St. Viator earns cheers after defeating Carmel
The loudest cheers - not counting the spirited applause before tipoff by Carmel Catholic's fans for junior guard Kimahri Wilson, who scored his 1,000th career point this month - came when St. Viator coach Quin Hayes opened the door to the room where his team was waiting him after the game.
St. Viator's Lions roared, so to speak.
Call it St. Viator's own "milestone," after the visiting Lions beat the Corsairs 62-52 in an East Suburban Catholic Conference battle on Friday night.
"This is such a good basketball conference," St. Viator guard Michael Campagna said. "Any game is hard to win, but an away game especially. Coach just told us he read something and it said, 'WIN.' It stood for, 'What's Important Now.' After the win, we got 24 hours to celebrate, and then we go back to work.
"Any conference win is a milestone win," added Campagna, smiling.
Connor Kochera scored a game-high 28 points and grabbed 6 rebounds to lead St. Viator (15-7, 4-2). The William & Mary-bound guard shot 8 of 13 from the floor (three 3-pointers) and went 9 of 10 from the stripe, including 8 of 9 in the fourth, to help keep the Lions' lead in double digits for most of the quarter.
Hayes encourages his players to celebrate their victories.
"I tell the boys all the time, 'If you can't enjoy a good basketball game like this, what are we doing this for?' " Hayes said.
Campagna (12 points, 8 of 9 from the line) was the visitors' only other double-digit scorer. The Lions made 20 of 25 free throws, including 15 of 17 in the final quarter.
"I thought we defended really well and defended really hard," Carmel coach Zack Ryan said. "[St. Viator] is a good team, and they don't miss free throws."
While sophomore Bryce Moore scored 20 points to lead Carmel (12-11, 1-5), giving him 51 points in his last two games, he was the Corsairs' only scorer in double figures. Kylen Beals and Asher Jackson (three 3s off the bench) each had 9 points.
Campagna's main contribution might have been holding Wilson to 3 shots and 0 points through three quarters.
"I want to play the best," said Campagna, who will play college lacrosse at Illinois Wesleyan. "I'm not playing college basketball so this is my last year to play against the best. My coaches challenge me, and I love the challenge."
Wilson didn't score until he hit a 3-pointer with 43 seconds left in the game. He followed with another 3 to finish with 6 points. He acknowledged it's hard for his team to win if he's not scoring, but he also wants to distribute the ball and be a team player.
"I never go into a game thinking about how many points I'm going to score," Wilson said. "I just play the game the way it's supposed to be played. If I can't get a good shot off, or if my teammates have a better shot than I do, I'll hit them. I don't try to force anything because it looks bad on me."
"I don't think [scoring just 6 points] necessarily said he didn't play well," Ryan said of Wilson. "I thought he had some really good passes, and I thought he defended really hard. Credit to them. They play great defense. I'm working with him on trying to be a little more selfish, actually."
A 5-point run by Beals got Carmel within 32-30 late in the third quarter. But Kochera knocked down a 3 after an offensive rebound by the Lions, commencing a 15-0 run that carried into the fourth. Freshman Eli Aldana drained a big 3 in the fourth for St. Viator, which kept Carmel from getting no closer 7 points down the stretch.
"I think they're a very good team," Hayes said of the Corsairs. "They got shooters, they can get in the paint, and they can do a lot of different things. I thought we guarded really well."