Who had the top prep basketball performances of the week?
Not so fast, playoff basketball.
Even though the pairings for the IHSA girls tournament were released last week — and the boys pairings soon will follow — we’ve still got unfinished business in the regular season.
This edition of the High Five looks at the top prep basketball performances from last week.
5. Ashley Mahlum, Barrington
After Barrington dropped a 47-42 Mid-Suburban West game to Conant earlier in the season, Mahlum led last week’s payback game, a 40-30 victory.
The 5-foot-11 senior forward, who recently committed to Illinois Wesleyan University, poured in a career-high 26 points against the Cougars. She got the Fillies off to a great start by knocking down a pair of first-half 3-pointers and tallying her team’s first 8 points of the second quarter.
Mahlum added 6 rebounds and 2 steals in the win.
4. David Taiwo, Neuqua Valley
While freshman Cole Kelly continues to do his thing, nearly notching a triple double in last week’s 94-64 nonconference win over Yorkville Christian, Taiwo dazzled his way to a career-high performance.
The 6-foot-2 guard scored a game-high 30 points, including 16 second-quarter points, as the Wildcats quickly built a double-digit lead. Taiwo added 4 rebounds and 4 assists.
3. Ian Miletic, Rolling Meadows
Miletic scored 31 points as the Mustangs sealed a fifth straight MSL East championship with a 63-57 victory over Hersey.
The 6-foot-7 senior guard, committed to Marquette, added 10 rebounds while racing the Mustangs to a strong start with 15 first-quarter points including three 3-pointers. Miletic scored 7 points during a 9-0 third-quarter run to extend the Mustangs’ lead to double-digits.
Miletic added a team-high 15 points the next night in a 48-36 loss to Lake Forest.
2. Hudson Kirby, Geneva
The Vikings earned a season sweep of DuKane Conference rival Batavia for the first time since the 2018-19 season with a 68-44 victory over the Bulldogs.
After scoring a team-high 18 points in the first meeting, Kirby tallied a game-high 31 points in last week’s rematch to keep Geneva unbeaten in the DuKane.
The 6-foot-6 senior forward, who will play his college ball at UW-Parkside, came through with the game-winning bucket three nights earlier. Kirby took a long pass from teammate Gabe Jensen and one-touched a layup as time expired to give Geneva a 52-50 overtime victory at Glenbard North.
1. Nikki Kerstein, Montini
A slew of area players this season hit the 1,000-point milestone for their prep career. But how many reach 2,000?
We have one in Lombard. Kerstein, a 5-foot-8 senior point guard committed to Missouri, surpassed the lofty mark with 22 points in a 54-20 victory over De La Salle in the opening round of the GCAC tournament.
The four-year starter also scored 23 points, grabbed 10 rebounds, had 5 steals and blocked a shot in the Broncos’ 58-44 victory over Mother McAuley.