Senechalle stands tall

Coming off a strong junior season when he averaged 12 points a game, it's no surprise Kevin Senechalle is enjoying a big season at St. Charles East.

Yes, everyone knew the 6-foot-7 Senechalle was good.

But this good?

Twenty-four points per game good?

Ten rebounds a game good?

Heck, if you are surprised Senechalle is putting up NBA All-Star numbers, you are in good company.

"I'm surprised," Senechalle said. "I didn't think I'd be averaging 20 and 10 my senior year whatsoever."

Senechalle is well past 20 points a game, thanks to a recent barrage of buckets. He started his senior year by leading the St. Charles East Thanksgiving tournament in scoring, and has only got better from there.

He really turned heads at the York Jack Tosh Holiday Tournament, where he averaged over 30 points to lead all 16 teams in scoring.

Senechalle has started 2009 where he left off in 2008, with 28 points and 17 rebounds against Streamwood.

Maybe the only person not surprised is his coach, Brian Clodi.

"We saw it all summer," Clodi said of the huge scoring numbers. "When he was a sophomore before we brought him up, we saw that. We knew he could do it."

Senechalle took a back seat at times last year to Colin Pryor, now at Northern State in South Dakota. This year, Senechalle is Option A, B and C for the Saints.

"Last year we obviously had more scorers and Colin was a great player," Clodi said. "He (Kevin) knows what to do with it when he's double and tripled, he doesn't turn it over often. He's just a nice, nice player. I give him a lot of credit, and I give the team a lot of credit because they bought into playing through Kevin. It's easy to get selfish and this team hasn't."

Part of the reason is Senechalle is so unselfish. He had 4 assists against Streamwood and is within .2 a game of the team lead.

Also, it's not like he's taking a lot of bad shots. Senechalle is shooting 54 percent from the field and 72 percent from the line.

"Having a good pass feels awesome and it's nice to get everyone else involved," Senechalle said. "Last year with Colin I became a better passer getting him the ball."

Senior Zach Scott is one of the primary beneficiaries. He has knocked down 20 3-pointers and ranks second on the team in scoring.

"He's not selfish, he'll kick the ball out," Scott said. "A great team player and at the same time he can take over a game."

Senechalle is the opposite of a lumbering big man. He's quick, he can play the passing lanes on defense, make a steal and take it to other end for a layup.

That kind of athleticism, in addition to his scoring touch and rebound abilities, have helped Senechalle get noticed by colleges at the Division I, Division II and NAIA levels. Loyola, Boston U, University of St. Francis and Wisconsin-Parkside are among the schools he's considering. Senechalle said he will make this decision after the season.

"That's his work ethic because we keep telling him at the next level he's got to be able to handle the rock, he's got to be able to take someone off the dribble, he's got to be able to bring the ball up the court," Clodi said of Senechalle's versatility.

"So he works on it. When we get into trouble, we put him at point because he's that quick. He might be one of quicker kids. He wins almost every sprint we do. He's just a very gifted athlete, and it shows every time he goes out there."

While things are going great for Senechalle individually, it hasn't been so smooth for the Saints, who are just 2-12.

"He would score 0 points if we could win the rest of the games. I mean that," Clodi said. "The sky is the limit for him. He makes plays on his own. He's our anchor. He's the heart and soul right now."