St. Charles North falls to Curie; West Aurora eliminated

PONTIAC - The St. Charles North boys basketball team had yet another chance to author a signature win at the famed Pontiac Holiday Tournament.

The North Stars were in search of their first semifinal appearance at the 16-team tournament on Friday afternoon against defending tournament champion Curie.

It was not to be as the North Stars could not solve Elijah Pickens' brilliant play for the Condors in a 53-45 loss.

One game later, West Aurora endured a train-wreck of a first half offensively in suffering its worst loss of the season, a 57-29 setback to New Trier in the consolation quarterfinals.

"I am more frustrated with myself," St. Charles North coach Tom Poullin said after the North Stars fell to 10-2 on the season. "I could have done a better job of getting us ready to play."

The North Stars will play state legend Simeon, which was upended in the quarterfinals by Joliet West, in the fifth-place semifinals on Saturday morning.

Had the North Stars handed Curie (9-0) its first defeat of the season, the undeniable architect would have been post Connor Linke.

The Bradley-bound Linke unquestionably justified his reputation as one of the top rim protectors in the state.

Linke blocked six Curie shots, including one dunk attempt in which both players' hands were well above the rim.

"It's just something I am natural at doing," Linke said. "Blocking shots is something I can do pretty easily."

Curie star forward Ramean Hinton, who scored a game-high 14 points, was certainly impressed by Linke.

"All the guys on our team like him as a player," Hinton said of Linke. "He was big, strong and tough in the paint."

Unfortunately for the North Stars, Pickens played at an elite level.

Whenever Curie needed a play - either statistically significant or an intangible moment that frequently defines the small things in the sport - Pickens delivered.

Pickens had 13 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists and 3 assists to circumvent the North Stars' upset bid.

"He was a game-changer," Poulin said of Pickens' play.

"My shot wasn't falling, so I had to keep going to the rim," Pickens said of his primary scoring route.

Linke forged two of the three first-half ties with a putback, part of his game-high 11-rebound effort, and a jump-hook off the window late in the second quarter.

But the Condors' defense was such that Linke did not even attempt a shot after halftime, which ended with the Condors nursing a 26-22 lead.

"We should have gotten him the ball more," Poulin said.

Hinton scored on a putback to open the second-half scoring for Curie as the North Stars' quest for offensive consistency resurfaced.

St. Charles North would never come closer than 4 points the rest of the way.

The North Stars were 16-for-37 from the field as Linke led the team with 9 points.

Fellow senior starters Colin Nelson, Luke Scheffers and Thomas Kellen all scored 8 points for the North Stars.

New Trier 57, West Aurora 29: Brian Johnson could hardly have imagined a more injurious offensive start for his team.

Few things went right for the West Aurora coach or his players in their game against New Trier in the first half.

The Blackhawks endured a 4-for-25 effort from the field in the first two quarters in falling behind 25-10.

Chris Nieves' conversion from beyond the arc was the only 3-point make for the Blackhawks in 9 attempts in the opening two quarters.

West Aurora (3-9) was able to more than double its output in the third quarter alone with 13 points, but the Trevians (7-7) removed any doubt to the outcome with 23 points of their own in the third.

Axel Motola led the Blackhawks with a game-high 14 points.

"We have to continue and try and better ourselves," Johnson said. "That's the goal right now."