Defending champ Hawks ready for challenge

Updated: March 22, 2011 4:50PM

Richards boys basketball coach John Chappetto knows what it's like to be "hunted."

"After we won the (Class 4A) title in 2008, we had a bull's eye on our back the whole next season," Chappetto said. "We had an all-stater back in Shaun Pratl, but we had lost a lot of other leaders from our championship team.

"Every team we played has us circled on their schedule. When we played Mount Carmel in a nonconference game on a Tuesday night, you would have thought it was a sectional title game. They were so excited to play us. Everybody was excited to play us."

Chappetto dug deep into his bag of coaching motivations to help lift the Bulldogs, ranked first in its Class 3A sectional tournament, into a regional title-game match-up vs. Crete-Monee.

"Crete-Monee was very athletic, motivated and hungry," Chappetto said.

When the 72-50 Crete-Monee blowout was history, a good Richards team was left sitting on the side of the road with an admirable 23-6 record.

"Crete-Monee was clearly the better team," Chappetto said. "We just didn't have all of the pieces we needed to get back to state."

In the 2010-11 basketball season, Hillcrest is the reigning state champion in Class 3A. For decades a basketball powerhouse, the Hawks, coached by Don Houston, finally broke through to the top, edging Peoria Richwoods 58-55 in a memorable finale that gave the Country Club Hills school its first basketball crown.

But, as Richards found out, defending the title is easier said than done. After starting its defense with five straight victories, 3A king Hillcrest met 4A champ Simeon, the latter arguably the best prep team in Illinois, in a Sunday showdown at Chicago State University. When it was over, Hillcrest was slapped in the face by a 57-29 count.

It was a reality check for the Hawks. Houston, however, isn't worried that the bull's eye resides on his team's back.

"It was a quiet bus ride home," Houston said of the Sunday journey from Chicago State. "You could see the kids hurt from the final outcome. They have a lot of pride."

Understanding that he and his players are in uncharted territory, Houston knows what has to be accomplished.

"No matter who we're playing, we have to be mentally and physically ready to play," Houston said. "Our practices have to be well-organized, and we must all stay focused on our next opponent. If we aren't ready for each team, no matter what their records are, we'll have problems. Every team will be ready to play us. It's up to us as coaches to prepare our players for everything.

"I remember when Richards was the defending champ. We couldn't wait to play them. Richards showed all of us in this area that winning a state title could happen. We wanted to do the same thing. They were our measuring stick."

Mission accomplished.

Houston has devised a plan to help keep his players motivated to grab another brass ring.

Houston has filled his team's schedule with plenty of challenges: There's a trip to Dallas for a Dec. 18 shootout event. During the Christmas break, Hillcrest makes its annual appearance in the prestigious Proviso West Tournament. In 2011, Hillcrest is slated to compete Jan. 22 in the Whitney Young Shootout, followed by an interesting match Feb. 5 vs. De La Salle.

And, there's a Jan. 11 home date against Richards.

"I'm a competitor. I love new challenges," Houston said. "This is another chance to teach life's lessons."

Hillcrest has a solid cast to make the word "repeat" possible.

Having returning SouthtownStar All-Area standout and team co-captain Julius Brown in the lineup is a big plus. Ditto for returning starter Kadeem Thornton and key subs LaBarron Hull, DeShawn Wash, Terez Haskins and Cassell James.

"It's pretty exciting at our school," said Houston, pointing to the fact the Lady Hawks, second in Class 3A last season, again rank with the state's best.

"The kids want to do whatever it takes to be successful."

© 2012 Sun-Times Media, LLC. All rights reserved. This material may not be copied or distributed without permission. For more information about reprints and permissions, visit www.suntimesreprints.com. To order a reprint of this article, click here.