Scouting the Class 3A sectional championship: St. Viator vs. DePaul College Prep
Class 3A Grayslake Central sectional championship
No. 1 St. Viator Lions (25-6) vs. No. 2 DePaul College Prep Rams (23-9)When: 7 p.m. Friday
Where: Grayslake Central High School
St. Viator's road to the championship: St. Viator won the St. Viator regional by defeating Marine Leadership Academy (2-0) and Chicago Sullivan (67-35). In Tuesday's sectional semifinal, the Lions defeated St. Patrick (51-39). St. Viator added to a 10-point halftime lead (31-21) over St. Patrick by being patient in the half-court set in the third quarter. Jeremiah Hernandez and Connor Kochera topped the Lions with 13 points apiece while Trey Calvin had 12 points. Kochera rang up three 3-pointers and Calvin finished with two 3-pointers.
DePaul College Prep's road to the championship: DePaul College Prep won the Ridgewood regional by defeating CICS/Northtown (88-27) and Ridgewood (56-32). In Tuesday's sectional semifinal, the Rams defeated Carmel 57-46. Down 23-21 to Carmel at halftime, DePaul College Prep put together a huge third quarter behind sophomore guard Tyler Johnson, who had 13 of his game-high 20 points in the period on three 3-pointers and 5-of-5 field goals. Senior Perry Cowan had 14 points, Raheem Anthony, who went 8-for-8 at the free throw line in the fourth quarter to help ice the win, finished with 11 points and Lance Mosley added 10 points.
Coaches: Quin Hayes, St. Viator; Tommy Kleinschmidt, DePaul College Prep
St. Viator skinny: The Lions have won 12 of their last 14 games and have been finding their rhythm with the return of star point guard Trey Calvin, a Wright State recruit who missed about a month of the season with a broken hand. Another Division I star, senior guard Jeremiah Hernandez, who signed with Kent State, combines with Calvin to give St. Viator one of the best backcourts in Class 3A.
DePaul College Prep skinny: DePaul College Prep won the rugged Catholic League Blue with a 12-3 record, finishing ahead of 20-win teams St. Laurence and Brother Rice as well as 19-win Loyola, which is playing for the Class 4A Niles North sectional championship against Evanston. DePaul, which was formerly Gordon Tech, is coached by former Gordon Tech star Tommy Kleinschmidt. The Rams are led by 6-foot-4 senior Perry Cowan, who has signed with Brown University.
Winner gets: The winner of the Grayslake Central sectional advances to the Sears Centre supersectional next Tuesday to face the winner of the North Lawndale sectional championship, which features Farragut and North Lawndale. Last year, North Chicago defeated Rockford Boylan in the Class 3A Sears Centre supersectional, 69-55.