Cooper's big night lifts Elgin over Streamwood
Elgin boys basketball coach Mike Sitter has one of those machines that copies multiple DVDs simultaneously so he can send game film and highlights of his Maroons to interested college coaches.
Against Streamwood on Friday night at Chesbrough Field House, Elgin senior Courtese Cooper produced a game worthy of sending to every college coach with the ability to press play.
The 6-foot-8 post erupted for 16 of his game-high 27 points in the third quarter to help Elgin turn a 6-point halftime deficit into an 11-point lead en route to a 56-49 Upstate Eight River victory.
Cooper finished with 27 points, 18 rebounds and 8 blocks.
"This was finally it where he put four quarters together," Sitter said. "He played some inside, he played some outside, ran the floor, rim protector. A little of everything today, so that was nice to see. That's a game film we'll send off."
Cooper was the driving force in a third quarter that saw Elgin (9-5, 2-3) outscore Streamwood (5-11, 0-5) 23-6. His first of three 3-pointers in the quarter tied the game at 28. He sank another on Elgin's next possession to stake the Maroons to a 31-28 lead, capping an 11-2 run to open the second half.
Cooper made all 5 of his third-quarter field-goal attempts, including three 3-pointers.
"After I hit the first one I found my sweet spot," he said. "In warmups it was missing. It was like to the right or the left. Once I saw it go through the hoop, I knew I found it."
Cooper kept the momentum rolling with a pair of third-quarter dunks. The first came courtesy of an alley oop assist from sophomore point guard Latrell Hudson; The second was a putback slam, his reward for hustling in transition.
The Maroons extended their lead to 15 points midway through the fourth quarter when senior guard Tim Wolf scored on a drive and Hudson split a pair of free throws. Wolf finished with 13 points.
The Sabres committed 5 third-quarter turnovers while shooting 4 of 10 from the field. Ball movement, or a lack thereof, was an issue, according to Streamwood coach Paul Kowalyszyn.
"I saw a lot of one-pass shots going up, a lot of one-pass drives, that kind of stuff," Kowalyszyn said. "I think every time we swung the ball once or twice we got at least a good look at the basket. It's just too much selfish play, too much selfish play. And that's what you get. You lose by 7 and, honestly, you deserve to lose by 7, or more, just by lack of team play. That's been something we've been struggling with all season, so back to the drawing board."
Recently activated senior forward Malik Butler led Streamwood with 16 points. Senior guard Jason Manalansan sank three 3-pointers to finish with 11 points.
As for those DVDs of Cooper's complete performance?
"They'll be in the mail tomorrow," Sitter said.