Larkin hopes to keep its dominance over Elgin going
When it comes to strangleholds in this boys basketball rivalry series, Larkin's grip on Elgin has never been tighter.
Larkin has beaten the Maroons 8 straight games over the course of three seasons, thereby tying a record for consecutive wins in the series by the Royals, who still trail 79-48 all-time.
Larkin seniors like guards AJ Hunter and Keion Adams haven't seen their varsity lose to the Maroons since they were in eighth grade.
Elgin's last victory in the series? Then-senior Kory Brown scored 16 of his 21 points in the second half of a 64-51 win on Feb. 20, 2012. It was the last of 8 straight Elgin wins against Larkin.
These Royals don't intend to let the Maroons start a new streak at their expense when they visit Chesbrough Field House for the Upstate Eight River opener Friday at 7 p.m..
"We're trying to prove to them that we still got it on our side of town," Larkin junior guard Keyvon Kyles said. "First conference game. It's going to be a big one."
Elgin (4-1) seems better poised to challenge Larkin's dominance than it was last season when the Royals won the first meeting by 35 points and the second by 20.
Fueled by balanced scoring and improved team defense, the Maroons won the West Chicago Thanksgiving Tournament last week. Senior point guard Desmond Douglas (5-foot-8) led the way by topping the 20-point plateau three times, but he had help from his teammates. Senior guard Reggie Cole scored 20 points in a 3-point win against Schurz and 6-7 junior Courtese Cooper posted 13 points twice.
"They're quick, they're athletic and they can score," Larkin coach Deryn Carter said of the Maroons. "It'll be like playing a mirror image, I think. It'll be interesting."
Four Maroons cracked double figures in 4 of their 5 games at the West Chicago Tournament.
"I was pretty happy with that," Elgin coach Mike Sitter said. "We're spreading the ball around, making the extra pass, getting other people involved and other people are stepping up and wanting the ball. That's been good to see."
Elgin hopes to find a way to slow the effecitvenes of Larkin forward Christian Negron, who has yet to lose to the Maroons in 4 varsity starts. The multitalented junior averaged 17.5 points and 11 rebounds last week as Larkin split 4 competitive games against good competition from around the Midwest at the Rockford District 205 Thanksgiving Tournament.
Like Elgin, Larkin's scoring has been balanced thus far. Hunter averaged 14.8 points, Kyles added 12.3 and 6-8 sophomore Jalen Shaw contributed 7.6 points per game at Rockford. Shaw, who steps into the role vacated by graduated big man Daniel McFadden, had 10 points and 10 rebounds in his first varsity game, a 78-54 win over Freeport.
Still, stopping Larkin means holding Negron's scoring total within reason. Sitter said Elgin has to pick its poison defensively. The Maroons can play a smaller defender against him. That would take away the Larkin star's ability to drive off the dribble but would give him a huge rebounding advantage. Or Elgin can elect to guard Negron with a bigger player who might not be able to keep up on the perimeter.
"It's funny because it's how teams used to worry about Kory Brown years ago," Sitter said. "Is it a size/jumping issue or is it the quickness issue? You just have to decide exactly which way you're going to attack him and where you're going to get help from."
Negron is looking forward to the opportunity regardless of how the Maroons scheme to slow him down.
"It's always fun to play Elgin," he said. "I'm looking forward to it. When it comes to rivalry games records don't really matter, talent doesn't really matter. It's all about who wants it more and that's our philosophy going into it. It's going to be a dogfight regardless. It should be fun."