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Larkin's defense steps up, quiets Elgin

The Larkin defense smothered Elgin at one end while Pierre Black and company rained shots from 3-point range at the other in a 69-54 victory at Chesbrough Field House on Friday.

The Royals avenged the 3-point Upstate Eight Conference loss to the rival Maroons on Dec. 21 that ended their 16-game series winning streak, in part, by holding Elgin to 4-of-28 first-half shooting from the field, 1 of 12 from 3-point range.

"We're trying to make defense our identity, what our team is focused around," Larkin senior guard Chris Rose said. "For the most part we're a transition team, so we're trying to make our offense from defense so we can get people like (Black) open in transition."

Black, the lone returning starter from last year's Class 4A fourth-place team, played in his second game since returning from an injury that kept him out since Dec. 1. He led the Royals with 14 points.

"This will be my last time maybe ever playing Elgin, though you never know about the playoffs," Black said. "This game is more important than all the other games, except in March."

Larkin (10-14, 7-6) made 10 of 18 3-point attempts through the first three quarters in building a 55-31 lead. Black, a 6-foot-1 senior, sank 4 of 7 attempts from 3-point range.

"His shots, they hurt," said Elgin coach David Hess, whose team slipped to 5-19, 2-11. "A couple of those threes were just at critical times. You haven't played bad defense, they find the open guy and they hit that shot. If some of those flip ..."

A balanced Larkin offense shot 40 percent from the field (17 of 43) through the first three quarters. Senior Victor Perez scored all 13 of his points in the first half, including three 3-pointers in 4 attempts, and freshman guard Damari Wheeler-Thomas added 13 points and 4 rebounds.

Larkin coach Deryn Carter was most impressed by the way his team played defense against the Maroons compared to the December meeting.

"I thought the last time we played it was the most selfish defense we played in a really long time," Carter said. "It was a lot of me, me, me. I want to do this, I want to do that. I thought this was so much more unselfish. It was a we thing. It was a collective effort defensively. I'm really proud of the way our guys responded because it's really easy to get selfish in this type of environment, playing against friends with a lot of people watching. But they responded and they were really unselfish defensively."

Elgin junior Xavier Bonds led all scorers with 15 points, but Larkin made him work for it on 6-of-21 shooting.

  Elgin's Xavier Bonds, right, soars past Larkin's Christopher Rose during varsity boys basketball at Chesbrough Fieldhouse on the campus of Elgin High School Friday night. Patrick Kunzer/pkunzer@dailyherald.com
  Elgin's Kejuan Harvey, front, pushes past Larkin's Victor Perez Jr. during varsity boys basketball at Chesbrough Fieldhouse on the campus of Elgin High School Friday night. Patrick Kunzer/pkunzer@dailyherald.com
  Elgin's Xavier Bonds soars to the hoop against Larkin during varsity boys basketball at Chesbrough Fieldhouse on the campus of Elgin High School Friday night. Patrick Kunzer/pkunzer@dailyherald.com
  Elgin's Trey Yarber, front, looks to get past Larkin's Victor Perez Jr. during varsity boys basketball at Chesbrough Fieldhouse on the campus of Elgin High School Friday night. Patrick Kunzer/pkunzer@dailyherald.com
  Larkin's Damari Wheeler-Thomas fights for control of the ball against Larkin during varsity boys basketball at Chesbrough Fieldhouse on the campus of Elgin High School Friday night. Patrick Kunzer/pkunzer@dailyherald.com
  Larkin's Jashon Johnson-Neals soars during varsity boys basketball at Chesbrough Fieldhouse on the campus of Elgin High School Friday night. Patrick Kunzer/pkunzer@dailyherald.com
  Elgin's Z'Kwan Stewart, back keeps an eye on Larkin's Jashon Johnson-Neals during varsity boys basketball at Chesbrough Fieldhouse on the campus of Elgin High School Friday night. Patrick Kunzer/pkunzer@dailyherald.com
  Larkin's Jashon Johnson-Neals fights his way to the hoop during varsity boys basketball at Chesbrough Fieldhouse on the campus of Elgin High School Friday night. Patrick Kunzer/pkunzer@dailyherald.com
  Larkin's Jashon Johnson-Neals goes up for a basket during varsity boys basketball at Chesbrough Fieldhouse on the campus of Elgin High School Friday night. Patrick Kunzer/pkunzer@dailyherald.com
  Larkin's Pierre Black, left, slips past Elgin's Kejuan Harvey, right, during varsity boys basketball at Chesbrough Fieldhouse on the campus of Elgin High School Friday night. Patrick Kunzer/pkunzer@dailyherald.com
  Larkin's Victor Perez Jr. moves with the ball during varsity boys basketball at Chesbrough Fieldhouse on the campus of Elgin High School Friday night. Patrick Kunzer/pkunzer@dailyherald.com
  Elgin's Margaretha Troyke, left, heads to the hoop past Larkin's Kiara Villa during varsity girls basketball at Chesbrough Fieldhouse on the campus of Elgin High School Friday night. Patrick Kunzer/pkunzer@dailyherald.com
  From left, Elgin's Dajha Cooper and Emily Graves battle Larkin's Brianna Young for the ball during varsity girls basketball at Chesbrough Fieldhouse on the campus of Elgin High School Friday night. Patrick Kunzer/pkunzer@dailyherald.com
  Larkin's Janelle Clements heads for the hoop during varsity girls basketball at Chesbrough Fieldhouse on the campus of Elgin High School Friday night. Patrick Kunzer/pkunzer@dailyherald.com
  Elgin's Tenacious Cadney, left, guards Larkin's Amber Allen during varsity girls basketball at Chesbrough Fieldhouse on the campus of Elgin High School Friday night. Patrick Kunzer/pkunzer@dailyherald.com
  Elgin's Dajha Cooper, left, looks for a way past Larkin's Brian Young during varsity girls basketball at Chesbrough Fieldhouse on the campus of Elgin High School Friday night. Patrick Kunzer/pkunzer@dailyherald.com
  Elgin High School commemorated the school's150th birthday with ceremonies between the varsity girls and boys games Friday night at Chesbrough Fieldhouse. Mayor David Kaptain addresses the crowd. Patrick Kunzer/pkunzer@dailyherald.com
  Elgin High School commemorated the school's150th birthday with ceremonies between the varsity girls and boys games Friday night at Chesbrough Fieldhouse. Mayor David Kaptain grins as he holds a sign bearing his image from his 1965 senior year at EHS. Patrick Kunzer/pkunzer@dailyherald.com
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