peoria bound...

In the beginning, there were hundreds and now their are just eight (or four for each class - 3A / 4A). These final teams battled their way through regionals... sectionals... supers... and now downstate. Amateur Sports NCAA Challenge Brooks 62 - Lindblom 42 - 3A Bracket breakdown JOLIET - What a start to the game as both teams came on the floor in their whites. Brooks was suppose to wear dark so coach Bobby Locke tried to avoid the technical by borrowing the jersey's of the host school, Joliet Central's. Unfortunately, they were tagged with a technical anyway. Nonetheless, its not the uniform its the player right? This proved to be true with the Brooks Eagles advancing to the Class 3A state finals for the first time in schools history with a 61-42 victory over Lindblom.

"We thought we were the home team since we were the No.1 seed," said George Marshall, a Wisconsin recruit who had 9 points at halftime including three 3-pointers. "They took us by surprise (to start). We got it together in the second half." Lindblom jumped out to a 2-0 lead with senior Lovell Cates draining both technical foul shots.

One of Marshall's three 3-pointers

NOTE: Many players tried to grab their original number but some were not able to - example Xavier Wells. He usually wears number 5.

Nonetheless, Lindblom made a game of it in the first half taking the lead then trading baskets and with five minutes left before halftime, they played stall ball, in which they held the ball at the top of the key. They held the ball while down 3, 22-19, and when they decided to run a play they missed it bad then committed foul. Thus, the Eagles went into the locker room up 24-20.

"Do you want the edited version of my halftime speech?" Locke joked. "I told the kids we had to refocus. There were a lot of distractions with all the excitement. All everybody was talking about was going downstate."

In the second half, things got a little physical as one of the Gray twins was hit with a technical for kicking at a Lindblom player as they were scrambling for the loose ball. Senior guard Cates only drains one of two shots tightening the score to five, 30-25. Shortly afterwards, Brooks went on a 20-0 run which proved to be the punch they needed to pack their bags and head south to Peoria. They will face Rock Island in a 3A semifinal at 12:15 p.m. Friday at Carver Arena (Peoria).

Marshall finished the game with 18 points followed by Justin Rabb who added 15. Lindblom was led by Cates who contributed 11.
Next: 3A state semifinal — Brooks vs. Rock Island, 12:15 p.m. Friday, Carver Arena, Peoria.

Normal 59 - Crete 48 - 4A Bracket breakdown
BLOOMINGTON - Crete-Monee had never advanced this far into the postseason since 1976 and unfortunately, the ride is over as they lose to Normal Community 59-48 down at ISU.

For the Ironmen of Normal Community, it was like playing in front of their hometown crowd. But both teams seemed to play a little nervous and went scoreless for the first 3 minutes for the contest. Normal jumped out to an early lead of 9-4 and never let go.

"The atmosphere caught us a little bit," Crete-Monee coach Matt Ryndak said of playing in front of the large crowd. "We were very
stagnant offensively. We took some very tough shots in the first half and didn't get into any offensive flow."

Jamee Crockett, who averages 20 points per game for the Warriors, struggled in the first half, going 1-for-4 from the field,
missing a dunk and scoring four points.

 

"He's a great player," Normal coach Dave Witzig said. "We had a good guy defending him (Anthony Goodar). He's 6-3 and very
athletic and just knew to keep him in front of him, and that's what he did."

Normal led 25-20 at the half, but Crockett and the Warriors came alive in the third quarter.

Jamee Crockett, a DePaul recruit, scored the Warrior's first eight points of the second half, cutting the Ironmen's lead to 3-points, but Normal's Chase Robbins followed  with a three-point play ending the Warriors' run. Robbins finished the game with 14 points and eight boards.

"Every time we started a little run, we just couldn't sustain it," said Ryndak, whose team never held the lead.

Crockett finished his final game for Crete with 20 points followed by Greg Mays, who had a double-double: 10 points and 11 boards.

Normal (27-6) will play Warren at 8:15 p.m. Friday in a semifinal at Carver Arena in Peoria.

Simeon 74 - Farragut 61 - 4A Bracket breakdown

HINSDALE - The defending Class 4A champs prevail big time against the Admirals 74-61 in the supers. Overall the Wolverines showcased a nearly flawless game. Steve Taylor knocked down 20 points followed by Terrell Green, who added 15 and Jabari Parker with 12.

"It was nice to get out to a fast start because we usually come out slow," said Taylor, a 6-foot-8 junior. "If we can start like
that we think we should win. I'm glad we took our losses (to Benet and Young last month) early. We're even hungrier now."

Farrargut were led by Gabe Williams who knocked down 29 points including five 3-pointers.

NOTE: Simeon is recognized as the number 3 team in the national rankings according to USA Today.

The Wolverines will face Glenbard East in a 4A semifinal at 6:30 p.m. Friday at Carver Arena.

Other games...  - 3A Bracket breakdown
CLASS 3A SUPERSECTIONALS
HOFFMAN ESTATES SUPERSECTIONAL
North Chicago 78, Crane 66

NORTHERN ILLINOIS SUPERSECTIONAL
Rock Island 72, Aurora Central Catholic 55

PRAIRIE CAPITOL CONVENTION CENTRAL SUPERSECTIONAL
Centralia 48, Morton (Ill.) 44

CLASS 4A SUPERSECTIONALS - 4A Bracket breakdown
NORTHERN ILLINOIS SUPERSECTIONAL
Glenbard East 63, Rockford Auburn 51

WAUKEGAN SUPERSECTIONAL
Warren 56, Niles North 50

 

NOTE: We are proud to announce that for the entire month of March, S.C. Fitch Enterprises, and all of its affiliates including Amateur Sports News Network, ASNN365.com, and Amateur Sports Gallery will be honoring March as National Nutrition Month® is a nutrition education and information campaign created annually in March by the American Dietetic Association. The campaign focuses attention on the importance of making informed food choices and developing sound eating and physical activity habits. Click here for more information.

Here is your opportunity to stop hating the media and actually become it!

We are always looking for additional personnel. Click here if you are interested. If you would like to submit a story, score, stats, or even photos, click here.