Dundee-Crown hopes to take next step
It’s been some time since the Dundee-Crown girls basketball team has played as big a Fox Valley Conference game as the Chargers have Wednesday night.
And don’t think for a moment that FVC Valley Division kingpin Cary-Grove is taking the Chargers lightly.
D-C (11-6 overall) and Cary-Grove (10-5) meet at 7:15 p.m. today in Cary for sole possession of first place in the division. Each stand at 4-0 in the league entering the contest.
Playing for first place is nothing new for coach Rod Saffert’s Trojans. They are the two-time defending Valley champs and come into tonight’s game with a 15-game division winning streak. In fact, since 2007-08, Cary-Grove has won 3 of the 4 Valley titles while going 41-3 in league play.
On the other hand, Dundee-Crown hasn’t had a winning conference season since 2005-06 and hasn’t won a conference championship since 2004-05. Last season, the Chargers finally snapped what was then a 24-game conference losing streak.
But all that has changed with D-C this season. The Chargers are currently on a 4-game winning streak and are 7-2 since starting the season 0-4.
“We’re jacked up and ready to go,” said fourth-year D-C coach Michelle Russell, whose team could contend for a No. 1 regional seed with a win (seedings are due out Jan. 26). “The kids are fired up and they believe they can win.”
D-C, which hasn’t had a winning overall season since 2004-05, has gotten back to its winning ways behind a trio of seniors that includes 5-9 Ali Sanders, 5-10 Diamond Williams and 5-3 Carlin Faulkner. Sanders averages 14.5 points per game and is a 77 percent free-throw shooter, Williams averages 10.5 points and 10 rebounds, and Faulkner scores at a 10.5 clip and has 29 3-pointers.
“I said it this summer when we played them, Michelle has done a great job of getting them going,” said Saffert, now in his sixth season as Cary-Grove’s head coach. “It’s awesome for them. She’s got six seniors and they’re all playing well. I couldn’t be happier for them and for Michelle. She’s stuck with her plan and they’re winning now.”
Saffert knows stopping Sanders is they key to shutting down the Chargers, but he acknowledges D-C isn’t a one-player team.
“You have to try to control Ali’s possessions and touches,” he said. “She and Diamond work really well together. But you also have to be concerned with Faulkner. I think it all starts with Ali and Diamond but they have other kids who can hurt you.”
Russell credits defense as being Cary-Grove’s strong suit. To witness, the Trojans have allowed only 39 points per game, but they’ve also struggled to score a bit, averaging just 43.5 ppg. Junior Olivia Jakubicek leads C-G with a 14.1 ppg scoring average, while senior Paige Lincicum (9.1) and junior Joslyn Nicholson (7.6) are also threats. The 5-10 Jakubicek also averages 7.6 rebounds per game and Lincicum, who leads the team in assists, pulls down 5.6 boards per game.
“They play a tight man-to-man defense so we’ll have to limit our turnovers and protect the ball and have patience,” Russell said. “We’ll also have to crash the boards and box out. Those will be the key points.”
Russell has seen a lot of steadily improving things from her team.
“I see a lot of good things happening,” she said. “Our defense is getting better and we just have to keep working on the little things. We’ve been hitting our free throws down the stretch lately and that’s helped us a lot. Little things make a big difference.”
Saffert and his Trojans will rely on defense, just as they have all season.
“We have to try to force as many turnovers as we can. That’s what we do,” he said.
Elgin vs. Larkin, Round one: Elgin and Larkin will meet for the first time this season Thursday night at Chesbrough Field House and despite each team’s subpar record, it’s still an Elgin-Larkin game.
“The girls are pumped and excited,” said first-year Larkin coach Tissanie Simmons, a 2003 Larkin grad who was on the losing end of 4 of the 6 games she played against Elgin in high school. “It’s still the one that matters most during the season.”
Larkin, which carries a 2-14 record into Tuesday night’s game against Woodstock, has won the last three matchups against the Maroons, after Elgin had won the previous three. Prior to Elgin’s 50-33 win on Dec. 3, 2009, Larkin had won 10 straight over Elgin, a streak that started on Feb. 17, 2003 when Amy Silverman’s Royals upset Lee Turek’s Maroons in the final game of Turek’s famed career as Elgin’s coach.
Elgin (0-16) is now in the throes of a 44-game losing streak, which is believed to be the longest current losing streak for girls basketball in Illinois. But Maroons’ coach Dr. Nick Bumbales says he and his players are still taking things one game at a time, and the next one on the schedule is Thursday’s Upstate Eight River clash.
“We really don’t talk about the streak,” Bumbales said. “Their focus right now is to beat Larkin. The focus is one game at a time.”
The Maroons have been led all season by senior center Bri Hamilton, who Bumbales calls, “one of the best players in the conference.” The coach also says he’s been seeing steady improvement from senior co-captain Kenyatta Scales, as well as his three sophomore starters — Maggie Powers, Anna Eckholm and Jessica Ramirez.
“They come out and practice hard every day and nobody’s quit,” Bumbales said. “They’re all happy to be here and the numbers at the lower levels have remained strong. Our seniors have provided good leadership.”
Larkin, which defeated Westminster Christian last weekend, presents a tough challenge for the Maroons. The Royals are led by a senior core that includes Jill Casebeer, Maggie Hoffman, Abby Alvarez and Alison Driskill, as well as sophomore Tori Patterson.
“It’s going to be a tough game for us,” said Bumbales, whose team plays at Westminster Christian on Saturday. “Larkin’s playing real well right now. Their core kids have been around a while and Tissanie is doing a good job of staying positive with them. If we can handle the press and shoot better than we have been we can have some success. If we don’t it’s going to be tough.”
Simmons has seen improvement in her team as well.
“The way we move the ball and our transition has gotten better,” she said. “They’re learning how to apply things and a lot of the girls have gotten better and are growing. There’s been improvement in our defense and with the understanding of being passionate on the floor.”
MLK doings: Several teams will be in action in Martin Luther King weekend shootouts, starting with Hampshire taking on North Boone at Byron at 10:30 a.m. Saturday. The Whip-Purs will return to Byron Monday to play Sterling Newman Catholic.
Also on Monday, Streamwood will play Marian Catholic of Chicago Heights at 10 a.m. at Willowbrook High School in the McDonald’s Shootout, and St. Edward will take on Rockford Lutheran at 2:30 p.m. in the MLK Basketball Celebration at Concordia University in River Forest. That game will pit the likely 1-2 seeds in next month’s Class 2A North Boone regional.
Westminster Christian also plays at Concordia Monday, taking on Metro East Lutheran of Edwardsville at 8:30 a.m.
State rankings: Bartlett, No. 1 in the Daily Herald Top 20, is No. 5 in Class 4A in the latest Associated Press statewide poll released Tuesday. The Hawks (19-0) are ranked behind Corry Carter’s Whitney Young Dolphins (14-0), Bolingbrook (10-1), Edwardsville (16-0) and Marist (16-0). Waubonsie Valley (13-1) is No. 9. St. Edward (13-5) received votes in Class 2A.