Bogan left adversity and the rest of the Class 3A St. Laurence boys basketball regional teams behind to claim its third regional title in five years Friday in Burbank.
The No. 1 seed Bengals (26-4) led from start to finish, claiming a 76-35 win over No. 8 Lindblom (12-14) and a spot in Tuesday’s Vocational sectional semifinal. Bogan will face No. 5 U-High at 7 p.m. Tuesday. U-High beat Chicago Vocational 55-53.
The win comes a week after the IHSA suspended and reinstated the No. 9 team in the Chicagaoland area for the state tournament for playing in too many games. Instead of suspending the team, Bogan coach Arthur Goodwin was suspended for the state tournament.
“It’s been a very wild week,” Bogan interim head coach Ken Horton said. “The kids have worked hard to get here. This team was built on continuity. We just replace parts and keep moving.”
Bogan all-city junior guard Luwane Pipkins scored a game-high 17 points to go along with five assists and three steals.
Deionte Harris came off the bench to score 10. Mike Charles led Lindblom with eight points.
“I just want to thank whoever let us back into the tournament,” Pipkins said. “We wanted to do this for our coach.”
A three-pointer by Pipkins gave Bogan an 8-2 lead three minutes into the game. Deionte Harris’ three-pointer to start the second quarter gave the Bengals a 21-8 lead.
James Jones’ three-point play midway through the second quarter gave the Bengals a 34-12 lead. The game was already out of reach by half time with the Bengals holding a 41-14.
“Coach told us to come out here and take it to them and we’ll win a regional,” Pipkins said. “We’re trying to stay humble, take it team by team and try to win the next game.”
Bogan featured seven different scorers, led by Pipkins’ 16 points.
“We didn’t protect the ball and the turnovers we had were easy baskets for them,” Lindblom coach Zack Linderman said. “We didn’t quit and that was big for our guys. That’s an outstanding team and I wish them the best of luck.”
Horton is already looking forward to the next matchup.
“We have to continue to impose our will on teams,” Horton said.
