Carmel grad Duff ends great run at Western Illinois

Carmel High School alum C.J. Duff just completed quite the impressive run for the Western Illinois University men's basketball team.

A 4-year starter and a senior, Duff ended his career at Western with 112 consecutive starts, which tied him with Western all-time career leading scorer Joe Dykstra for the program record.

Duff also went over the 1,000 career-point mark this season, which puts him 24th all-time on that list.

Western finished the season 5-21 overall and 2-14 in Summit League play. The Leathernecks did not qualify for the conference tournament.

This season, Duff started all 25 games he played in and averaged 9.6 points per game, while adding 2.7 rebounds per outing to go with 43 assists and 21 steals. He shot .370 from the 3-point line (37 of 100) and hit 40 of 47 free-throw attempts (.851).

In talking about Duff and fellow senior James Claar, Western coach Billy Wright noted, "(C.J. and James) just showed what it meant to be a Division I student-athlete. They display the core values set by our university, the core values set by our department and our unconditional all-in approach to basketball. They are great students and great basketball players, and guys that we will remember and celebrate moving forward in whatever they choose to do."

Ellis at Lynn: Warren product Branden Ellis is a sophomore on the Lynn University men's basketball team. The former high school state high jump champion has played in 25 games this season (15 starts) and is averaging 8.8 points per game to go with 3.8 rebounds per contest. Ellis also has 34 assists, 27 steals and 19 blocks. In a recent loss to Florida Southern Ellis had 4 points and 3 rebounds. He also had 4 points in a recent 114-80 victory over Tampa.

Smith at Indiana: Stevenson grad Justin Smith is a junior forward on the Indiana University men's basketball team, which just had its season cancelled due to the coronavirus outbreak.

Smith played in the team's 89-64 win earlier this week against Nebraska in the Big Ten tournament in Indianapolis, Indiana. Smith had 12 points and 6 rebounds in 28 minutes of action. He shot 6-for-12 from the floor in the game. The rest of the Big Ten tournament was then cancelled followed by the NCAA men's tournament.

Smith concludes his season averaging 10.4 points per game (third on the team) to go with 5.2 rebounds. Smith also led Indiana in steals with 31 and had 10 blocked shots. He shot .492 from the field and .673 from the foul line (70 of 104) in 32 starts for the Hoosiers.

Saint Xavier women's basketball: Lake Zurich graduate McKenna Zobel and Grayslake North product Sidney Lovitsch are getting their fill of postseason college basketball.

Zobel and Lovitsch are members of the Saint Xavier University women's basketball team in Chicago that recently opened the NAIA Division II playoffs as the No. 2 seed in the 32-team bracket. The Cougars bring a No. 6 national ranking into the tournament. Saint Xavier opened with Avila, which won the Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference tournament and an automatic bid.

Zobel, a 6-0 sophomore center, is averaging 6.0 points and 4.5 rebounds per game. She has started 32 of the 33 games she has played in and is shooting .519 from the field (10 3-pointers) and .800 from the free-throw line, while chipping in 24 blocked shots.

Lovitsch, a 5-8 junior guard, has played in 33 games, mainly coming off the bench (4 starts). She's averaging 7.6 points per game and 3.4 rebounds per contest, while shooting .455 from the field with 27 made 3-pointers. She also has 75 assists against 55 turnovers and is second on the team in steals with 58.

Daun at Illinois State: Wauconda graduate Grace Daun has made an immediate impact as a freshman for the Illinois State University women's indoor track and field team.

Daun recently competed in the Missouri Valley Conference indoor championships in Cedar Falls, Iowa where she earned all-Valley honors after placing second in the high jump with a leap of 5-7.

Daun's efforts helped Illinois State win its third-straight Valley indoor conference title, breaking an MVC record with 190.16 points on the second day of the championships. With the win, the Redbirds have won a Valley-best 12 indoor titles.

• Off at College wants your help: Send information and/or statistics on Lake County-area athletes competing collegiately to Mike Miazga at mjm890@gmail.com. Spring sports submissions are encouraged as are winter season wrap-ups.