Elgin steps up on defense

Elgin wants its defense to set the tone for its boys basketball games this season. On Friday night against Holy Trinity in the Bison Classic Thanksgiving tournament, the Maroons did exactly that.

Elgin defenders swarmed Holy Trinity's players and forced several turnovers that resulted in easy baskets on the other end to ultimately defeat the Tigers 73-21.

The second quarter is where things turned for Elgin (3-0). Not coincidentally, that's when 6-foot-4 senior guard Kory Brown entered the game for the first time, and assumed his role at the point of Elgin's zone press, and its 1-3-1 zone defense.

Brown, who scored all 13 of his points in the second quarter, provided relentless pressure, which is his responsibility in those defenses.

"I love that responsibility, actually," Brown said. "I love to show the team that we can do it. That if we pick up the intensity, good things will come. Stay in control mind-wise, but have your body everywhere."

Elgin coach Mike Sitter said he only played 7 players in each of Elgin's first two games, and went into the game on Friday looking for some depth to emerge as he tried out some different lineup combinations.

"Everyone played a lot of minutes, and we saw a lot of good things from a lot of subs," Sitter said. "We really have to deepen our rotation, and I got some confidence tonight that I can play some more guys in some big games."

Sitter said the big key was everyone on his roster played great defense against Holy Trinity (0-4).

"We get a lot of our buckets off our defense on fast breaks," senior guard Ben Nelson (10 points) said. "We worked a lot this week on our full-court defense, and it really worked out for us."

Sitter has been impressed with his team so far this season, and said the Maroons have shown their experience by being a mature team in adverse situations.

"We have 12 seniors on the roster, so we are more mature than most teams," Sitter said. "When times get tight, they come together. They don't need a coach to make decisions for them. They make good decisions on their own."

Holy Trinity coach Ray Kang said Elgin has a loaded team, and that it has been amazing to see how much the Maroons' program has progressed over the four or five years Kang has been coaching Holy Trinity in the Bison Classic.

"We know these teams are way above us, but we come out here to compete and play as hard as we can," Kang said. "It just shows our kids what is out there, and what we need to do to get better."

Elgin had seven players score 5 or more points in Friday's game, but as well as the team played on Friday, everyone on the roster knows there is a lot of work to be done this season.

"We've started out pretty good," Nelson said. "But we could be playing better. We haven't reached our full potential yet."

The Maroons can wrap up the tournament championship with a win against Christian Liberty tonight.