Boys Basketball: Warren tops Zion-Benton on special night

Updated: February 10, 2012 10:41PM

It was a night of celebration at Warren.

Led by the Division I-bound duo of Darius Paul and Nathan Boothe, six seniors took the floor to standing ovations on Senior Night, but the biggest cheers – and tears – were saved for the coaching staff.

Nearing the end of his 37th and final year on the Blue Devils basketball staff, including 19 as the head coach, Chuck Ramsey was honored with pictures, plaques and a post-game ceremony with fans, current players and dozens of former players back to celebrate the living legend.

And in case that wasn’t enough, No. 4 Warren (18-2, 9-1 North Suburban Lake) blitzed Zion-Benton early and often en route to a 72-58 victory that locked up at least a share of the conference title for the Blue Devils.

“This is just awesome,” Ramsey said. “I’m most appreciative of the treatment my family have received over the years. It was a beautiful ceremony and it’s a great place to coach.”

Zion-Benton star sophomore guard Malik Yarbrough committed two charging fouls in the first two minutes and sat for the rest of the period as the Zee-Bees (8-14, 2-10) shot 2-for-11 in the first quarter.

“Those charges were really big plays because he’s such a dynamic player,” Ramsey said. “(Yarbrough) can take over a game himself and we didn’t want that to happen. Getting guys to step in and take charges, those are big plays.”

Boothe (11 points, six rebounds) scored seven quick points, including a three at the buzzer to give Warren a 14-4 lead after one. Two quick buckets extended the lead to 14 early in the second before Yarbrough came back and ripped off seven straight points to keep Zion-Benton within striking distance at the half.

In the third quarter, Mitch Munda poured in eight of his 18 points to keep Warren in control. The lead was 48-34 after three quarters and the Blue Devils went on a 9-0 run in the first 90 seconds of the fourth to effectively end the game.

Paul dominated both ends of the floor, finishing with 18 points and 18 rebounds. JoVaughn Gaines and Jon Geske each chipped in 10 points for the Blue Devils.

Yarbrough led Zion-Benton with a game-high 25 points and eight rebounds, while Jadon Brown added 13 points and six boards.

“We want to be balanced,” Ramsey said. “I thought Jamaris (Smith) played a great game (6 assists) and he really controlled things.

“There’s a lot of distractions tonight and it’s a lot for high school kids to handle but I thought they stayed very focused.”

After the final buzzer sounded, the party was far from over, continuing deep into the night, and maybe lasting deep into March.

With this group, the Blue Devils just might be able to give the old coach the perfect parting gift.

Munda said: “We want to go back downstate for Ramsey, and we want him to get that title.”

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