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Plenty for Warren to cheer about vs. Larkin

It's come to be expected that Kaylen Dickson will have her game on.

But on Wednesday, the star Warren forward, who has already signed to play next year at Wake Forest, also had her cheer on.

She was having fun encouraging her teammates from the bench.

Dickson had already done her work in Warren's lopsided 61-13 win over Larkin in its own Blue Devil Classic holiday tournament. She scored 13 points and had 6 rebounds, 4 blocks and 3 assists.

At the start of the fourth quarter, with Warren up 51-11, Dickson took to the bench, put her warm-up top on, and did her best cheerleader impersonation as five reserves took over for the Blue Devils.

"Cheering on the teammates who usually don't get cheered for is really cool," Dickson said. "Usually, they're cheering for us. But we got to cheer for them today and I enjoyed that.

"I think it's really good experience for them too, to build their confidence."

Starting guard Jordyn Hughes, who has signed with Eastern Illinois, topped Warren with 14 points. Overall, 11 of the 14 players to enter the game for Warren scored at least 2 points.

Junior forward Breleigh Gula led the reserves with 5 points.

"It's always good when you can play your bench at this time of the year," said Warren coach John Stanczkiewicz said, whose team improves to 10-4 on the season. "It keeps them involved and gives them a chance to work on things because the next three days (of the tournament) are going to be a lot harder and we're going to need some of those bench kids to perform for us."

Warren was up 22-4 at the end of the first quarter, and up 32-10 at halftime. The Blue Devils were even stingier on defense in the second half, holding Larkin (2-11) to a total of 3 points, 1 point in the third quarter and 2 points in the fourth.

"When you play against two Division I girls (Dickson and Hughes), it's not easy to do," said Larkin coach Steve Knapp, who got a team-high 5 points from Briana Young. "Warren did a great job of getting out early and taking us out of the game real quick."

It also hasn't been easy for Larkin to fill the gigantic shoes of former star guard Marlee Kyles, who is averaging 26 minutes a game as a freshman for Arizona, where she is the team's second-leading scorer (10.6 ppg).

"Coach (Knapp) has a young team and they lost a player (Kyles) who averaged 30 points per game last year and is now doing really well at Arizona," Stanczkiewicz said. "It always takes a team a long time to fill that hole and we're going to go through that next year. It's never a lot of fun."

Warren's two Division I stars, Dickson and Hughes, are four-year varsity players who are both now averaging about 18 points per game as seniors.

This is their last hurrah and they are determined to lead Warren to at least a regional title. Dickson and Hughes have not yet won a regional in their standout careers.

"When (Dickson and Hughes) stay focused and they play to their talent and they play together and with their teammates, we could go quite a ways with them," Stanczkiewicz said. "They can be a force. You can do quite a few things with them. They are fun to watch. They are special and you just have to appreciate sometimes what talents they both are.

"But game-by-game, as the season goes on, we have to still play hard as a team to go far."

Carmel 34, Deerfield 31: Despite being out-scored 10-7 in the fourth quarter, Carmel hung on to get a win over Deerfield in the Blue Devil Classic at Warren.

The Corsairs got double-figures from two players. Ranya Jamison led the way with 11 points while Caitlin Teehan added 10 points.

Olivia Elkes topped Deerfield with 10 points.

  Warren's Kaylen Dickson defends against Larkin's Brianna Young (13) during the Blue Devil Classic at Warren on Wednesday. Steve Lundy/slundy@dailyherald.com
  Larkin's Aaliyah Dixon, left, and Warren's Brianna Collier battle for a rebound during the Blue Devil Classic at Warren on Wednesday. Steve Lundy/slundy@dailyherald.com
  Larkin's Aaliyah Dixon (23) drives on Warren's Dana Lundtveit during the Blue Devil Classic at Warren on Wednesday. Steve Lundy/slundy@dailyherald.com
  Larkin's Hailey Buttrum (22) and Warren's Dana Lundtveit battle for a rebound during the Blue Devil Classic at Warren on Wednesday. Steve Lundy/slundy@dailyherald.com
  Warren's Kahla Boyce, left, and Larkin's Amber Allen battle for a loose ball during the Blue Devil Classic at Warren on Wednesday. Steve Lundy/slundy@dailyherald.com
  Warren's Dana Lundtveit, left, and Larkin's Brianna Young battle for a loose ball during the Blue Devil Classic at Warren on Wednesday. Steve Lundy/slundy@dailyherald.com
  Warren's Dana Lundtveit,left, and Larkin's Brianna Young battle for a rebound during the Blue Devil Classic at Warren on Wednesday. Steve Lundy/slundy@dailyherald.com
  Warren's Dana Lundtveit, left, blocks the shot of Larkin's Brianna Young during the Blue Devil Classic at Warren on Wednesday. Steve Lundy/slundy@dailyherald.com
  Warren's Breleigh Gula (52) drives on Larkin's Hailey Buttrum during the Blue Devil Classic at Warren on Wednesday. Steve Lundy/slundy@dailyherald.com
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