A constellation of stars
Ulis and Co. take control to lead Marian Catholic past Brother Rice for regional title
A shining star or a constellation? Marian Catholic provided an answer Friday night with the quartet of senior guards Ahron Ulis and Elijah Jones, sophomore guard Jeremiah Jones and senior forward Yemi Elutilo.
Ulis scored 24 points, Elijah Jones added 19 and Jeremiah Jones had 17 to power the host Spartans to a 72-62 victory over Brother Rice in the Class 4A Marian Catholic Regional championship game.
Elutilo chipped in with seven points as those four players accounted for 67 of the 72 points to help Marian (23-8) oust Brother Rice (21-11) for the title.
Afterward, Elutilo described that unit’s cohesiveness as a key.
“We all came out and played together,” Elutilo said. “Brother Rice came out and played really hard, but we responded. We all bonded, and that led to us getting the win.”
Jeremiah and Elijah Jones credited Marian Catholic’s work ethic and aggressive mindset, particularly in the first quarter.
“It feels good because we put a lot of work in this week,” Jeremiah said. “I personally knew I was going to have to come out and play well because of the defense they were in. I knew I had to make shots and I did.”
“It was a great team win,” Elijah Jones said. “We all stepped up. I was really aggressive early on. I kept telling myself if the shot doesn’t fall, keep being aggressive, try to score and to play with confidence.”
Ulis, an Iowa recruit, felt Elijah Jones’ effort made a big difference.
“We played together,” Ulis said. “They came out playing a triangle-and-two to try and slow me down, so I knew early on Elijah was going to be aggressive. He really helped all of us get into a flow.”
For Brother Rice, the loss was a tough pill to swallow.
The Crusaders were paced by Deandre Hagan with 18 points. Colin Campbell scored 16 points, while Rico Powell had 15. Conor Glennon led with eight assists.
Glennon fought back his emotions after the tough setback. Brother Rice also lost 55-31 to Marian on Feb. 4.
“We had a terrific, terrific game plan,” Glennon said. “Marian Catholic is loaded with talent. They killed us earlier in the year, but we made sure that they were never going to walk over us again.
“Our leaders made sure that we were ready to fight for all 32 minutes, and we did that.”
According to Ulis, the win represents a major accomplishment for Marian. It’s a tribute to the team’s hard work and ability to fight through adversity.
“This is really big,” Ulis said. “We went through ups and downs throughout the season, and to be able to win a regional and to do it at home, it’s really special.”
John Romando is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.