnel change takes time to address, but I think we'll start to see FC turn a corner over the next couple weeks with games against Franklin and Zionsville before the Interra Classic at Northridge, which includes a Dec. 20 pool game vs. Homestead.

10. Brownsburg (5-3)

LW: 9

The Bulldogs got off the schnide with a 75-26 win over Columbus North. Goodness gracious. Read about them at the midway point of the season in my Monday Insider.

11. Lapel (10-0)

LW: 11

I am very excited to see what could be the final chapter of Laniah Wills vs. Kenzie Koch when the Bulldogs host Eastern Hancock on Tuesday.  

12. Eastern Hancock (7-1)

LW: 13

I am very excited to see what could be the final chapter of Wills vs. Koch when the Royals travel to Lapel on Tuesday.

EH's game vs. Cathedral was snowed out Saturday, so I got nothing else. Let's move on. 

13. Carmel (6-4)

LW: 12

The Hounds had an especially poor shooting night at Westfield on Tuesday, but their defense — which no one's really been able to figure out yet — kept them in the game and gave them a shot to force overtime on the game's final possession. They also hung with a full-strength Fort Wayne Snider outfit on Saturday. I really like the direction first-year coach Jess Darmelio has them headed in.

14. Cathedral (6-4)

LW: 14

Keep an eye on the Irish who've won three straight, stringing together wins over Jeffersonville, Zionsville and Guerin Catholic. They scored at least 50 points and shot 46% or better in all three games, all well-above their season averages. They're at Heritage Christian on Saturday.

15. Lawrence North (5-5)

LW: 15

The Cats rolled through Perry Meridian, then lost to a very good Pike team in the Marion County tournament. Tuesday's game at Noblesville sets up as a nice measuring stick contest for both sides.

Follow Brian Haenchen on Twitter at @Brian_Haenchen. Get IndyStar's high school coverage sent directly to your inbox with the High School Sports newsletter.

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: IHSAA girls basketball: Ranking area's best teams ahead of Christmas