Boys basketball notes: MSL teams preparing to converge at Schaumburg sectional
With boys basketball state tournament seed voting taking place next week, Cook area teams are making their final tweaks to their resumes in the hopes of attaining higher seeds.
The seeds will be posted by the IHSA next Thursday, Feb. 13 at 4 p.m. Pairings and regional assignments will then be a Valentine’s Day love message on Feb. 14 at 4 p.m.
Here is a look at the area sectionals, with their regional sites and dates; records are through games played Feb. 3.
Class 4A
Schaumburg sectional
Regional sites: Barrington, Rolling Meadows, Larkin, Stevenson
This will be a mini MSL tournament with 11 teams from the conference in the 18-team field. Only Elk Grove is missing. The remainder of the field is comprised of Stevenson, Larkin, Lake Zurich, Streamwood, Dundee-Crown, South Elgin and Elgin.
Rolling Meadows (21-3) will be one of the top seeds. The Mustangs have a solid core and have outscored their opponents by nearly 500 points this season. They are led by Marquette commit Ian Miletic. Jack Duffer, who recently committed to Wisconsin Lutheran College, along with seniors Gavin Escobedo, Patrick Coen, Lazar Lazarevic, Ryan Meyer, Jaeden Warrener and Aaron Kossack also have been key to the team’s success.
Fremd (21-2) is also vying for the top spot. The Vikings, who are led by Jordan Williams (18 ppg), Sam Hirsch (14.5 ppg), Rafael Pinto (12 ppg), Ryan Brown (9 ppg) and Tommy Moffett, have a huge week with New Trier Tuesday night and Barrington with the MSL West at stake on Friday.
Hersey (18-4) is two games back of Meadows in the MSL East and plays on the Mustangs’ home court on Friday. Hersey is led by Charlie Pomis (16.2 ppg) and Jackson Hupp (12.7 ppg), who just committed to Eckerd College in Florida. Brody Variano has also been a key factor of late.
Never count out Barrington (15-6). The Broncos, who have played nearly all season without All-Area guard Nick Peipert, are within a victory Friday over Fremd to take control of the MSL West. Oliver Gray (22 ppg), who scored his 1,000th career point last Friday, leads the Broncos while sophomore Jackson Roberts has come off the bench as a spark.
Schaumburg (17-8) is getting hot at the right time. The Saxons, who have won 8 of their last 11, are led by Jordan Tunis (16.3 ppg), Zion Young (13.2 ppg) and Cam Anderson (8.3 ppg) along with Javonte McCoy and sophomores Jason Jancik and Aaron Shogren, who have stepped up recently. If the Saxons win their regional, they will play on their own court in the sectionals.
Palatine (14-12) is looking catch fire like they did last season when the raced their way to Champaign, where the finished fourth in the state in Class 4A. Tony Balanganayi, Carter Monroe and Darren Dick, who were all key contributors to that team, along with Andy Iliopolis, Kasey May and Brady May, are looking to get things started for the Pirates.
Hoffman Estates (18-8) has not won 20 games in a season since winning 24 in 2021-22. The Hawks have 5 regular season games remaining to accomplish that. Hoffman, which has won its own Thanksgiving tournament and the Maine East Christmas tournament, are led by Daiquan Daniels, Torey Baskin, Joey Hernandez, Chris Mobley and Nate Cleveland.
Conant (11-12) has flourished under first-year coach Greg Grana. The Cougars play great defense and have been getting scoring from Bradley Biedke (15 ppg) and Nate Hahn (12 ppg). Rohan Patel, Harlum Drake and Andreas Sassaris have also been key contributors.
Prospect (11-14) has come up with some huge wins this season. The Knights, who are third in the MSL East, have received strong play from Ben Schneider (15 ppg) and Ryan Lifton 10 (ppg) while junior Johnny Nellis has stepped up defensively and Jack Skoog is coming off a career-high 19-point, 9-rebound game.
Buffalo Grove (8-18) could surprise someone. The Bison continue to get great play from sophomore Alex Sirbu (14.9 ppg, 10.7 rpg) and freshman Edwin Karnauchovas (10.9 ppg).
Wheeling (10-15) is having its best season in the last five years. The Wildcats are led by Brent Collar (16.5 ppg), Zach Neukirch (9.5 ppg) and Jesus 'Chuy' Zavala (8 ppg).
New Trier sectional
Regional sites: Maine South, Highland Park, Niles North, Loyola
New Trier, Evanston and Niles North should be the top three teams while four area teams look to make a splash.
Maine South (11-13) is hosting a regional and the Hawks hope that can give them an edge. Maine South has been paced by Rico D'Alessandro (18 ppg). Jack Sladky, who is a senior, is coming off a 20-point game last Friday.
Maine West (13-12) has won 6 of its last 8 games, and the Warriors are looking to take that momentum into the playoffs. Davion Tate and Baker Blevins have led the resurgence for Maine West.
Leyden (7-16) is hoping to fly high come playoff time. The Eagles are led by Nick Gattuso (16.4) and Ernesto Sanchez (14.2 ppg).
Maine East (6-15) hopes to get things rolling in the tournament behind Brandon Schreiber, freshman Jayden Dozie and Jaiden Whitehead.
St. Charles East sectional
Regional sites: Addison Trail, Geneva, Proviso West and Lake Park
Elk Grove is the lone area team here. Glenbard West, Geneva and Wheaton Warrenville South are the favorites.
Elk Grove (3-22) has been battling injuries all season. At one point, 9 of its top 13 players were sidelined. But the bright spot for first year head coach Chris Rugg has been the play of sophomore Cooper Casterton (12.9 ppg) and junior Nolan Brand (10.2 ppg).
Class 3A
Antioch sectional
Regional Sites: DePaul, Grayslake North, Notre Dame, Vernon Hills
Defending state champion DePaul is a huge favorite here. Grayslake Central, Deerfield, Lake Forest and St. Viator could also be in the mix.
St. Viator (19-7) is seeking its fifth regional title in the last 10 seasons. The Lions are a senior-dominated group led by Henry Marshall, Brandyn Michaels and Dayvion Ellis along with sophomore Dawson Charles.
Class 1A
Somonaul sectional
Regional sites: Harvest Christian
Schaumburg Christian (15-10) could make some noise in their subsectional which features Harvest Christian and St. Edward.