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Huntley rules at Crystal Lake South shootout
| Andrew A. Nelles~For Sun-Times Media |
Four months after Huntley ended Elgin’s basketball season in a sectional matchup, the two met again Saturday under decidedly less formal circumstances.
The end result was much the same as the Red Raiders claimed the championship of the Crystal Lake South Shootout over Elgin, 38-25, in a game that became a war of attrition in a hot, muggy gym.
“I think the only thing this showed is our depth,” Huntley coach Marty Manning said. “Besides the starting five, our six through 14 are pretty good. We knew that because we had a good sophomore and junior class last year.
“To play six games in two days when it’s hot out, it’s the depth that won it for us.”
It’s not real prep basketball with two 20-minute halves, some players without jersey numbers, a running clock, decidedly more casual rules interpretations by officials, and a much more casual approach by coaches — as Jacobs’ Jim Hinkle coaching in shorts and sandals might suggest.
Nevertheless, coaches can and do find something that bodes well for the future in the games.
“It’s just an indicator of the possibility of how good we can be,” Manning said. “That’s it. I’ve also seen how bad we can be this summer.”
Huntley used its power game inside to keep Elgin away from the basket, then scored inside repeatedly during a 10-0 run in the first nine minutes to turn a 5-3 deficit into a 13-5 lead. Then an 11-2 run to close the first half left the Maroons hopelessly behind.
Troy Miller led the way for Huntley with 10 points and Jake Wagner contributed six. Huntley played without star Bryce Only as well as budding sophomore Amanze Egekeze and junior Jake Dachman. It was Elgin that was really hurt by absences, though.
The Maroons had only eight players for the day as Courier-News Player of the Year Kory Brown, starting point guard Arie Williams, Dennis Moore, Devin Gilliam, and Matt Andres all were unable to play. Brown and Williams were playing in AAU tournaments, Moore was at a football camp, Andres had a family function to attend and Gilliam was injured.
“When we walked in the gym today, I’m sure not a lot of people thought they’d see us in the championship game without our top four kids,” said Elgin assistant Jeff Howard, who acted as head coach for absent coach Mike Sitter.
“The guys here busted their tails, got this far, and have nothing to be ashamed of.”
That included senior guard Cortez Scott, who scored six points in the title game after hitting for eight points during a 25-5 run to close the Maroons’ 52-37 semifinal victory over Jacobs.
“I feel like I can step up now,” Scott said. “My role is different than it was last year. I feel like I’m a starter. I might not be the main scorer with Kory on the team, but I can be able to score a lot.”
The Maroons felt like they did wear down with only eight players — especially after they were the only team among the final four that had to play three games in three hours.
“Whew, it was very tiring,” Scott said. “That heat brings you down. I think everybody was very tired and we weren’t being very aggressive on defense against Huntley.”
Elgin got a strong effort from Gerardo Mojica inside and Derek Strohmaier hurt Jacobs outside with his 3-point shooting in the semifinals.
“When you come in with only eight players and play that kind of schedule, I would say everyone deserves to be proud of this,” Howard said after the team received the second-place plaque.
Manning’s team, however, served notice it will be the likely top area favorite to make a run when basketball season does take place. They manhandled a strong Crystal Lake Central team 43-33 in the semifinals after escaping Sycamore’s upset bid, 35-31 in the quarterfinals. Huntley finished the tourney 6-0, including 3-0 in pool play.
“We played well at the Harper Summer League, at Glenbard East and at Hoop Mountain Shootout in Aurora, but this is pretty much our last thing to do over the summer before everyone gets involved in AAU,” Manning said. “It’s nice to win the games and the tournament, but that (Elgin) team is drastically different than the one which will be playing in the season.
“That’s true about us, too.”
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