Maybe what Sean Harrington has is contagious after all.
No, not the mononucleosis that sidelined him for three weeks.
This is all about the 6-foot-3-inch Elgin guard’s poise and will to win.
Something spread throughout the Maroons Saturday in Hillside as they stunned third-ranked King 68-57 in the main event of the Proviso West Shootout.
Marcus Howard had his best game of the season, scoring 15 points and containing King’s Imari Sawyer (14 points, six assists, four steals).
Sophomore guard Chamar Sallis (seven assists) and 6-6 junior Anton Patterson (10 rebounds) came off the bench and had career games.
Then there was 6-5 junior Marcus Smallwood (20 points, three blocks) getting way up and rejecting a shot by King’s 6-11 Leon Smith, who was held to 16 points and seven rebounds by Smallwood and Patterson.
And, how do you explain the fourth quarter, which is usually Imari Sawyer time?
Elgin (11-5) opened with a decisive 16-2 run as Howard scored seven points and Harrington (22 points, five assists, three steals) connected on two of his six three-pointers.
“Man, we are real excited right now,” Smallwood said. “We had lost three in a row, and we had to make up for that loss to Streamwood Friday night.
“Going against Leon, I was a little nervous at first. But then I remembered reading how this other guy named (Kelvin) Smallwood had scored 33 points by attacking Leon. That made me realize it could be done.”
King (8-6), which has lost two in a row, opened with Smith, Sawyer and starting forward Stanley Thomas on the bench for skipping practice Friday.
“That hurt us a little bit because it seemed like they didn’t care,” said King’s 6-9 Demetrius Williams, who finished with 11 points. “Some of the guys on the team are playing a little selfish. We are not playing team defense and helping each other out.
“Look, I know everyone on this team still wants to win, and we’ll get it together real soon. Shaun Glover is telling everyone we are still going to win the state championship.”
That won’t happen if King continues to shoot 40 percent and gets outrebounded 35-24 by a smaller team such as Elgin.
“Elgin beat us in every phase of the game,” King coach Landon Cox said. “Those three players were benched because they have to learn discipline. I have nothing else to say.”
Elgin can probably understand a little of what King is going through.
“There has been an incredible amount of pressure on this (Elgin) group,” said Maroon coach Jim Harrington, who guided Elgin to the Class AA quarterfinals last season. “They were expected to be world champs.”
