Fox Valley basketball showing its quality
Records at the unofficial midway point don't lie. They also don't tell the full truth.
However, it's undeniable we're seeing quality boys basketball played throughout the northern Fox Valley on the whole this season: the 15 area basketball-playing teams boast a combined nonconference record of 82-67, a winning percentage of .550.
With one exception, every team has notched at least 3 victories and none has been tagged with more than 6 losses.
With holiday tournaments in the books and the conference races set to heat up the coldest month of the year, here's how each team stands at the season's midpoint with the IHSA tournament less than two months away.
Teams are listed in order of record.
Jacobs (10-2): The Golden Eagles won their own holiday tournament for the third straight year and enter 2009 on an 8-game winning streak. South Dakota recruit Conrad Krutwig (6-foot-5) is the area's most talented post player and teams with Tim Moran to form a formidable frontcourt. A healthy Mike Barch is proving to be a playmaker who can tip the scales and sophomore point guard Mike Peterson is the team's most consistent 3-point shooter. A nonconference test against Schaumburg (13-1) at the Sears Centre on Jan. 17 is the final tuneup for the uninterrupted 10-game Valley Division schedule, which begins on Jan. 21 with a home date against Cary-Grove.
South Elgin (9-3): What will we see from the enigmatic Storm in the second half of the season - the team that started the season 7-0 or the one that lost 3 of its last 5 games and went 2-2 at the Jack Tosh Holiday Tournament at York? The top seed at York finished seventh after a blowout loss to Oswego and a 58-50 defeat against the host Dukes. Starting guard Kyle Osborne is on track to return from a broken fibula in February. The Storm will play some very good opponents in the final week of the regular season with home games against Suburban Catholic leader Aurora Central (12-1) on Feb. 21 and Waubonsie Valley (7-5) on Feb. 25 and a showdown at Bartlett (6-3) in the finale on Feb. 27.
Dundee-Crown (7-3): The Chargers have played well overall and still have plenty of room to grow. D-C won a Thanksgiving tournament title at Sycamore and went 2-2 at the Elgin tournament to finish sixth. Dependable senior guard Jeff Beck leads an athletic group that has the potential to push Jacobs in the Valley Division. To make the regular-season finale against visiting Jacobs on Feb. 27 meaningful, the Chargers must stay within a game of the Golden Eagles in the loss column. That means handling Cary-Grove and Crystal Lake South in the interim.
Bartlett (6-3): The Hawks won four straight to finish fifth at the Jacobs tournament after a disappointing opening-day loss to upstart Prairie Ridge (9-4). Bartlett has the ability to play in-your-face defense like no other team in the area. When they exert that type of defensive effort the Hawks are tough to beat, however, that effort has been inconsistent. Smarter shot selection, ball sharing and a team-first attitude could make Bartlett a contender in the Upstate Eight and more. The Hawks will improve in the post in the second half as junior Greg Partyka gets more comfortable.
Westminster Christian (9-4): The Class 1A Warriors pulled off one of the most impressive wins of the holiday tournament season when they defeated Class 3A Sycamore 48-38 to take third place at the Marengo Tournament. That bodes well for the Warriors and ill for their opponents at the Class 1A Hinckley-Big Rock regional, which begins Feb. 23.
Elgin (5-6): The Maroons lost to Hoffman Estates (11-1) in their tournament opener, then won 3 straight against Guilford, Larkin and Downers Grove North to win the consolation championship. Senior Marcus Redburg (6-5) is becoming a force in the paint as he rounds into shape following off-season knee surgery and senior guard Tom Roth is having another fine season. The Maroons will be tough to beat if senior Steve Edwards develops into the bona fide scoring threat he was over the summer. With the rotation finally in place and the players better acclimated to one another, Elgin is currently a better team than when the season started.
Cary-Grove (7-5): The Trojans have gone 2-4 since a 5-1 start, which includes a 2-3 performance at the Jacobs Tournament. Cary-Grove will be busy with eight January games, beginning tonight at Huntley and Friday against Prairie Ridge (9-4). PR beat the Trojans by 12 at Jacobs.
Huntley (7-5): A 2-3 showing at the Chuck Dayton Tournament at DeKalb leaves the Red Raiders with work to do. Breakdowns on offense and defense cost Huntley at DeKalb. This team has the ability to score, but it must execute and avoid similar breakdowns in the Fox Division of the FVC once conference play begins on Jan. 21. Otherwise, division contenders Johnsburg (9-4), Prairie Ridge (9-4) and Grayslake Central (8-5) will make for a long winter.
Crystal Lake South (6-6): The Gators sputtered to a 2-3 finish at the Jacobs Tournament, where they were unable to topple St. Charles North, Cary-Grove or Mundelein. The Gators face tough nonconference road tests in the second half at Bartlett (Jan. 13) and Naperville North (Feb. 7).
Burlington Central (5-4): The Rockets went 2-2 at the DeKalb Tournament, where one scheduled game against the host team was snowed out. Central junior guard Mike McCurdy is developing into a scorer and junior forward Shane Larkin provides consistent offense in the post. The Rockets are the only Big Northern East team entering 2009 with a winning record. Nonconference tests remain against Kaneland, St. Charles East and North and Larkin.
Larkin (5-7): No team has as much fight in it as the Royals, who have improved by leaps and bounds after a 1-win season a year ago. Larkin is outsized almost every night, yet the players have found ways to get rebounds with Terell John and Brandon Cooks leading the way in the paint. Guards Jeff Saurbaugh, Ryan Smith and Ramadon Adili can all shoot the 3-pointer. Yet another example of why there are no easy games in the deep Upstate Eight Conference.
Hampshire (5-6): The Whip-Purs went 2-2 at the Marengo Tournament with losses to Kaneland (5-6) and Winnebago (12-0) and wins over Harvard and Hubbard. The Whip-Purs could give Central a run for its money in the Big Northern East if this team jells with 9 January games. Hampshire has a deep mix of veterans and youth and should improve throughout the second half.
St. Edward (5-7): The smallest school at the Jacobs Tournament finished 1-4 but held its own against schools five or six times its size. The Green Wave's most impressive showing wasn't its 9-point win over Crystal Lake Central; it was a 10-point loss to Bartlett, a game in which they hung with the more talented Hawks most of the way. St. Edward faces 11 more Suburban Catholic Conference games and three nonconference tests before the Class 2A Genoa-Kingston regional begins on Feb. 23.
Elgin Academy (2-7): The Hilltoppers made like Clark Griswold and took a vacation over the holidays. Vacation ends Wednesday against Ida Crown.
Streamwood (5-9): This is definitely a case of last but not least. Streamwood has been competitive in nearly every loss and could round into a dangerous team in the season's second half behind dependable scorer Tem Esikiel and emerging junior Marcus Lewis. The Sabres went 2-2 at the Wheeling Tournament, including a blowout win against the host team and a near upset of Niles Notre Dame, which won the New Trier Thanksgiving Tournament.
jfitzpatrick@dailyherald.com