Blackmon, Wheaton Academy take win at Fenton
Wheaton Academy's Gerald Blackmon wrapped up a busy week in style.
On Wednesday Blackmon signed to play defensive back for Olivet Nazerene University.
Two days later, Blackmon celebrated by handing out treats in the form of assists.
Blackmon scored 5 points and dished out a personal-high 8 assists to power the Warriors to a 53-39 victory over Fenton on Friday in Bensenville.
"It's been a long week," Blackmon said. "I've been talking with Olivet for a long time, and Olivet was the place I wanted to be. I love basketball, but football is where I want to be. It was an awesome game (tonight)."
Blackmon sparked the Warriors (16-6, 8-2) with his defense and passing to keep his team in first place in the Metro Suburban Red. Junior Marcus Bult was the beneficiary of many of Blackmon's assists, finishing with a team-high 17 points. Bult scored 11 points in a key 10-minute segment in the second half. Jack Dykema tossed in 10 points, and Christian Pares was an inside force with 9 points and 3 blocks.
"I think Gerald has his best game of the year," Wheaton Academy coach Steve Thonn said. "He handled the ball well. He controlled the game, made some great passes. We did a good job on defense against their guards. This was a big win, tough to come here."
The conference game featured many lead changes in the first half, but the Warriors changed the game by turning up the defensive pressure. Leading 18-17 at halftime, the Warriors forced seven turnovers in an eight-possession sequence, including five in a row, to take command.
Bult closed the Warriors' third-quarter scoring by scoring on a layup and draining a 3-pointer to pad the lead to 33-19 with 47 seconds left.
"We went into halftime and wanted to take it to the next level, and then Coach (Thonn) said to pressure them and force them to turn the ball over," Blackmon said. "Right away, we got a couple of turnovers and we got them out of their comfort zone. I was screaming to the guys, 'Let's get five straight stops.'"
Diamon King's strong play was one of the highlights for the Bison (8-16, 4-6). He finished with a game-high 21 points, scoring 10 points in the fourth quarter.
"They pressured our guards and that was the difference between the first and second half," Fenton coach Chaz Taft said. "It's hard to get into a flow when you are turning the ball over."