The 2022-23 ABA Midwest Region Quarterfinal game took place on Saturday, March 11, 2023 at 1 p.m. CST (2 p.m. Indiana time) at St. Vincent Community Center in St. Louis, Missouri. The Music City Jazz traveled to take on the Missouri Capitals.
The Jazz prevailed and now advance to the ABA Midwest Region Final Four to play against the Indiana Lyons on March 18 at 7 p.m. EST (6 p.m. Nashville time).
The Indiana Lyons will be hosting the American Basketball Association’s Midwest Region Final Four tournament in Bosstick Gym, Danville, Indiana, on March 18-19, 2023. The four best teams in the ABA Midwest Region will battle it out in a single-elimination tourney to earn the title of 2022-23 ABA Midwest Region Champions and to advance to the ABA Final Eight tournament in St. Louis in April.
For much more information, including how to purchase ABA Midwest Final Four gear that serves as tickets, click here.
With the ABA regular season in the books, here is the schedule for postseason play in the ABA Midwest Region:
St. Louis Spirits 133, Missouri Capitals 123
Indiana Lyons 121, Ohio Bruins 101
Heading into the final weekend of the American Basketball Association (ABA) regular season, the Indiana Lyons hosted the Ohio Bruins on Saturday in Danville’s Bosstick Gym. The home team walked off the hardwood with a 121-101 win and the #1 seed in the ABA Midwest Region postseason tournament.
The Lyons (15-6) boasted their highest ABA ranking of the season at No. 15 when the Bruins (9-8) rolled into town from Columbus, Ohio for the third tilt of the year between the two teams. Indiana won both of the previous matchups, one in Columbus and one in Danville.
Both offenses were sluggish in the first quarter, with each squad missing shots and turning the ball over. After the first 4:30 of the game, the Bruins held a 7-2 advantage. Eric Messer scored on a short jump shot right after the first timeout of the contest and immediately followed that up with a steal and a fast-break layup. His efforts seemed to ignite the Lyons’ offense, and they fought their way back to a 23-22 lead at the end of the first frame.
Indiana earned itself a little breathing room over Ohio in the second quarter as Jordan Hidleburg began sending three-pointer after three-pointer raining down on the Bruins. Hidleburg finished the day going an astounding 8-for-11 from long range. He played in all 22 regular season games this season, making him the only Lyons player to do so.
Coming out of the locker room from a 47-40 halftime lead, the Lyons blew the lid off the contest with a monster third quarter that saw them outscore the visitors 44-27. Hidleburg continued his aerial assault from beyond the arc, while both Messer and Gerald “Cam” Campbell also threw it into high gear.
The Lyons led by as many as 30 points in the second half and cruised to a 20-point victory. Every member of the Lyons scored in the contest, and Indiana notched its 15th win in its last 17 games to finish the regular season with a 16-6 record.
Campbell led the Lyons in scoring with 38 points. He also collected 14 rebounds and 6 assists on his way to a double-double. Hidleburg rang up 31 points to go with his 6 assists and 2 steals. Messer finished with 15 points, 7 rebounds, and 2 steals.
Alex “A.B.” Brown tallied 12 rebounds and 11 points for his 10th double-double in 20 games played. He notched an additional double-double in an exhibition game on Feb. 26. Tee Williams unleashed a multi-pronged attack, racking up 11 points, 8 rebounds, 6 assists, and 3 steals.
Video of the game can be found below.
The Lyons will be the #1 seed in the ABA Midwest Region postseason tournament, earning a bye in the first round. They automatically advance to the ABA Midwest Region Final Four, which will be held at Bosstick Gym over the weekend of March 18-19.
The team is hosting a special event for the public on Saturday at Bosstick Gym during their bye week. More details can be found on the Lyons’ website and social media.
The Indiana Lyons will be hosting the American Basketball Association’s Midwest Region Final Four tournament in Bosstick Gym, Danville, Indiana, on March 18-19, 2023. The four best teams in the ABA Midwest Region will battle it out in a single-elimination tourney to earn the title of 2022-23 ABA Midwest Region Champions and to advance to the ABA Final Eight tournament in St. Louis in April.
Tickets for the ABA Midwest Region Final Four are $25 per person per game for a total of $75 for each person to watch all three games of the tournament.
However, the Lyons are offering a great deal, instead!
Fans can pre-order an ABA Midwest Region Final Four t-shirt for $20, wear it to all three games, and get FREE admission! Your t-shirt serves as your game ticket!
Fans can also pre-order ABA Midwest Region Final Four rally towels for $10, and kids under the age of 12 who bring a rally towel to all three games get in in for FREE! The rally towel serves as their game ticket!
