The bitter enemies are often the closest of friends. It’s what makes Chicago’s best basketball rivalry truly unique.
Not only do Morgan Park and Simeon players spend the spring and summer traveling the country as teammates, one of their AAU coaches, Nick Irvin, is the Morgan Park coach.
Ayo Dosunmu and Kezo Brown have alternately been teammates and opponents since they were in grammar school.
Brown came into high school with the bigger reputation, fell into obscurity while Dosumnu became a national recruit, then had his shining moment on Public League basketball’s biggest stage.
The re-emergent junior scored a game-high 26 points and forced Dosunmu into air ball on a potential game-winning 3-pointer as No. 5 Simeon outlasted No. 4 Morgan Park 68-64 in the Public League final Sunday night at Chicago State.
Simeon (24-3) repeated as champs, won for the eighth time overall and finished with a 2-1 edge in the season series with the Mustangs (19-6).
“It’s always going to be a great game,” Irvin said. “Rob (Smith of Simeon) is a great coach. It is always going to come down to last couple possessions. I’m not going to take anything away from Simeon. I respect them. They are a good ballclub. The way it looks, if we both do what we got to do, we’re both going to be in (the state finals in) Peoria together.”
Melo Burrell (15 points, 10 rebounds) had a big game for the Mustangs and Dosunmu scored team-high 16 points. But Dosunmu had to sit the final 2:45 of the third quarter and first 1:46 of the fourth with four fouls.
The lead changed hands seven times in a frantic fourth quarter that saw virtually everyone on the floor deliver a key play at one point or another.
Ultimately, though, it was Brown’s night.
Brown, who struggled on the court and off as a sophomore, has been a vital cog for Simeon all season, and he’s been at his best of late.
He was 8-for-14 from the field and 3-for-5 from 3-point range. And when the game was on the line, he was defending Morgan Park’s biggest threat.
“I’m going to talk to Kezo, Talen (Horton-Tucker) and Bakari (Simmons) after I leave, tell them congratulations,” Irvin said. “They called me on my birthday a couple days ago. It is a family atmosphere for me. That is what a lot of people don’t understand about the Simeon players and me.”
Morgan Park freshman Nimari Burnett continued to make a name for himself by making 3-point shots in crucial situations.
The hero of Friday night’s semifinals also forced overtime from way downtown in Saturday’s City-Suburban Showdown loss to Stevenson. On Sunday, Burnett gave Morgan Park a 59-56 lead with a 3-pointer midway through the fourth quarter.
After Evan Gilyard hit a three to give Simeon a 61-60 edge with 2:19 left, Burnett struck again 15 seconds later to make it 63-61.
Brown tied it at the 1:47 mark, then Henry split two free throws to give Morgan Park its final lead. A tip-in by Messiah Jones and two free throws by Gilyard were the decisive blows for Simeon.
“The fans got exactly what they wanted,” Smith said. “We made plays, they made plays. A freshman (Burnett) making big 3 down there when we were up three. It was unbelievable. Nick does a great job with these guys. He motivates me to do this every day because I know he’s going to put pressure on me to try to win all the time.”
Mike Helfgot is a freelance writer for the Daily Southtown.
