E-mailer Bob Gault wants to remind that Waubonsie Valley is 5-0 so far and has all its starters back from last season. He writes, "So far this year [they have had] many blowouts given the fact that the starters played less than half of every game. "
I received an e-mail from Hillcrest coach John Maniatis Saturday night. He wanted to pass along some info on how the Hawks did at the Rich South Thanksgiving tournament, and a mention to keep an eye on three of his players who had strong tournament performances:
Hillcrest won its second consecutive Rich South Galaxy Tournament over Bishop McNamara 60-58 in overtime.
Tournament MVP 5'11" sophomore guard Uniquah Hampton averaged 18.7 points 5.3 rebounds 3.7 assists and 4.7 steals.
Also, making All-Tournament were freshmen sensation 5'11" point guard Juanita Robinson (who may be one of the best freshmen in the state and has a chance to be one of the best players we have had at Hillcrest) she averaged 14.7 points, 5.0 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 3.0 steals, and junior center 6'0" Ariel Rouse.
Tanya Johnson wasn’t going to let anything wipe the smile off her face Friday afternoon.
“We really needed this!”
Loyola had just snapped a three-game losing streak and beat Bogan -- which had upset Marshall on Monday in overtime at Marshall -- 47-21 Friday at the New Trier tournament.
“I think in spite of Thanksgiving we were hungry for a win and they really took charge. Maybe we’ve been timid and not assert ourselves,” Johnson said.
Timid? Hungry for a win? That’s an understatement after the Ramblers put a hurt on Bogan and went on a 25-1 run in the second half.
And in the game prior to Loyola’s Marshall put a major hurt on Simeon and beat the Wolverines 66-19. Maybe the Commandos were still fuming after the OT loss to Bogan on Monday?
But the offensive firepower wasn’t contagious for Warren-New Trier in the day’s finale. Warren held on for a 38-36 win after a foul fest of epic proportions. In the second half it seemed like a whistle was going off every two seconds.
Notable trivia: Warren’s Sarah Boothe scored 14 points and is four shy of 1,500 for her career.
Bogan is for real.
Or maybe Marshall is having a bad week, but I think Bogan is the real deal.
The No. 9 Commandos (1-2) lost their second home game in a row in overtime Monday afternoon, when Bogan beat them 73-72 in the New Trier tournament. Marshall lost to New Trier in double overtime last week Thursday, in another New Trier tournament contest.
No. 19 Bogan (2-1) celebrated at half court when sophomore Lynette Holmes made the winning shot with 0.3 seconds left to play.
Bogan had a 12 point lead in the third quarter, but Marshall came back and led by 7. Poor foul shooting doomed the Commandos and Bogan was able to outscore Marshall 9-1 in the final 11 seconds of regulation.
"Miss Gaters [Marshall coach Dorothy] has been coaching so long and she is so smart, she figured out our 2-1-2 defense and she overloaded and attacking. We didn't do a good job with our weak side help,'' Bogan coach Gary Bell said.
Holmes wasn't worried about losing that big lead.
"We had it in mind when we first came here that we were going to win. They got up because the crowd was enthusiastic and our enthusiasm went down. We've been waiting on this game for . . . forever.''
So with that, I think it's safe to say that it's not just Marshall and Young and Hope as the Big Programs in the Public League anymore. Bogan is shoving its way in the door.
In the season opener for No. 3 Wheeling, coach Shelly Wiegel told me that 6-foot junior Ashley Wilson (one of the best juniors who is getting a lot of attention from Division I schools) should return this weekend from an injury. Wilson had stress fractures in both legs since the summer. Wiegel is easing Wilson back into the starting lineup.
Even though Wheeling won 62-48 in overtime, teammate Lana Rukavina felt that Wilson's absence was noticeable.
"It's a bit upsetting, but she'll be back soon. Ashley and I know how each other works. We work best together and this will be our third year [playing on the same team]. When we play we don't even need to talk to each other. We know automatically where the other one is moving and it's hard to get used to not having her there. ''
Marshall guard Sarah Rogers made an oral commitment to UMass late Monday night. This is the second Public League player to commit to a Division I program in two days, with Hope's Zhaque Gray being the other who verbaled to Penn State on Sunday.
Read on for quotes from Rogers . . . .
Rogers chose UMass over the University of Long Island. The All-Conference, All-City Marshall captain said the decision came down to needs over wants.
"I'm excited and overwhelmed,'' said Rogers, who was also an honorable mention All-American in the Sporting News in 2006. "[UMass] was the first school to do the home visit and meet with everyone in my family.
"I visited the University of Long Island last and it was between Long Island and UMass. I really liked the environment in New York and being close to the city, but what I want and what I need are two different things.''
I've received some e-mails and a posting about some players that were not included in certain categories in my story that appeared today, ``20 Questions'' on girls basketball.
I listed four categories: top five freshmen, sophomores, juniors and seniors.
Here are some notables that made the top 50 list on Sunday, but who were not listed in those four categories. These girls should be watched as the season goes on. I've taken these names from e-mails received by readers and wanted to pass them along.
**Miame Giden of Proviso East is going to Western Michigan with sister Robin and Walther's Jazzmyn Harvey. She is ranked on some national lists and should also be a senior to watch.
**Lake Park junior Samantha Arnold is getting heavy interest from Division I schools, including my alma mater--Illinois.
**Centrese McGee of Washington is a sophomore to watch as well. And she's another in a long line of strong players from the Public League.
**Quincy Notre Dame guard Chloe Barnes is a Downstate player we should watch, too.
**Marian Catholic may have lost players to graduation and moving, but they have a talented freshman in Jasmine Matthews. Homewood-Flossmoor boasts freshman Jailyn Norris.
**Bianca Jarrett of Waukegan, formerly of Zion-Benton, is a player from the northern burbs that I wasn't aware of until today.
The new girls basketball season starts Monday and our girls basketball preview ran today. You might have noticed that I ranked 26 teams Sunday instead of 25, which ran in the preseason rankings on Wednesday. I had to rank 26 teams Sunday because I inadvertently omitted Warren. It was a mistake, a grave error on my part and I apologized to the folks over at Warren. Rather than dropping a team, I just decided to have two teams at No. 25. Next Monday, the 19th, the rankings will go back to the customary 25 teams.
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