Jordan-esque effort lifts Carmel

The last name is Jordan, he plays basketball and he laces on flashy high-tops.

Carmel Catholic junior Conner Jordan simply calls them his "yellow shoes," which complement his school colors of brown and gold.

"The first day I pulled them out, some people liked them, some people didn't," Jordan said. "But they work out well."

Jordan and his teammates would rather be noticed for their play on the court, and Wednesday night the Corsairs shined like a brand-new pair of leather sneakers.

Carmel scored the most points it has in a game all season, getting off a hot start and pulling away early from host Wauconda to post an 83-41 win in nonconference play.

Carmel improved to 6-12 with just its fourth win in its last 16 games. Wauconda, which had won five of its last eight, fell to 5-13.

"We had something to prove," said Jordan, who led all scorers with 16 points and also had 3 steals. "We were all excited. We've been losing in conference (East Suburban Catholic) so it feels good to get another win under our belt. Everyone played well tonight."

Corsairs coach Tim Bowen has been encouraged by his team's progress, and the Corsairs were finally able to reap some rewards.

Wauconda's Connor Rueb opened the scoring with a 3-pointer, but it was all Carmel after that. The Corsairs scored the next 12 points and were up 26-16 late in the opening quarter after a 3-point play by Dan Feld.

"They're doing some really nice stuff out there," Bowen said of his players. "When we're playing teams that are not ranked No. 2 in the state, we have a better opportunity to get to the basket. I'm just very proud of them, even when we lose a game. I'm not going to do a cartwheel with excitement, but I'm very, very pleased with what we're doing."

Carmel forward Brandon Motzel had his second straight double-double, scoring 11 points and grabbing 10 rebounds, including 7 offensive boards in the first quarter. Doug Meyer added 10 points, including two 3s, while Tim Hendricks had 5 points, 6 assists and 6 steals. Feld and Greg Edkins chipped in 9 points apiece.

Michael Lovelle led Wauconda with 9 points.

"I liked our ball movement and the way we handled their zone," Bowen said. "I thought that was a nice zone they were running out there, the way they were handling the man-to-man and switching. We've seen a couple of those this year, but nothing like that."

Bowen played 14 of the 15 players on his roster, and 12 scored. Only junior Joe Molloy, who's been sidelined all season with an ulcer, did not play. Molloy, the son of the former Carmel coach with the same name, did dress for the first time.

"He was just glad to be on the bench, wearing a uniform, and taking some shots during warmups," Bowen said. "He was pretty happy about that."

C.J. Stempeck scored 20 of his season-high 21 points in the second half, as Grayslake Central's boys basketball team stayed hot with a 60-46 win over host Johnsburg on Wednesday night.

Coupled with Grayslake North's win over Crystal Lake Central, Grayslake Central (8-8, 4-1) moved into a first-place tie with Grayslake North in the Fox Valley Fox Division.

Jordan Taylor and Casey Boyle added 12 and 11 points, respectively, for the Rams, who won their fourth in a row.

Johnsburg (2-13, 0-3) was led by Mike Dombrowski's 16 points and Mike Ward's 12.

Grayslake North 59, CL Central 56: A.J. Fish scored a season-high 18 points, including the go-ahead basket on a reverse layup with 37 seconds left, as the host Knights pulled into a first-place tie in the Fox Valley Fox Division, while handing the Tigers their first loss in divisional play.

Grayslake North improved to 12-4 and 4-1. Crystal Lake Central dropped to 13-4, 3-1.

David Sparks (14 points) and Zack Krupp (season-high 12) also scored in double figures for the Knights, who trailed 32-24 at halftime before outscoring the visitors 24-8 in the third.

Teddy Ludwick added 8 points for Grayslake North.

<div id="infoBox"> <h1>More Coverage</h1> <div class="infoBoxContent"> <div class="infoArea"> <h2>Related stories</h2> <ul class="links"> <li><a href="/story/?id=418058">Images: Carmel vs. Wauconda <span class="date">[01/19/11]</span></a></li> </ul> </div> </div> </div>