Hardy, St. Charles East down East Aurora
Every high school basketball coach awaits the season opener with optimism and a bit of trepidation.
However, the return of a leading scorer and rebounder can help calm the nerves.
Senior forward Justin Hardy scored 22 points and added 10 rebounds, 7 assists and 5 steals to help lift St. Charles East (1-0) to a 69-62 victory over East Aurora (0-1) during Monday night's opening round of the 59th annual Ron Johnson Thanksgiving Tournament in St. Charles.
Hardy, who got off to a strong start with 6 points, 6 rebounds and 4 steals in the first quarter, received plenty of support from his teammates.
Senior guard Zach Robinson enjoyed one of the best shooting performances of his career, igniting the Saints to a 39-26 halftime advantage with 18 of his 20 points in the first half on 7 of 8 accuracy from the floor, including a sizzling 4 of 5 from beyond the 3-point arc.
St. Charles East led 39-26 at the intermission.
"Zach has worked hard over the summer to improve his shot," said Saints coach Patrick Woods. "He did that and it was good to see tonight."
Woods also enjoyed watching Hardy's all-around effort.
The 6-foot-5 Hardy scored 9 points in the first 2 minutes of the second half with a pair of 2-hand dunks while the Tomcats misfired on their first 4 field-goal attempts in the third quarter as the Saints' lead swelled to 48-26.
"Justin gave us his usual - 20 points, 10 rebounds," said Woods. "He almost had a triple-double. That's pretty impressive."
Junior guard Charles Murphy chipped in with 12 points, while junior Cody Mitchell had 4 points and Jude Clodi came off the bench with 3 points and 4 assists.
East Aurora pulled within 10 at 69-59 with 1:26 left, thanks in part to the play of 6-4 junior Jules Williamson, who scored 13 of his team-high 19 points in the fourth quarter.
"I would not want to play East Aurora down the stretch," said Woods. "Once they figure it out, they have the potential to be pretty solid."
The loss spoiled the debut of Tomcats head coach Rick Robinson.
East Aurora won the rebounding battle, 36-32, while forcing 18 Saints' turnovers.
"We still have a lot of work to do," said Woods.
The Saints have little time to celebrate as they return to face Schaumburg (0-1) Tuesday night.
"Judging by the first night, we're going to be tested every game we play," said Woods. "That's why I love the tournament. It challenges you and there's no easy games."
Schaumburg opened its season with a hard-fought 75-68 loss to perennial power St. Joseph Monday night.