Here’s a look at five things to monitor during the IHSA Class 3A state finals, which begin on Friday.
Star power
Whether it’s simply extra game-planning by the opponent in preparation for them or having the assurance you have one when the clock is ticking down and the game is tight, stars matter in March.
There is definite star attraction in Class 3A with two of the top three prospects in the senior class on display: Lathan Sommerville of Peoria Richwoods and Angelo Ciaravino of Mount Carmel.
The two stars will be headed to the Big Ten next year — Sommerville to Rutgers and Ciaravino to Northwestern.
Sommerville, the son of former Peoria and Bradley star Marcellus Sommerville, began his high school career at Peoria Notre Dame as a freshman. He left the state for a two-year stint at a Georgia prep school before returning for his senior year at Richwoods.
The 6-10, 240-pound Sommerville is a dominating presence. A multi-faceted big man, Sommerville has soft hands, touch and range that extends to the three-point line. He’s averaging 24.6 points and 12.3 rebounds while knocking down 36 three-pointers.
The four-star prospect is part of a Rutgers recruiting class that is among the best in the nation.
Ciaravino has been so instrumental in Mount Carmel’s recent run of success. Ciaravino and the Caravan have won 86 games the past three years.
Individually, he followed up a breakout offseason, where he gathered high-major college interest and offers before committing to Northwestern, with a terrific senior campaign. The Catholic League Player of the Year is averaging 20 points and is a legit go-to player with his versatility and athleticism.
Prime opportunity for the Catholic League
The table is set, Catholic League.
The IHSA State finals are accustomed to multiple Public League programs reaching the sport’s biggest stage. There isn’t a Public League team in the 3A or 4A field this year.
With two Class 3A state semifinalists, DePaul Prep and Mount Carmel, it’s now the Catholic League’s turn to make a significant statement.
There hasn’t been a ton of debate as to what conference has been the toughest in the state. The Catholic League Blue, where Mount Carmel and DePaul Prep reside with sectional finalists Brother Rice and De La Salle, is the one.
If Mount Carmel and DePaul Prep were to win their respective state semifinal games, there would surely be a bright spotlight on a league that has made massive strides over the past five years. The talent level has risen with more Division I prospects while teams have been knocking on the door of becoming elite programs.
Mount Carmel and DePaul Prep wins would also assure that the league would have a state champ in one of the two largest classes for just the second time in nearly four decades.
DePaul Prep won a Class 2A title last year. Hales Franciscan, Leo and Seton Academy have all won small class state championships over the years. But since Mount Carmel won a Class AA title in 1985, St. Joseph, which is now closed and had a very short stint in the Catholic League, is the only team from the league to capture a state title in one of the two largest classes, winning a 2015 state championship.
DePaul Prep and Mount Carmel met late in the season with the Rams coming away with a 41-38 win.
Is DePaul Prep’s defense historically great?
If the current run continues all the way through the state championship game — and the Rams win it? — we can start talking all-time great defense. That’s how good, dominating and effective this DePaul man-to-man defense is in this 2023-24 season.
There are no gimmicks to this defense. It’s not frenetic, pressing or trapping. Coach Tom Kleinschmidt’s team doesn’t do anything really exotic. But the disciplined approach, along with the athleticism, physicality, size and the ability to switch comfortably at all five positions, makes it a unique defense.
The Rams’ careful execution on offense complements the tough-as-nails defense. They repeatedly get stops, frustrating opponents into poor shots. DePaul’s opponents are shooting just 39 percent from the field and a miserable 25 percent from beyond the three-point line.
They’re drubbing opponents with defense and simply scoring against DePaul is hard to come by.
Thus far in the postseason no team has scored more than 32 points in a game. In five wins to get to Champaign, DePaul is allowing a paltry 23 points a game. The top seven teams on its schedule — ranked teams in Benet, Loyola, Mount Carmel, De La Salle, Bloom, Niles North and Homewood-Flossmoor —together averaged just 44 points a game against the Rams.
A couple more defensive masterpieces and DePaul will be looked at as one of the best defensive teams in some time.
Can the unknown team win it all?
DePaul has three state trophies and a Class 2A state title in the last few years and is coached by a big, recognizable basketball name, Tom Kleinschmidt.
Mount Carmel won a state title way back in 1985. They’ve produced stars like Donovan McNabb, Antoine Walker and Tracy Abrams, and has the Northwestern-bound star, Angelo Ciaravino.
Peoria Richwoods has plenty of history and tradition to go with a 6-10 big man, Lathan Sommerville, who is ranked among the top 100 prospects in the country by some.
Then there is Mt. Zion, the unfamiliar team and the town many aren’t even sure where it’s located (FYI - It’s 10 miles southeast of Decatur).
Mt. Zion broke the school record for wins last year but lost in the regional final. Now they’ve surpassed that mark and then some, winning the program’s third sectional title — and first in 20 years — and making its first IHSA State Finals appearance.
Even better, it appears the Braves are embarking on what looks to be a two-year window of winning big. Mt. Zion starts just one senior and will return its four leading scorers next year.
There is a definite Metamora feel to this Mt. Zion team and run.
When Metamora reached the state championship game in 2022, where it lost in heartbreaking fashion to Springfield Sacred Heart-Griffin, the Redbirds had never even won a sectional championship before in program history. The no-named program made a big splash and then followed it up with a state title run in 2023.
Can Peoria Richwoods finally get over the hump?
Peoria basketball is full of proud, tradition-rich basketball programs. The legendary names of Peoria star players and coaches is a lengthy list, and the impact this city had had on Illinois high school basketball is immense.
Richwoods has clearly been a part of it all. But what this program doesn’t have that rivals Peoria Manual and Peoria High do is a state championship trophy.
Manual has played in nine state championships and won five state titles, including the famed four-peat from the 1990s.
Peoria High has also reached nine state championship games and has five state championships, including the Shaun Livingston-led back-to-back titles in 2003 and 2004. The most recent title came in 2012.
Those are some legendary Peoria success stories.
It’s not as if Richwoods hasn’t been a major player in the IHSA state tournament. The program has five state trophies, including three state runner-up finishes in 1992, 2006 and 2010.
Richwoods has been so close.
The Knights led Hillcrest 42-39 heading into the fourth quarter of the 2010 title game before falling 58-55.
In 2006 it was a gut-wrenching 31-29 overtime loss to Simeon and Derrick Rose, who ended the it with a game-winning layup with just one second to play.
Is this the year? In getting to Champaign, Richwoods has arguably taken down the two “teams to beat” in Class 3A, beating both Metamora in the sectional and Thornton in the supersectional. Now they’re two wins away.
