Wilson, Carmel handle North Chicago

Kimarhri Wilson let his defense dictate his play along with the other Corsairs on Tuesday night.

The junior guard seemed like he was all over the court getting his hands on the ball and setting up the offense.

Wilson scored 15 points but had 13 steals, 8 rebounds and 3 blocked shots as Carmel Catholic ran past host North Chicago 65-38 in a nonconference boys basketball game.

Even afterward, WIlson's play was rewarded by his teammates dumping cups of water on his head.

"I really didn't know that I had that many steals and I don't know what to say. I'm speechless," Wilson said. "Coach Fidel Garcia, he really makes sure that we really put our impact on defense in practice. We put a lot of time into it when it comes to the game."

Carmel's defense forced North Chicago into 13 turnovers in the opening quarter when Carmel (11-9) opened the game with a 15-0 lead and led 17-4 after the opening eight minutes.

North Chicago (4-15) chipped back in the second quarter and closed the game to 25-18 at the break.

The Warhawks' Jamar Mays hit a baseline jump shot of his team-high 8 points on a 7-2 Warhawks' run that cut the lead to 27-25 with 4:25 left in the third.

Then, Carmel woke up hitting some shots as Syone Usma-Harper scored all seven of his points off the bench in a 15-6 run for a 42-31 lead.

"We got off to a good start and our intensity on defense was good," Carmel coach Zack Ryan said. "Then what happened, when our shots stop falling, then our intensity drops on defense. So, it gave (North Chicago) some confidence. It was a tale of Jekyll and Hyde a little bit. For us, it's all on defense, if we can bring it all the time regardless of how we're shooting. We're pretty good with our shots falling. To come in here and get a win against North Chicago, these guys are much better than their record. They have some good players and have had some good games."

Kylen Beals also added 10 points and Bryce Moore had 8 for the Corsairs.