Oak Park teammates are together again

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Oak Park-River Forest's Gabe Levin attempts to block the shot of York's Will Sullivan in a regional semifinal game in March. | Rob Hart~Sun-Times Media

Updated: June 7, 2011 7:19PM

Ka’Darryl Bell and Gabe Levin travel together quite often and July hasn’t even begun.

The Oak Park-River Forest basketball teammates just completed the May portion of their club basketball season together. The point guard-forward combination reunite as high school teammates while local teams compete in high school shootouts this month.

OPRF (10-13 last season) will compete in a high school shootout this weekend at Illinois-Chicago.

Eventually it’s back on the road again for the Huskies duo.

Bell and Levin are playing together for at least the second consecutive year with Lake Forest-based Full Package. This year, the duo are teammates on the club’s 11th Grade Elite team coached by Louis Walker.

“We make a really good combination,” Bell said. “We know how each other play.”

“The way Ka’Darryl dribbles and shoots and plays defense is amazing,” Levin said. “He really distributes the ball.”

Bell and Levin, future seniors, are the only players from a West Suburban Conference Silver Division school on the team. The 6-foot-6 Levin is part of a talented quartet of post players that includes 6-6 Ismar Seferagic of St. Patrick, 6-8 Rocco Belcaster of Morton and 6-7 Darius Paul of Warren. Paul is the younger brother of Illinois guard Brandon Paul.

Bell is the starting point guard for a team which includes guards Mike La Tulip of Prospect and David Chatman of Morton.

“We have been winning,” Bell said. “We have a good group of guys. Our only goal is to win.”

In the spring, Full Package played in the Nike Spring Showdown April 22-24 in Merrillville, Ind., at the Adidas May Classic May 13-15 in Bloomington, Ind., and in Chicagohoops.com’s Memorial Day Classic May 27-29 in Merrillville. Full Package finished second in one of the Merrillville tournaments and reached the semifinals in the other two.

The team is due to return to Merrillville for another tournament in July. Bell and Levin will travel to Indianapolis and one of their club team’s showcase events is the Adidas Super 64 July 22-26 in Las Vegas, Nev. It will be the second consecutive summer trip to Las Vegas for both Bell and Levin.

“It’s really fun. Everyone is so talented,” Levin said. “Everyone gets along really well.”

Other members of Full Package include guards Charles Harris of Lake Forest Academy and D.J. Morris of St. Viator.