Temple feeling good after returning to Geneva lineup

A couple dives for loose balls in Geneva's 57-45 win over Larkin concerned the Vikings faithful - but not Pace Temple.

The 6-foot-2 senior guard returned to the basketball court Jan. 10, his first game since tearing his left medial collateral ligament in Geneva's Class 7A semifinal football loss to Cary-Grove.

Once Vikings coach Phil Ralston called his number to go in off the bench Temple threw himself into action with typical intensity and without repercussions.

"I didn't feel any pain, didn't feel anything unusual," said Temple, who scored 8 points on 4 field goals, the first 2 coming off his own steals.

"It was everything that it was like before the injury. The only setback I felt was my endurance. My lungs were burning a little bit," he said.

Repetitive icing and rest, without pain medication that could have had him push too hard in workouts, led to biking, running and weight training before Temple was cleared on New Year's Day without a care about the knee.

"A great way to start off the year 2015," said Temple, who contemplated playing without a brace but made the wise decision to use it.

Covering the game, Daily Herald correspondent and columnist Craig Brueske estimated Temple played around 16 to 18 minutes, half the game.

"You wouldn't have known that Pace was returning from an injury the way he played Saturday night," Ralston said. "And if there was anything holding him back physically or mentally it certainly didn't present itself."

A knock on Geneva this season was its ability to handle defensive pressure. The return of the guard who was among the best players on the floor in the Vikings' long playoff run last season is an obvious plus.

"Pace's return is both a psychological and physical boost," Ralston said. "He's a returning starter and a three-year varsity basketball player. So his experience and ability make us a better team. He is also someone who shows tremendous leadership, which will only help us as the season goes along."

Temple also is a college prospect on the football field at receiver. The honorary captain of the Daily Herald's Tri-Cities All-Area Football Team last fall, after Geneva's basketball games against St. Charles North on Friday and Saturday's Moline Martin Luther King Jr. games he plans to visit Butler and Dayton.

"I would love to leave this weekend with a school," he said, but a recent offer by Indiana State, continued Northern Illinois interest and also that of Minnesota State may come into play. He said his interest in Wyoming and North Dakota has waned due to distance and his academic focus.

As far as basketball, another full week of practice will help reduce those burning lungs, but there's no doubt Temple's return was a success.

"It was great," he said. "I've been playing since I was a little kid. Football has definitely taken over and become my love but basketball has always been my love, and it's not a sport I'm going to be playing next year so I'm just going out and having fun.

"I'm a pretty competitive kid so anything I'm going to do I want to win. I'm just glad to be back out there with my guys and do whatever I can to try to get some wins."

DeKalb de-Barbed:

Kaneland's 53-52 win over DeKalb last Friday showcased the improvement the Knights have made to gain victories in five of their last six basketball games.

A key Ryan David steal and then Dylan Vaca's free throw in the waning seconds meant the difference on the scoreboard. Also huge was the inside game between a pair of 230-pounders, Kaneland's 6-5 Jacob Gomes and DeKalb's 6-foot-7 Luke Davis. Gomes outscored the DeKalb all-tournament post player 8-6.

The next night Ryan David scored 20 points as Kaneland countered an 11-point deficit with a game-ending 19-0 run to defeat LaSalle-Peru 51-43.

"We're a very junior-heavy team and I knew it would take some time," said Knights coach Brian Johnson, his team now at 7-8 and 1-2 in the balanced Northern Illinois Big XII East. Yorkville is 2-0 but the other four teams all have a win. Kaneland hosts Yorkville on Friday.

"I was hoping around Christmastime the guys would understand what their roles are and figure it out," Johnson said. "We're kind of coming together as a team, and I give a lot of credit to Connor Fedderly and Zach Douglas for stepping up with their leadership."

Johnson also added Steven Limbrunner to the mix as a trio of senior leaders. Sometimes, though, younger players need a classmate to speak up.

Junior guard Tanner Robertson, Johnson said, "has been very vocal."

It's translated these last two games to better ball control and a little stricter defense which, against DeKalb, gave a good home crowd some excitement.

"It was huge," Johnson said. "After the game the kids realized we can compete with the best."

Coming around:

There was a stretch in December when Aurora Central Catholic (6-8, 2-2 Suburban Christian Conference) played Riverside-Brookfield, St. Edward, Geneva and Neuqua Valley in consecutive games. Entering Wednesday the combined record of those teams was 54-7.

Yes, ACC went 0-4 in that span, but playing that competition helps the Chargers now and, as players such as Luke Faltz said at the East Aurora Holiday Tournament, it will help them in the playoffs.

And as Chargers coach Nathan Drye said of that 0-4 mark against those clubs, "That wasn't indicative of how we're playing."

More indicative were the two wins ACC earned last weekend, 78-71 over a good IC Catholic Prep team; and 61-58 over Montini. The Chargers lost a nonconference game Tuesday to a 10-win Plano team.

"I like how we're playing," said Drye, who noted that ACC committed 6 turnovers against IC Catholic, well below its 16-turnover average.

"We're starting to come around. We're getting good production from our guards and Mario (May) is doing a great job rebounding," he said.

Brett Czerak, a 6-foot-1 sophomore listed as a forward, floats between the small forward spot and shooting guard, joining classmate Mac Cowen in the backcourt. Both logged big minutes last season when ACC went 3-24.

"Brett and Mac went through a lot of it last year and they're more prepared for it this year," Drye said. "It's just huge - there's no substitute for experience."

Still, when ACC rallied from a 10-point deficit against IC Catholic, the Chargers' lineup on the floor was Cowen, Czerak and three freshmen - Brett's brother, Kyle, 6-2 forward Zach Smith and 6-3 forward Will Courter.

It's a group that along with key players such as May, junior forward Evan Schuetz and junior guard Nick Faltz is developing depth and balance.

"The big thing for us this year is if we go to the bench there can be adjustments to be made," Drye said. "We're not where we need to be, but we're headed in the right direction."