Fresh off their most wins (18) in a regular season since 1971-72, the Seymour Owls boys basketball team heads into postseason action tonight. The team will host Jeffersonville at 6 p.m. inside of Lloyd E. Scott Gymnasium.

Owls head coach Kirk Manns spoke on the opening opponent in Jeffersonville.

“Jeffersonville is a really good team with size and speed,” he said. “They have the ability to score in different ways. Defensively they will do everything that they can to speed us up.”

The first time these two teams met back on Dec. 8th, Bret Perry sent the Red Devils home with a buzzer-beating three-pointer to take the 40-39 win.

Seymour has went 15-2 since this meeting and currently on a six-game win streak, dropping close matchups with New Albany and Scottsburg.

The Owls also took their first share of the Hoosier Hills Conference title in school history in boys basketball. They clinched the share of the title with their opponent in the Red Devils, whose only lose in the conference was to Seymour.

Jeffersonville went 14-5 since then, as they are currently riding a 4-game winning streak. The Red Devils are led by Michael Cooper, a 6’3 junior who averaged 16.3 points per game during the 2023-24 season. Their second leading scorer is P.J. Douglas at 14.5, followed by Tre Singleton at 13.8 ppg.

Seymour is led by Jaylan Johnson in scoring at 13.6 ppg, followed by Brady Harpe who currently sits at 12.3. Johnson scored 299 points during his junior season. Harpe followed with 270 for the Owls.

Defense has been argued by some as a ‘lost art’ in the world of basketball, especially in the professional ranks by a lot of spectators.That’s not the case in Seymour, as the Owls allow just 41 points a game, which is the 15th lowest in the entire state of Indiana.

This also ranks as the 4th best defensive average in Class 4A, only trailing Concord, Noblesville, and Westfield. Tough defense compared with total unselfishness of the basketball has led to serious success for the Owls this year.

Coach Manns spoke on his favorite thing about the 2023-24 Seymour team.

“This is an extremely unselfish team,” he said. “Every player has embraced their role. They enjoy being together and it has shown.”

The winner of this matchup will meet Floyd Central on Friday at 6 p.m. at Seymour High School. The Owls defeated the Highlanders 49-28 in their regular season matchup on Jan. 26th.

Seymour will face Jeffersonville in the opening round for the fourth time in the last six seasons, facing the Red Devils in 2019, 2020, and 2022, before their 2024 matchup tonight. The team will look to snap a six game postseason losing streak, dating back to 2018.

That was the year the Owls defeated Jennings County 54-53 in overtime, before losing their next sectional game to Floyd Central.

Sectional Tickets

The 2023-24 IHSAA Class 4A Sectional 15 at Seymour High School will be cashless.

All tickets must be purchased at the following links below. Seymour opens play with Jeffersonville on Feb. 27 at 6 p.m. If the Owls defeat the Red Devils, they will face Floyd Central on March 1 at the same time.

The championship game takes place on March 2 at 7:30 p.m.

Feb 27: t.co/C8U4rgQ08G

March 1: t.co/Nvg8Ganchc

March 2: t.co/KqW5HrHXgP