I’m not sure I remember having such nice weather during the holiday tournaments. The clear skies and lack of traffic has made it a pleasure to jump all around the area.
I started Tuesday up in DeKalb and felt rewarded for the drive as soon as I walked into the gym. DeKalb’s gym is relatively new, built in 2010, and it is spectacular. It’s definitely the best newish gym in the area. There are bleachers on all four sides and they are right up against the court.
It holds about 3,000 fans and has two impressive scoreboards. Unfortunately I didn’t have a photographer with me, so all I have are some lousy photos from my old phone.
DeKalb wasn’t technically in the Sun-Times’ coverage area until it joined the DuPage Valley conference a few years ago, so I have never seen a regular season game there. I’ll definitely be a making a return trip to see a game later this season.
DeKalb’s tournament, the Chuck Dayton Classic, dates back to 1928. I caught the first game, Plainfield East against Naperville Central.
It was a good one, both teams are above average. Naperville Central’s Simon Krugilakovas is fun to watch, he has some Boat Show in his game. The senior scored 23 points. He had a 40-point game earlier this season against Glenbard East. The Redhawks have some good size with 6-5 junior Jack First, who had 11 points and six rebounds.
Plainfield East has two intriguing players. Andrew Soenksen, a 6-8 senior, finished with 11 points, seven rebounds and four blocks. Junior guard Ehi Ogbomo is a playmaker. He scored 14.
My next stop was at Wheeling’s Hardwood Classic for Deerfield vs. Prosser. It’s a rebuilding year for Moon Robinson and the Falcons. They were able to hang with Deerfield for about a half.
The Warriors are loaded with capable seniors that can score and handle the ball. Miles Cohan scored 19 and Jacob Cohn added 12. Deerfield has a pair of promising sophomores that start, 6-8 Drew Rodgers and guard Quinn Schimanski, who coach Dan McKendrick raved about before the game.
Hinsdale Central quarterfinals
Oswego East 56, Stevenson 39: Bryce Shoto, the Wolves’ pass-first point guard, stepped up and scored 17 points for the tournament favorites. Jehvion Starwood added 14 and Mekhi Lowery had eight points and 11 boards. Jack Dabbs led the Patriots with nine points.
DePaul Prep 64, Morgan Park 42: Maurice Thomas scored 16 and Robet Walls had 15 for the Rams.
Marian Catholic 54, Rockford Auburn 49: Quentin Jones (20 points, eight rebounds) and Donovan Juzang (17 points) stepped up to help the Spartans win a close one. Auburn was 8 for 19 from three-point range. That’s not easy to overcome.
Hinsdale Central 69, Homewood-Flossmoor 59: I caught the tail end of the Red Devils’ win last night so this score isn’t a surprise. Ben Oosterbaan had a massive night with 26 points, five assists and eight rebounds. Patrick Graham added 15 points. Hinsdale Central had assists on 16 of 24 buckets.
Proviso West quarterfinals
St. Rita 82, Lincoln Park 68: Morez Johnson is just a monster. The Illinois recruit had 27 points, 12 rebounds and four steals. He was 7 for 16 from the field. Nojus Indrusaitis added 14 points and James Brown scored 12. Myan Whitfield led the Lions with 17 points. Lincoln Park clearly played hard, they were only outrebounded 35-29 by a much larger squad.
Young 61, Hammond Central, Ind. 56: Big games from Dalen Davis (20 points) and Daniel Johnson (19 points, eight rebounds) saved the Dolphins. This was the first loss of the season for Hammond Central. Sophomore Antonio Munoz added 13 points and 13 rebounds, he’s becoming more of a regular threat for Young as the season progresses, he was was very active when I saw them yesterday.
Proviso East 74, TF North 60: The Meteors’ undefeated run is over. Jevon Warren lived up to the hype with a big 27-point performance but it wasn’t enough to overcome the Pirates. Jaloni Johnson led Proviso East with 17 points and Bryce Coleman scored 15.
Fenwick vs. Kenwood. late: The Broncos led this one 60-32 heading into the fourth quarter. I have an early start tomorrow at Pontiac, so this will be updated in the morning.
