Jasmine Lumpkin keeps Joliet Catholic unbeaten with win over Fenwick

Joliet Catholic’s Jasmine Lumpkin was honored Thursday night for one milestone, but she remains focused on a bigger prize.

The Michigan State-bound forward is trying to keep the No. 5 Angels’ undefeated season alive.

Lumpkin scored 18 of her game-high 25 points in the first half and finished with 13 rebounds on a night she was honored after the first quarter for scoring her 1,000th career point against No. 17 Bishop McNamara on Tuesday.

On Thursday, Joliet Catholic cruised to a 70-55 East Suburban Catholic Conference victory over visiting Fenwick, after the Friars made a comeback after trailing by 27 points in the third quarter but ran out of gas.

Lumpkin made 11-of-17 shots in the game and was dominant in the first half when she buried four of her final five shots before halftime.

The Angels (17-0, 6-0) led 42-23 at halftime and ended the second quarter with a 21-4 run. The Friars (8-13, 2-3) scored only one basket in the last 7 minutes, 8 seconds of the first half.

“I can tell you that we will be pretty happy when Lumpkin graduates,” Fenwick coach Dave Power said.

Joliet Catholic outrebounded Fenwick 30-13 in the first half and made 19 baskets compared to the Friars’ seven.

Sophomore Nicole Ekhomu added 13 points for the Angels and freshman Ty Battle had 10 points and nine rebounds.

“It’s unbelievable the way we have been playing,” Lumpkin said. “We can’t think that we’re undefeated. We have a target on our back and a lot of teams are going to come after us.”

Joliet Catholic catches few breaks in the next few days. JCA plays Nova (Fla.), which won the Junior Orange Bowl Classic in December, at 1:30 p.m. Saturday in the MLK Classic at Young. The Angels play No. 20 Batavia in the McDonald’s Shootout Monday at Willowbrook and play No. 3 Young on Jan. 25.

“We have a big week ahead of us. We have to keep our heads and keep together as a team,” Lumpkin said.

All-state guard Jade Owens played her second game since returning from a right ankle injury she suffered in the season opener. She finished with 10 points. Jenny Mackowiak scored a team-high 14 points and leading scorer Maya Garland had nine points on three 3-pointers, but fouled out early in the third quarter.

“We made the adjustment [in the second half],” Power said. “They have some really talented athletes that can jump out of the gym. They are quick and they don’t make mistakes.”