Basketball MVPs, Week 10
Vernon Hills sophomore guard Sydney Smith and St. Charles East junior forward Kendall Stephen have earned the Daily Herald’s MVP award for their recent basketball performances. It’s the 10th installment of the award this varsity season.
Smith made 8 3-pointers on her way to a career-best 26 points as Vernon Hills completed a perfect run through the North Suburban Prairie by beating Lakes.
Stephens wracked up a total of 39 points in Upstate Eight River wins over Streamwood and Elgin and made all 10 of his free throw attempts in those games.
Girls MVPSydney Smith, Vernon Hills: The Cougars celebrated their school-record 21st win with an unprecedented performance. The 5-foot-10 sophomore poured in a school-record eight 3-pointers, including five in the second quarter, and finished with a career-best 26 points in a 61-46 win over Lakes. The Cougars#146; victory capped a 12-0 run through the North Suburban Prairie.
Girls runners-upMackenzie Bollinger, Aurora Christian: Aurora Christian closed its regular season with a pair of wins last week led both times by Mackenzie Bollinger. The junior guard started with 21 points, 6 rebounds and 5 steals in a 52-42 victory over Serena and then led a 35-31 comeback win over Immaculate Conception with a team-high 13 points plus 6 rebounds, a steal and a block.
Emma Donahue, Naperville Central: Redhawks 6-foot-3 senior played big in a pair of DuPage Valley Conference wins. Donahue scored 13 points with 6 rebounds and 6 blocked shots to beat Wheaton North 52-43, then had 21 points, 13 rebounds and 7 blocks in a 46-43 win over Naperville North.
Nia Pappas, Palatine: The Pirates were working overtime and so was Pappas. In back-to-back overtime games, Pappas scored 19 points and hit two 3-pointers in a 59-52 win over Lake Park, then tossed home a career-high 26 points and hit four 3s in a 45-39 win over Hoffman Estates.
Rena Ranallo, St. Edward: The Green Wave#146;s junior point guard sparked a 44-33 win over Hinckley-Big Rock with 19 points, 4 assists and 5 steals then came back and scored 6 points with 4 assists and contributed to a stellar defensive effort in a 42-40 overtime victory at Aurora Central Catholic, which was St. Edward#146;s sixth straight win.
Boys MVPKendall Stephens, St. Charles East: The 6-foot-5 Purdue recruit totaled 39 points in Upstate Eight Conference River Division wins. The junior forward scored 18 points with 6 rebounds in a 66-55 win over Streamwood and followed with 21 points and 5 rebounds in a 65-63 win over Elgin. Stephens was perfect on 10 free throws in the two games with five 3-pointers.
Boys runners-upStephen Curry, Vernon Hills: The junior guard missed two games after a collision with a teammate in practice resulted in him needing several stitches above his left eye. In his return to the lineup, Curry proved to be a cut above the rest. He scored 10 of his season- and game-high 22 points in the opening quarter and added 7 rebounds and 3 steals, as the Cougars cruised to a 76-51 win over Chicagoland Jewish.
Kevin Honn, Downers Grove South: With the Mustangs playing short-handed, Honn helped carry the load in three victories. The 6-foot-5 senior forward scored 22 points against Addison Trail, 26 against Willowbrook and 15 against Downers Grove North while shooting 65 percent from the field. Honn also averaged 7 rebounds and had 8 total steals.
Brandon Rodriguez, Dundee-Crown: This junior guard was a road warrior in two victories. He scored a game-best 19 points to lead Dundee-Crown to a hard-fought 51-49 conference win at McHenry. At rival Jacobs, he scored 14 points and made 3 steals to lead the Chargers to their eighth victory in nine games.
Brad Zaumseil, Barrington: Zaumseil has had a lot to do with Barrington#146;s longest winning streak of the season which is now at four games. In the last three wins the junior guard averaged 17 points and 6.7 assists and he had a double-double of 22 points and 10 assists against Palatine.