advertisement

St. Charles East feels right at home at Geneva

St. Charles East got just about everything it wanted from its trip to Geneva for a Saturday afternoon matinee.

The Saints got pushed for a half by Naperville North, leading just 36-34 at halftime.

They got another outstanding game from senior point guard Cole Gentry, who scored a career-high 33 points in their 82-63 victory.

And they got a little more familiar with the court and rims at Geneva High School, where the biggest games of their season will be played.

That starts Thursday when the Saints (18-2) return to Geneva to play the Vikings, both teams with 1 loss in the Upstate Eight Conference with the River Division championship on the line.

"It's going to be a battle," Gentry said. "They are going to be ready, we are going to be ready. Both teams know each other. It will be who executes the most. I'm looking forward to it."

In addition to Thursday's game, the Saints will play again at Geneva for regionals. That made the decision easy for coach Patrick Woods when given a chance to play in what Vikings coach Phil Ralston was hoping would be an Upstate Eight/DuPage Valley Conference challenge similar to the Big Ten/ACC matchups in college.

"That's kind of why I got in it because I knew we were going to play them and plus the regionals are here," Woods said. "The more time we can play in the gym the better off."

The Saints seemed right at home, making 30 of their 54 attempts from the field (55.5 percent). They never trailed.

"I don't know how much it will help but it's nice to be in the gym and get some shots up," said Saints junior James McQuillan. "Thursday we have to come ready to play. It's going to be a whole new game. We're excited. We'll be ready. We know if we play what we call Saints way we'll be in good shape."

Gentry, whose previous career-high 32 also came against Naperville North (11-9) as a sophomore, wasted little time getting going Saturday. He buried three 3-pointers in the game's first three minutes for a quick 12-4 lead as the Huskies sagged off worried about Gentry's ability to drive and find shooters.

"He's a beautiful basketball player," Huskies coach Jeff Powers said. "We were trying to pick our poison. Do you let him drive in and kick out? We were going to see if he was going to make his 3s. He made them."

The Saints built a 24-12 lead late in the first quarter on a 3-point basket by Mick Vyzral, one of the team's 11.

Naperville North responded by outscoring the Saints 20-12 in the second quarter, sparked by the play by Baylor Griffin with 8 first-half points and Cam Hardy with 7.

Gentry again got hot early in the third quarter with two quick 3s for a 44-38 lead. McQuillan nailed another one moments later, and Gentry and McQuillan both had conventional 3-point plays late in the third quarter to help the Saints turn the 2-point game at halftime into 62-46 after three.

"A lot of it was my teammates out there setting good screens. Shooters spaced the floor. It was a good team win," said Gentry, whose 33 points came on 12-of-18 shooting, and he also had 5 assists and 4 steals.

Griffin scored four points in a mini 7-0 Naperville North run that pulled the Huskies within 65-52 early in the fourth quarter before the Saints surged again taking their biggest lead of the game at 78-57 on Evan DiLeonardi's lay-in.

Woods said a key to the better second half was improved rebounding. McQuillan added 16 points off the bench while four more players - DiLeonardi, Jake Asquini, Vyzral and Jake Clodi - all scored 7.

"James is a really good player who can do a lot for us," Woods said. "I liked the way he attacked the basket and was able to hit the outside 3 as well."

Griffin and Mitch Lewis led the Huskies with 14 points each.

"They are an excellent team. Great shooters, point guard that really knows how to play the game and all the other people really do their jobs," Powers said.

"They pumped up their intensity. That's one of the things we're trying to find. We weren't able to handle the intensity they brought. Three sophomores out there, we turned the ball over a few too many times and didn't make some easy shots and we killed ourselves by not making free throws (9 of 20)."

Article Comments
Guidelines: Keep it civil and on topic; no profanity, vulgarity, slurs or personal attacks. People who harass others or joke about tragedies will be blocked. If a comment violates these standards or our terms of service, click the "flag" link in the lower-right corner of the comment box. To find our more, read our FAQ.