New Haven's Central Lutheran School boys fell to No. 1 seed Garden Homes of Milwaukee in the championship game of the National Lutheran Basketball Association of America (LBAA) Tournament at Valparaiso University on March 22-24. Central, the 2013 Indiana state champ, had consistently held opponents under 30 points this season, while Garden Homes was scoring an average of 53 points in the tournament. Central held Garden Homes to just 39 points, but Garden Homes emerged as the champion with a 39-35 victory.Sixty-four middle-school-age boys and girls teams from around the country played in the tourney. Two other teams representing The Lutheran Schools in northeast Indiana fared well in the 32-team boys bracket. St. Paul's took fourth place, Holy Cross, fifth. The girls squad from Holy Cross finished 2-2.This was the second time the Central boys played in the tournament. The last time was in 1999 when they won the national championship. This year Central defeated St. Paul’s of Boca Raton, Florida, in the first round; St. Paul’s of Kingsville, Maryland, in the second round; and Salem Lutheran of Tomball, Texas, in the quarterfinals. The semifinal was a matchup between Central and Fort Wayne rival St. Paul’s. The game went to overtime, and Central was victorious, 40-34. All-LBAA Tournament Team selections from The Lutheran Schools included Keion Brooks Jr. (St. Paul's), Bryce Fox (Central Lutheran), and Peter Morrison (Holy Cross). Fox was also named the tournament's most valuable player.
