Williams-Gray's colorful effort powers Carmel

It's safe to say that Damone Williams-Gray has his basketball legs back.

The Carmel junior forward poured in a career- and game-high 29 points to lead the Corsairs to a decisive 67-52 victory over Grant on Saturday night in the final game of Grant's Thanksgiving tournament.

Carmel finished with a 3-1 record in the highly-competitive tournament, which included champion North Lawndale (4-0) and ninth-ranked Waukegan (2-2).

"I'm so happy for him," Carmel coach Zack Ryan said of Williams-Gray. "He just hasn't played in so long. He pretty much lost a year.

"We knew we would have to be patient with him."

Or not.

Williams-Gray seems to have quickly rid himself of the rust that comes from being out of the loop for a full season and a full off-season.

Williams-Gray started as a freshman at Niles North two years ago but then transferred to Carmel last year when his family moved from Skokie to Libertyville.

In a surprising decision, he was ruled ineligible by the IHSA and had to sit out last season.

Then, as post-season workouts started last spring, Williams-Gray hurt his hip and was out again.

Then, over the summer and fall, Williams-Gray played football. So he was away from basketball again.

"Now he's been able to play basketball consistently," Ryan said. "And the last two games, he's been unbelievable."

Williams-Gray, who made the all-tournament team, scored 20 points in the second half to help Carmel add to its 9-point halftime lead. He was virtually unstoppable inside, scoring most of his points with strong moves in the paint.

"My teammates were just finding me," Willimas-Gray said. "And I got some baskets off of rebounds, too. Going inside is just better for me. I like doing that."

Carmel stormed out of the gates in the first quarter with the first six points of the game, and were up 21-7 heading into the second quarter.

Guard Evan Myers, who also made the all-tournament team, was hot early from 3-point range. He drained three 3-pointers in the first quarter alone. He finished with 11 points. He was Carmel's only other double-figure scorer.

Grant, which finished its tournament with an 0-4 record, cut its deficit to 6 points in the third quarter but couldn't get any closer as Carmel was a perfect 7-for-7 from the free throw line in the fourth quarter to seal the victory.

Michael Huff topped Grant with 18 points. He was the only Grant player to reach double-figures. He is also the only senior who gets significant playing time. He starts with four juniors who are all new to varsity basketball.

"Since they're all younger kids and these are their first varsity games, they are just getting warmed up," said Huff, who made the all-tournament team. "But once we get used to our team, and we build a chemistry, I think we'll be a lot better as the season goes along.

"I just use it as a teaching moment (with the younger players). If someone is having a problem, I'll just go up to them and show them what they need to do and how to handle it at the varsity level. I just try to do the best I can."

Grant, which also finished in last place a year ago in its own tournament, went on to win 20 games and a regional title last season. The Bulldogs believe that hosting such rigorous competition early in the season is a benefit in the long run.

"These are all very tough teams," Grant coach Wayne Bosworth said of the tournament field, which also included Rockford Boylan. "We are now 1-12 in this tournament the last three years now. But if that leads us to another 20-win season like last year, I'll take it in a heartbeat.

"But we're not there yet. We need to improve in a lot of areas and this tournament helps point them out real clear."