Why would anyone purchase game tickets?!
Click here to pre-order by Wednesday, March 15, 2023. Payment is accepted through CashApp ($indianalyons). Your pre-ordered and pre-paid gear will be waiting for you at Will Call on March 18.
A limited number of shirts and rally towels will be available for purchase at the door for a higher price during the tournament, but we cannot guarantee availability and shirt sizes. It’s best to pre-order!
So order your ABA Midwest Region Final Four gear, and we’ll see you in Danville!
Clarksville Phoenix 2, Huntsville Rockets 0 (forfeit)
Indiana Lyons 136, Southland Saints 75
Music City Jazz ?, Columbus Skyhawks ?
Indiana Lyons 2, Steel City Yellow Jackets 0 (forfeit)
Alabama Smoke 113, Clarksville Phoenix 112
Music City Jazz ?, Georgia Gwizzlies ?
St. Louis Spirits and Missouri Capitals were both idle
Indiana Lyons at home vs. Ohio Bruins, Sat., March 4
Music City Jazz at home vs. Columbus Skyhawks, Sat., March 4
Clarksville Phoenix at home vs. Alabama Smoke, Sun., March 5
St. Louis Spirits and Missouri Capitals don’t appear to have any games scheduled
The Indiana Lyons were scheduled for a doubleheader at Bosstick Gym in Danville on Saturday and Sunday in American Basketball Association (ABA) action but ended up officially playing only one of those games. The other contest was awarded to the Lyons by way of a forfeit.
The Lyons (13-6, ranked No. 17 in the ABA) hosted the Southland Saints (4-7) from Chicagoland on Saturday in the Lyons Den, and after Southland led for the first 6:45 of the game, the Lyons kicked things into gear, pulled away from the Saints throughout the game, and eventually won comfortably by a score of 136-75.
The Saints only had 8 players while the Lyons fielded 11, and Southland was clearly gassed in the second half, allowing the home team to win by a wide margin. The Saints, while quite talented and athletic, were unable to keep up with the constant rotation of Lyons players throughout the contest.
Tee Williams led the Lyons’ scoring attack with 21 points. Williams added 5 assists, 4 rebounds, and a steal to his stats line. Jordan Hidleburg tallied 20 points, 8 rebounds, 9 deflections, 4 assists, and 4 steals. Gerald “Cam” Campbell contributed 19 points, 6 rebounds, and 2 steals to the cause.
Lleon Tillman and Danville Community High School graduate Jackson Stone each appeared in their third game of the season for the Lyons, thus making both eligible to compete in the postseason per ABA rules.
The Lyons were scheduled to face the defending ABA champions, the Steel City Yellow Jackets, in the Lyons Den on Sunday, but the No. 5-ranked Yellow Jackets notified the Lyons on Saturday afternoon that two of their players tested positive for COVID and a third player was ill. Due to the late cancellation, the league office awarded the Lyons a victory over Steel City by forfeit.
At the last minute on Saturday evening, the Gary Sun-Rays from Gary, Indiana, agreed to travel to the Lyons Den on Sunday for an exhibition game to entertain fans. The Sun-Rays, like the Southland Saints, compete in the ABA’s North Central Region.
The undermanned Sun-Rays could not withstand the Lyons’ player rotation, stifling defense, and torrid shooting, and the home team won the exhibition contest handily.
Videos of both games can be found on the Indiana Lyons’ YouTube channel.
The Lyons swept the season series against the Saints, who are an expansion team in the ABA this year. The Lyons beat the Saints in Chicago in November.
With the win on the floor and the win by virtue of a forfeit, the Lyons (15-6) continue to hold sole possession of first place in the Midwest Region with one game left to play in the regular season.
The last regular season game of the 2022-23 campaign for the Lyons takes place on Saturday in Bosstick Gym against the Ohio Bruins during Fan Appreciation Night. Tipoff is scheduled for 5 p.m. with doors opening at 4 p.m.
The Bruins and Lyons have a long history of playing closely-contested games against each other, including two narrow wins – one in overtime – by the Lyons this season.
Here is the schedule and bracket for the ABA Midwest Region postseason tournament, including the Final Four to be held in Danville, Indiana at Bosstick Gym over the weekend of March 18-19, 2023. The winner of the ABA Midwest Region Championship advances to the ABA Final Eight tournament in St. Louis in April! For more information about the Final Four, click here.
Columbus Skyhawks 109, Music City Jazz 108 (OT)
Clarksville Phoenix 165, Missouri Capitals 117
Naptown Pros 122, St. Louis Spirits 111
Georgia Gwizzlies 136, Music City Jazz 115
Indiana Lyons 119, St. Louis Spirits 80
