Luke Kinkade has made some big shots this season for Neuqua Valley.
But it was the little things the 6-foot sophomore guard did Wednesday night that made a big difference.
“He’s a good ballplayer,” Neuqua coach Todd Sutton said of Kinkade. “He’s on the court to make plays. He has all year.”
Despite being the youngest player on the floor, Kinkade used some hustle and determination to play beyond his years. As a result, the Wildcats were able to move beyond the first round of the playoffs.
Kinkade scored 14 points, including two late free throws, and made a crucial steal in the final minute as fourth-seeded Neuqua ousted 14th-seeded Lincoln-Way East 52-45 in the Class 4A Neuqua Valley Regional semifinals.
The Wildcats (21-10) will host fifth-seeded Joliet West (18-11) at 7 p.m. Friday in the regional championship game.
“He struggled with his shot, but the steal was a huge play,” Sutton said of Kinkade. “And the free throws at the end, we certainly needed those.”
Indeed, the Wildcats shot poorly and struggled against Lincoln-Way East (10-17), which posed a matchup problem with their greater size and athleticism. But the Griffins also had trouble shooting, making only 32.7%.
“If they make their normal shots, we’re in big trouble,” Sutton said. “They missed some easy ones that they haven’t missed. They pumped 47 on (Naperville) Central in the first half the other night.”
The Griffins managed only 22 points through three quarters against the Wildcats, but rallied with 23 in the fourth quarter to chop down a 16-point deficit to 48-42 with 46 seconds left.
They had a chance to get even closer, but Kinkade made a steal at half-court, drove to the basket, was fouled and made two free throws with 35.9 seconds remaining.
That gave Neuqua some breathing room.
Tylon Toliver, who scored a game-high 20 points, sank a 3-pointer to pull the Griffins within 50-45. But Kinkade’s older brother, Nick, made two free throws with 21.7 seconds left to ice it.
Senior guard Jayden Dean summed it up for Neuqua.
“It was just a slow-paced game, one we had to grind out and get a hard-fought win,” he said. “Our team earned it.”
Dean scored a team-high 17 points, 10 of which came during a 17-8 spurt bridging halftime that gave the Wildcats a 36-20 cushion.
“I had to do my part to stretch out the lead,” Dean said. “My part is to score and play defense. We just needed a spark, and that’s what I did.”
The 6-0 Dean also gave Kinkade some advice.
“I tell him to just be confident in what you do, you know what you can do,” Dean said. “Keep shooting because you’re not always going to hit shots, but you’re going to hit them eventually.
“He can do everything on the floor. He wasn’t making his shots, but he did other things to contribute like rebounding and passing.”
Kinkade, who shot 4 of 12, also had two rebounds. One came in the second quarter when he followed his own missed 3-pointer from the right corner and scored from traffic in the lane to push the lead to double digits for the first time at 24-14.
“Coach said to never give up and keep on fighting, so I missed that shot, I got it back and just kept on fighting,” Kinkade said. “It’s part of basketball to get your own rebounds sometimes. It helps a lot.”
After helping the Wildcats to victory in his playoff debut, Kinkade is looking forward to the next challenge.
“It was good start to the playoffs,” Kinkade said. “It was fun. Friday is going to be even more fun.”
Matt Le Cren is a freelance reporter for the Naperville Sun.
