St. Charles East dominates Geneva

With an ample burst of speed, Sean Sullivan was not about to be denied his signature moment Saturday when approaching the rim.

In fact, Sullivan's windmill dunk that put a statement on his nine-point fourth quarter surprised a number of people, including his coach Pat Woods.

"Sean is by far one of our best shooters," Woods said. "That's no surprise [regarding his fourth quarter]. The dunk surprised the heck out of me."

It was but one of big moments for the Saints in their 62-35 win over host Geneva on Saturday in the DuKane Conference.

In doing so St. Charles East (7-2, 2-1) defeated Geneva for the first time since February, 2017. It also marked the Saints' first win at Geneva since 2016.

And Sullivan, who scored 16 points, was a big part of it.

"[He's] real smart as well. He's got the length, too, which helps him out a lot," Woods said. "I wish there was a redshirt year in high school because I would give it to him. I think he could be really good."

Sullivan, a 6-foot-4 senior, gave a small laugh after the game when discussing his big play.

"Not a lot of my teammates knew I could get that high," Sullivan said. "I just wanted to finish the play."

Geneva (7-6 1-3), meanwhile, was without standout forward Josh Preston on Saturday. Preston, one of the only contributors returning with major varsity experience from last season's supersectional team, is nursing a right shoulder injury, according to Geneva coach Scott Hennig.

Preston sustained the injury in December in a matchup against Deerfield, but could be back as soon as next week.

The Vikings, still working through a re-tooling season, committed 18 turnovers in the loss. In the first half, Geneva made it a six-point game with 2:38 left in the half, but the Saints took a 31-19 lead at the break.

"The first half, we did a pretty decent job," Hennig said. "The second half, we kind of knew they had all the momentum...I'm proud of my kids; they played hard."

The Saints outscored Geneva 31-16 in the second half. Zack Clodi provided a snapshot during the middle of the third quarter of their offensive prowess. Clodi hit a 3-pointer to pull ahead 37-21, then followed with a steal and tear-drop layup the other way.

"He's got a really high basketball IQ," Woods said of Clodi. "He knows the game; he's been in the gym. He plays hard...plays within himself. [Tonight] didn't surprise me; I've seen it a lot in practice. I know he's capable of that."

Chase Monkemeyer scored all 15 of his points in the first half for the Saints. Clodi finished with five points and three rebounds, while Thomas Ditsworth had seven points and three rebounds.

Vikings senior guard Drew Johnson finished with 12 points to pace the Vikings. Johnson also led with nine rebounds. Nathan Valentine had eight points and four rebounds, while junior forward Dylan Fuzak had five points and five rebounds,

"Drew has been great for us," Hennig said. "He didn't play at all last year - last year was last year - but he's been outstanding for us. He's tough, [and] he does a great job."