Marcus LoVett makes Public League debut; Charlie Moore drops 49 as Morgan Park rolls

Marcus LoVett’s Public League career began with an inbounds pass, and he threw it from behind his back. A quick teaser of the style and swagger he’s about to show the city and state this season.

“That’s how I play, it expresses who I am and that’s not going to change,” LoVett said. “I know some coaches may not like it but that’s the way I’m always going to do it.”

It also became clear quickly that LoVett isn’t a selfish player. Morgan Park guard Charlie Moore was hot to start the game and LoVett made it his mission to feed his good friend and backcourt mate.

The No. 3 Mustangs cruised to a 110-30 win over visiting Urban Prep-Bronzeville on Wednesday. LoVett didn’t score in his debut, but finished with 10 assists and five rebounds. He was 0 for 7 from the field.

“[LoVett] and I were working on that chemistry all summer,” Moore said. “The team is going to need us to play together this season and it comes naturally to us.”

Moore scored 49 points and had 10 steals. He shot 9 for 18 from three-point range.

“[Moore and LoVett] love playing together,” Morgan Park coach Nick Irvin said. “It’s like music watching them. Fire and ice. Charlie is the fire and Marcus is smooth as ice.”

Assistant coaches from Illinois and St. John’s were in attendance to see LoVett, who moved to Chicago from California over the summer.

“I just tried to come out and play basketball and not get wrapped up in everything,” LoVett said. “It was obvious that Charlie was hot and so my job was to get him the ball.”

LoVett is the top unsigned senior in the state and widely regarded as one of the top guards in the country.

“It does sort of matter which coaches show up to watch,” LoVett said. “It definitely shows that they are interested in me.”

Jarrin Randle added 23 points for the Mustangs (1-0).

“We just needed to get the jitters out,” Irvin said. “[Urban Prep-Bronzeville coach Mike Powell] is a good friend of mine. He’s just getting started over there. He’s going to do a great job.”

The clock kept running for the bulk of the second half. Moore stayed in for the majority of the game.

“We just wanted to have fun and give the fans a show,” Moore said. “We don’t get a lot of home games so it’s fun to play in front of all of my friends.”

Jeremy Mitchell led the Lions (0-3) with 17 points and six rebounds.