No matter how hard you look, it’s difficult to come up with a sure thing at the 2000 edition of the Class AA state basketball tournament that tips off Friday in Carver Arena.
OK, Public League champion Westinghouse, with its glossy 29-1 record and the No. 1 ranking in the Associated Press state poll looks every bit the early favorite.
But who would bet the house on a team whose tallest starter is 6-foot-3-inch forward Dennis Trammell? These guys are so small that coach Chris Head doesn’t even list a center, and three of his starters are 6-1 or smaller.
Then there’s East St. Louis (19-10, including eight forfeits) with the most talented individual in the state, 6-9 forward/guard/center Darius Miles. He is so good he might wind up an NBA draft lottery selection if he opts to go pro.
But can a team that plays its starters for all 32 minutes a game prevail when the Flyers could be playing three games in 30 hours?
West Aurora (29-1) could have all the pieces in place for its first state championship. In nine trips to the Elite Eight, the Blackhawks have finished either second or third eight times and fourth once.
But how will coach Gordie Kerkman’s team react in a close game under state-finals pressure? Heading into its Friday quarterfinal against Gordon Tech, West Aurora has beaten Lemont 65-34, Naperville North 75-47, Naperville Central 63-45, East Aurora 85-65 and Glenbard South 67-46. Postseason average margin of victory: 23.6 points.
Perhaps the only way to pick a winner in this wide-open field is by the old-fashioned process of elimination.
Here is a rundown on why seven of the Elite Eight won’t be in a mood to celebrate come Saturday night.
Gordon Tech: Certainly the possibility exists that Gordon (25-6) is following the lead of West Aurora and peaking at the opportune moment. After all, The Rams were ranked 19th in the Tribune’s preseason poll, dropping out after losing to unranked teams such as Benet, Fenwick and Mather.
But a closer examination reveals that Gordon was fortunate to be placed in perhaps the weakest sectional in the state. The combined record of the four teams the Rams eliminated en route to the Fenton sectional title was 46-77, and only Niles North had a winning record. Gordon won the Hinsdale Central supersectional against a St. Ignatius team it had beaten twice before.
“Nobody’s here by accident,” Gordon coach Scott Bogumil said.
No, but the odds are long that Gordon will beat West Aurora, East St. Louis or New Trier and Westinghouse in succession to capture the title.
Bloom: Even Blazing Trojans coach Gary Meyer knows what is in store for the biggest surprise of the Elite Eight.
“We realize we’re one of the biggest underdogs ever to play in the state tournament,” Meyer said. “I don’t think we’ll be intimidated by the arena [setting], although we may be a little in awe of Westinghouse.”
Meyer wants to make sure Westinghouse’s players realize that Bloom has lost 13 games this season, hoping a little complacency will set in.
“Traditionally the best time to play the Public League team is in the first game,” Meyer said. “They’re still caught up in the high of winning the city title. I remember when Farragut came Downstate with Kevin Garnett, Ronnie Fields and Michael Wright and were supposed to have the title handed to them. A young Thornton team beat them in the first game.”
Rock Island: The Rocks are a balanced team without a marquee player who can take over a game when his teammates are suffering an off night. Brad Novak and John Banks are the top players, but will this team be able to match the athleticism and depth of Peoria Richwoods? Rock Island (23-6), third in ’95, will be hard-pressed to duplicate that finish.
New Trier: Coach Rick Malnati is still waiting for the Trevians to play their breakout game. If Stanford-bound Matt Lottich, Staunton Peck and James Romey are hitting their outside shots, if 6-10 Ivan Pjevcevic is scoring in the low post and 6-6 Todd Townsend is rebounding and blocking shots, they could advance to the final four. Could they then defeat West Aurora and Westinghouse in a nine-hour span? Pencil in the Trevians for third place.
Peoria Richwoods: Finally the Knights emerge from the considerable shadows of cross-town rivals Manual and Central with a young team that brought the program back to the Elite Eight for the first time since ’92. Richwoods (25-5) goes 10-deep with its player rotation, which will benefit the Knights should they play three games in two days. They have the talent to defeat Rock Island but will fall to Westinghouse and finish fourth.
East St. Louis: If this were a three-day tournament, nobody would top the Flyers. Coach Bennie Lewis insists his starting five is conditioned to play the full 32 minutes of every game, and that contention will be challenged by the demanding state-finals schedule.
“In high school the games are not as physical as in college or the pros,” Lewis said. “The way we train our kids, they should be able to play the whole game. That’s just the way we play.”
Should the Flyers survive a tough test against New Trier, a deep West Aurora team could wear them down in the semifinals.
With six teams eliminated, that leaves our two finalists. It will be West Aurora versus Westinghouse, both with identical records and the same passion for playing an aggressive, pressing defense.
They are two of the storied programs in IHSA basketball history, yet neither has won a state title.
That will all change Saturday night when Westinghouse edges West Aurora 54-52 in overtime. The Public League champion will prevail because of its more demanding schedule and the way the Warriors learned how to win close games against that top-notch competition.
The Warriors have yet to lose their cool under pressure, and a couple of seniors named Cedrick Banks and Martell Bailey aren’t about to let that happen in the biggest game of their lives.
