Brotherly love
Jones steps up with double-double as Richards rolls past Tinley Park
With his older brother Trevon sitting out due to a team disciplinary issue, Richards junior Albert Jones decided to pick up the slack Friday night.
“If one scorer goes down, we have a bunch of other guys who can step up,” Albert said. “But we don’t have a lot of bigs. With Trevon not playing, I’m the next big guy. I had to be extra aggressive on the glass.”
And hewas.
The 6-foot-3 forward scored 14 points and pulled down 16 rebounds to lead Richards to a 72-55 South Suburban win over host Tinley Park.
The Bulldogs (11-5, 5-2) spread out the scoring as junior forward Paul Zilinskas led with 22 points. Senior guard Sean Willis added 14, including four 3-pointers, and junior guard Kajuan Wines had 12.
Senior guardsMario Lawrence and Christian Hooker scored 15 and 13 points, respectively, for Tinley Park (11-5, 4-2).
At his size, Jones isn’t a towering figure. But what he lacks in height he more thanmakes up for with strength, instincts and court sense.
“Albert’s one of the smartest guys in regard to basketball IQ I’ve ever coached,” Richards coach Chris Passafiume said. “He sees things on the floor that others don’t. He’s always in the right position and he’s an excellent passer. Of course, he’s tough to move off the blocks.”
The Titans found that out the hard way as Jones was relentless chasing down offensive and defensive rebounds.
“If you and I are going up for the ball, I’m going to come down
with it,” Jones said “I’m too fast for other bigmenand too strong for guards. I’m not really a scorer. I’m a hustle guy.”
Zilinskas smiled when asked about the key to Jones’ rebounding prowess.
“He has a tough-dog mentality,” Zilinskas said. “Hewants the ball.”
Hooker kept the Titans in the game for most of the first half. The6-0senior guard knocked down three 3-pointers in the second quarter to help Tinley Park close within 27-22.
“Christian is a four-year varsity guy,” Tinley Park coach D.J. Brown said. “He hit some big shots for us in the second quarter.”
The Bulldogs, however, finished the first half with a 12-5 spurt for a 39-27 lead.
Richards used a 13-3 burst to start the third quarter to take control. Zilinskas converted a 3-pointer and a 3-point play and Jones had a basket to supply the knockout punch.
Zilinskas believes the Bulldogs are rounding into form.
“In the beginning of the season, some of our guys came straight from football,” he said. “We’re starting to share the ball and play as a team.”