Life hasn’t been easy for basketball stars Ryan Hare and Nick Fruendt — off the court.
Playing has been a breeze: The 6-foot-3-inch Hare is averaging 20 points, seven rebounds, five assists and five steals for No. 5 Marshall, while the 6-6 Fruendt leads No. 8 Batavia with averages of 20 points, seven rebounds, three assists and three steals.
But each has gone through quite an ordeal leading up to a head-to-head confrontation Saturday in the finale of the Meijer High School Hoops Showdown at the Sears Centre in Hoffman Estates. The tripleheader opens at 4:30 p.m. with a girls matchup of No. 4 Fenwick and No. 5 Warren, followed by No. 19 Fenwick taking on up-and-coming Jacobs.
The hard times for Hare began on Oct. 2, when Commandos coach Lamont Bryant was fired despite leading Marshall to third place in Class AA the last two seasons.
Hare and fellow senior Davaris Davis organized a protest rally and student walkout in support of their coach. There was talk of sitting out the season; a few players hinted at transferring.
“It was real tough,” Hare said. “Coach Bryant had always been the one to stick up for us if we had problems at school. He was someone you could go to with any kind of problem. It would have been wrong for any of us not to stick up for him when he got in trouble.
“In all of this, I learned there are going to be changes in life and that you have to stay strong when fighting through the obstacles you’ll face.”
Hare said the transition to new coach Courtney Hargrays has been relatively smooth because the ex-Marshall player mirrors Bryant’s pressure defense and up-tempo strategies.
Still, Hare said, “All the players feel like everything we do this season is for coach Bryant. He is the one who brought us all together. We want to win a state championship for coach Bryant.”
As for Fruendt, who has signed with Northwestern, he was diagnosed with mononucleosis on Dec. 11 and missed eight games.
“I was so sick with the worst sore throat I’ve ever had,” Fruendt said. “It hurt so bad I had a hard time swallowing any food. I lost a total of 17 pounds. I had a fever of 101 degrees, no energy and I’d wake up drenched in sweat.
“And what made it even worse is that we lost two of those games when I was stuck at home.”
Since adjusting to Fruendt’s absence, David Bryant, Phil Albrecht, Jordan Smith and Stewart Charles have helped Batavia build a 14-2 record. Fruendt returned last Friday with 11 points, four rebounds and two assists in 14 minutes against Yorkville. And he has regained 12 of those lost pounds.
“I’m 100 percent healthy,” he said, “but about 80 or 90 percent when it comes to basketball condition.”
And that will be a factor Saturday.
“We haven’t played a team like Marshall,” Fruendt said. “There aren’t many high schools that have the tradition and reputation like that.”
At least Fruendt can chow down on a big pregame meal.
“My appetite now is bigger than ever,” he said with a laugh.
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bsakamoto@tribune.com
