Freshman Stephens shines, but St. Charles East falls
If nothing else, he has the right bloodlines.
St. Charles East entered the Jack Tosh Holiday Classic in Elmhurst on Saturday afternoon with a depleted squad, but guard Kendall Stephens had his official coming out party. The Saints' prized freshman started his first game of the season, leading their boys basketball squad against an undefeated Brother Rice team.
The Crusaders broke free from a tight first quarter to remain unblemished on the season with a 71-59 victory, but Stephens' combination of court sense, range on the jumper and poise for his tender years was the Saints' main storyline. The son of former Evanston and Purdue star Everette Stephens, the Saints' freshman led St. Charles East with 17 points in defeat.
"He's going to be a heck of a player," said Brother Rice coach Pat Richardson. "I was impressed with him when I saw him on tape, too."
The Saints, though, were dropped into the consolation bracket of the 16-team, four-day tournament. SCE (3-6) will meet Conant, which lost to Downers Grove South, Monday afternoon.
Brother Rice (8-0) trailed for a mere possession in the entire game - midway through the first quarter - but countered the Saints' 2-3 zone with a blizzard of 3-pointers to match the unrelenting snow outside. The Crusaders hoisted up 21 shots from beyond the arc in the opening half, connecting on seven of them to build a 31-19 lead at the break. St. Charles East misfired on 16 first-half shots, including all five 3-point attempts, but the Saints were revived in the high-scoring second half.
"We were very fortunate that they didn't shoot the ball very well (in the first half)," Richardson said. "Otherwise, we would have lost."
The second half was back-and-forth with both offenses as well-tuned as the shot selection was adjusted. Unfortunately for the Saints, though, the teams' shared 40-point second-half outputs meant the Crusaders' double-digit first-half cushion went largely unthreatened. Stephens' team-high points total was framed by three 3-pointers and a series of impressive turnaround jumpers from the free-throw area.
"We wanted to be more aggressive," Stephens said. "Coach (Brian Clodi) wanted to get more production from the seniors. The 2-3 zone (in the first half) was not as good as it should have been. We gave them too many good looks."
With Spencer Motley and Bryce Barry unavailable for St. Charles East, Stephens' increased role was magnified.
"Our seniors really have to make this team go," said Clodi. "(Motley and Barry) are two of our top-six players. We wanted to get beat from outside the arc. They're undefeated for a reason."
Josh Creed had a game-high 23 points to lead four Brother Rice players in double figures. Drew Vasquez augmented Stephens' total with 14 points of his own; Zack Burns had 9 points for the Saints, and Dan Ditusa added 7.