Rich (Big Dipper) first round
Perspectives-LA 75, TF South 62: Remember, Perspectives-Leadership opened the season in the Super 25. The Warriors picked up some losses before all of their transfers were eligible, but the team is at full strength now and should be able to make a deep run at the Dipper. Jakeem Cole had 19 points in the is win and Gianni Cobb scored 15.
Parker 78, Thornton 68: Definitely the upset of the holidays (so far). The Wildcats go down in the first round. Caleb David scored 25 for the Colonels and Payton Pitts did it all with 24 points, seven assists and six rebounds.
Hyde Park 93, Bremen 44: The Thunderbirds cruise. Jurrell Baldwin had 18 points, seven rebounds and four assists.
Thornwood 78, Tinley Park 45: Arden Eaves led Thornwood with 15 points and six rebounds.
De La Salle 68, Thornridge 64: So the Dipper was kinda interesting today. Thornton loses, Hillcrest barely beats de Sales and Thornridge gives De La Salle all it can handle. The Big Dipper may have had the most competitive slate of first round games in the state? Bryant Hedrick led the Meteors with 16 points and Wade Sims had 31 for Thornridge.
Rich 71, Bishop Noll, Ind. 39: A big win for the hosts. Samar Bures scored 19 and Victor Brown added 10 points and six rebounds.
Ag. Science 57, Longwood 37: A nice first round win for a program I always enjoy watching. James White drained six three-pointers and led the Cyclones with 24 points.
Hillcrest 57, St. Francis de Sales 52: Well this was unexpected. I was hoping to be at this game but couldn’t make it in time. I might have just shown up at halftime if I knew it was close. Bryce Tillery had 22 points for the Hawks. St. Francis de Sales was 2-8 heading into this game.
York (Jack Tosh) second round
St. Ignatius 49, Naperville North 40: Luke Williams has been the breakout star of the season. The junior guard was spectacular for the Huskies, draining 7 of 11 three-pointers and finishing with 25 points. St. Ignatius won behind a balanced scoring attack. Richard Barron scored 15, Phoenix Gill had 13 and Reggie Ray added nine. Justing Scott contributed nine points and 10 rebounds.
Riverside-Brookfield 54, Lake Forest 49: Asa Thomas returned from injury and scored 16 but it wasn’t enough for the Scouts. Big man Stefan Cicic had a second consecutive big game with 13 points, 11 rebounds and six assists for the Bulldogs.
Palatine 69, Yorkville 55: I saw Palatine a couple of times last year, they were an intriguing young team. But I’m annoyed I haven’t had a chance to see them this season. Connor May had another huge game with 30. Tyler Swierczek added 21.
Lyons 69, Timothy Christian 35: The Lions owned the second quarter with a 23-2 run, they had a 41-14 rebounding advantage. Connor Carroll scored 13 and Nik Polonowski had 10.
Glenbrook South 44, Waubonsie Valley 38: I’ve now seen the Warriors fall just a couple shots short of beating Bolingbrook and Glenbrook South. It’s a long season and Waubonsie Valley is going to be a problem by playoff time. Jackson Langendorf scored 11 for the Warriors. Nick Taylor has been a breakout junior so far this season. He led Glenbrook South with 19 points and seven rebounds.
Rolling Meadows 58, St. Patrick 39: There’s a special joy in watching a beautiful jump shot. Rolling Meadows senior Cam Christie has owned one of those pretty jumpers since he was a freshman, and over the past few years, he’s grown to 6-6. With that size and his athletic ability, his release point is sky-high. It’s difficult to remember a local player that was so tall, had such elevation on his jumper and was also the best shooter in the state.
“I’ve had to [get the elevation] over time,” Christie said. “When I was younger I wasn’t the tallest and I was playing with [Max Christie and Bryce Hopkins] and I had to find some way to get a shot off.”
Lemont 42, Conant 39: Still unbeaten. The Castillo twins combined for 32 points, seven assists and nine steals. Yusuf Cisse and Camden Lathos each scored nine for Conant.
Bolingbrook 69, York 59: The Raiders survive against the upstart hosts. York somehow outrebounded Bolingbrook but the Dukes still fell short. Mekhi Cooper delivered with 18 points and Aries Hull added 14. AJ Levine led York with 18.
