Freshman forward Declan Wilson is a tall order who continues to grow for Burlington Central.
Listed at 6-foot-6 on the team’s roster that was compiled in the preseason, Wilson made an impression on Geneva coach Scott Hennig in Saturday’s pregame meeting with the referees.
Hennig used junior forward Ben Peterson, one of his own players, as a reference.
“Ben is a legit 6-5 and Wilson was taller,” Hennig said. “Looks more like 6-8 to me.
“Wilson is just a load. He’s really good, really skilled. He shot it well, has good footwork and he’s going to get more athletic.”
Wilson, who confirmed he’s grown 1 1/2 inches since the start of the school year, got going with 13 points and seven rebounds but the Rockets dropped a 78-69 nonconference decision to Geneva.
Junior guard David Udoiwod scored 15 of his game-high 29 points over the final 4:40 of the fourth quarter to lift the visiting Vikings (23-6) to the win.
Junior forward Patrick Magan scored 14 points for Burlington Central (17-11). Junior guard Ryan Carpenter had 13 points and 10 rebounds, while junior guard Joseph Cumpata added 12 points.
The game was scheduled a year earlier when Geneva officials learned declining enrollment would drop the school to Class 3A and figured the two neighbors would be in the same sectional.
Both teams are, indeed, in the Woodstock North Sectional and learned Friday they play again only 11 days later in a first-round matchup of a regional hosted by the Rockets.
“We figured there might be a chance we’d meet,” Burlington Central coach Brett Porto said. “But no way we knew it would happen like this.”
Hennig shrugged.
“It’s one of those years where Brett and I have to, unfortunately, play each other in the first round,” Hennig said. “If it was a different year, we might not see each other until the sectional.
“We’re going to go at it the way we go at it.”
The players didn’t hold back Saturday, either.
Freshman guard Cody Rader made all four 3-pointers he took in the first quarter for Geneva, which shot 7 of 9 from beyond the arc. Rader finished with five 3-pointers for his 15 points, while senior guard Nathan Palmer added three 3-pointers and also scored 15 points.
Geneva led 43-34 at halftime, but Burlington Central stormed back to force a 49-49 tie on Wilson’s floater in the lane late in the third quarter. The Rockets built a 65-55 lead before Udoiwod started his roll, all on drives to the basket.
Two of Wilson’s four fouls were on Udoiwod in that span.
“My perimeter defense has to get better,” Wilson said. “I’ve fouled out a couple times this year and have to work on keeping straight up, arms high. Being a freshman on varsity, I’m always learning.
“Even when I’m a senior, I’ll probably still be learning a lot.”
Wilson’s height is no surprise.
His dad, Bill, is 6-6 and his mom, Sally, is 6-0. Older brother Aidan is 6-10 and sister Ainsley, a junior middle hitter for the Rockets in volleyball who has committed to Dayton, is 6-4.
Aidan played basketball at Burlington Central, but his final two seasons were cut short by several injuries that kept him off the floor.
“He went from one injury to the next and didn’t really get to play and finally gave it up senior year,” Declan said. “I really liked basketball starting with rec league in second grade and got serious, playing AAU in fifth grade.
“I used to play guard and have continued working on my ball-handling. I watched Drew Scharnowski play here like a guard and he’s 6-10. I’ve tried to model my game after him.”
It’s a good choice. Scharnowski is a redshirt sophomore forward averaging 11.1 points for Belmont, currently in first place in the Missouri Valley Conference.
“Declan is very athletic, very good for his body,” Porto said. “He’s very good for us now and the sky’s the limit for him.”
