Maine East sectional toughest of all
As usual, high school basketball was rejuvenated by regional play. As usual, stars shined and the unexpected occurred.
As we march forward, here are a few sectional storylines to follow this week:
Surviving at Maine East
There is no sectional in the state that features four teams with more combined victories than the 97 the top four seeds — Evanston, Niles North, New Trier and Loyola — at Maine East have compiled.
These four teams know one another well, with eight of their combined 20 losses coming to one another.
Now the four will get a chance to slug it out this week with a supersectional berth on the line.
Star moments
There are teams still alive without a bona fide superstar leading the way. But as the regional championship games showed, a star to lean on sure can help.
Libertyville’s Drew Peterson scored 20 consecutive points in the second half and made a buzzerbeating three- pointer to beat Conant in overtime.
Terrence Shannon scored 42 points, including the game- winning three- pointer in the closing seconds, to lift Lincoln Park to an upset victory against Oak Park.
Marist’s Morgan Taylor, LincolnWay East’s Sam Shafer, Willowbrook’s Ethan Schuemer and Niles North’s Damaria Franklin all turned in big- time performances for their respective regional championship teams.
Which star will step up with a clutch, carry- my- team performance in sectional action?
Catholic League uprising
Despite Fenwick’s upset loss in the regional final, the presence of the Catholic League in the Classes 3A and 4A sectionals — and of Providence- St. Mel in a 1A supersectional— is impressive.
How many of the seven remaining Catholic League teams can get through?
There are some tall tasks for a few of them, starting with Brother Rice, which will face top- ranked Simeon in a sectional semifinal. Loyola will take on top- seeded Evanston in another 4A sectional semifinal, and St. Laurence plays 3A favorite Morgan Park.
St. Rita will battle Bogan and De La Salle will play Farragut in 3A action.
The team with the most promising road is DePaul Prep. The Rams made the jump from 2A to 3A this season and are favored to win the North Chicago Sectional.
First- timers
Lincoln- Way East hasn’t been around all that long, but the Griffins will be making the first sectional appearance in program history after defeating Romeoville in a regional final.
Led by Southern Illinois recruit Shafer, a 6- 6 space- the- floor shooter, Lincoln- Way East will try to win its first sectional title against a field at Romeoville that also features West Aurora, Bolingbrook and Joliet Central.
Willowbrook won its first regional title since 2004 — and only the fourth in program history. Can the Warriors claim their first sectional championship?
Lake Zurich, a top seed in its own sectional, St. Rita and Lincoln Park also are vying for the first sectional championships in the history of their programs.