West Aurora reserve center Thurston Hill made the most of his first varsity start.
Hill, a 6-foot-3-inch senior, stepped in for the flu-ridden Danny Real and helped the No. 4 Blackhawks (8-1) overcome a sluggish first half to down Providence 62-42 in the first round of the Pontiac Tournament.
With 39 seconds remaining in the second quarter, Hill sank two free throws to prevent a scoreless quarter for the Blackhawks. After West Aurora entered halftime with a meager 16-15 lead, Hill scored six of his 10 points in a 17-2 third-quarter run to help his squad run away with the contest.
West Aurora’s Dameon Mason, who finished with 19 points, contributed eight of the first 10 points of that run in the first 3:09 of the third quarter, including two baskets off steals.
“We needed to get a lift,” Mason said. “I wanted to do something to initiate it. We’re not used to only scoring 16 points in a half. We had a lot of guys come in and give us a great effort, especially Thurston Hill.”
Michael Thompson led Providence (4-5) with 19 points and nine rebounds.
In other tournament games, Kellen Easley, Brandon Shoemaker and Ja’Bari Saunders each scored 12 points as No. 8 Joliet (12-1) demolished Benet 70-36. Tyler Rehm led Benet (2-9) with 13 points. . . . John Shaw had 15 points while Ashton Hughes and Quinten Herring added 10 points apiece as Warren (6-4) downed Danville 55-47. . . . Niles West pounded Springfield 73-49 as Jarryd Loyd collected 24 points, six rebounds and six steals. Alex Filin and Charles Williams chipped in with 14 and 12 points, respectively, for West (7-3). . . . Chris Hulka’s 18 points led Lockport to a 54-44 win over East Moline United. Alando Tucker added 14 points and 10 rebounds for the Porters (5-4). . . . Max Sakellaris netted 13 points and Freddie Matthews added 11 points as Oak Park (9-6) topped Pontiac 61-54.
Centralia: Mychal Wilson’s 22 points helped No. 6 Julian top Alton 82-73. Luther Andrews and Sean Dockery added 15 and 14 points, respectively, for the Jaguars (4-1). . . . Centralia (10-0) demolished Carver 60-38. Carmone Alexander, Maurice McCants and Johnny Barnette each had eight points for Carver (4-5).
Waubonsie Valley: Derrick Clanton scored 15 points to give the No. 10 host Warriors (10-0) a 59-52 win over West Chicago. Lee Corning had 16 points for the Wildcats (5-7), who tied the game 52-52 on Matthew Coiley’s three-pointer with 1:19 remaining. . . . Matt Reimer scored nine of his 15 points in the fourth quarter to lift Glenbard South (4-7) over Leyden 44-43. Leyden’s (3-7) Vito Regalado led all scorers with 17 points. . . . Andy Madden’s 15 points directed Marmion (6-3) to a 55-47 win over Glenbard West. . . . Glenbard North (9-1) cruised past St. Charles North 76-50 behind Steve Fifarek’s 15 points.
Lincoln-Way: No. 17 Curie (8-2) used a 9-0 fourth quarter run to beat Hyde Park 63-50. Rome Sanders helped seal the win for Curie by scoring nine of his 11 points in the final quarter. Omni Smith led Curie with 17 points while Paul Nowak added 12 points. Hyde Park’s Stephano Jones and Stephon Hannah scored 14 and 13 points, respectively. . . . Marcus Arnold scored 24 points for Morgan Park (6-5), which overcame a nine-point first-half deficit to beat La Salle-Peru 69-60. . . . Thornton Fractional North (11-1) cruised past Oak Lawn 66-50 as Brad Hatfield and Gregg Charles scored 14 and 10 points, respectively. Don Hackstock led Oak Lawn with 15 points. . . . Robeson beat Lincoln-Way Central 66-51, ending the Knights’ two-year run as champions of their own tournament.
Pekin: Darius Glover’s 16 points and Richard Russell’s 10 helped No. 18 Westinghouse (5-2) crush Washington (Ill.) 65-19.
Lemont: In the Class AA bracket, No. 20 Neuqua Valley (9-1) beat Reavis 65-56 behind 24 points from Keelan Amelianovich. Jason Andryzak had 18 points for Reavis (8-3). . . . Ray Vicario put in 21 points as Sandburg (6-5) breezed past Plainfield 67-52. Nate Geipel’s 19 points paced Plainfield (6-4). . . .
In Class A, Terence Parker and Joe Cortez scored 16 and 14 points, respectively, as Lisle (8-1) rolled past Seneca 60-37. . . . Montini (6-4) got past Burlington Central 63-55 behind Joe Gay’s 29 points.
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Collins: Marlon Brumfield collected 19 points, 11 rebounds and five blocks as Collins (10-0) rolled past Senn 66-40. . . . Antione Edwards’ layup with 15 seconds left lifted Corliss over Steinmetz 63-61. Avery Lawrence led the Trojans (5-4) with 15 points and Edwards finished with 10. . . . Maurice Densmore scored 15 points for Tilden (7-3) in a 61-50 win over King.
DeKalb: Ben Rand’s 26 points helped Rochelle (12-3) win the tournament title with a 67-59 defeat of DeKalb. Jestin Anderson scored 23 points to pace the host Barbs (9-4).
East Aurora: Corey Hutchinson tallied 23 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists to help Bolingbrook (3-9) top Naperville North 68-59. Corey McKeon had 20 points for North (6-6). . . . Darice Venson had 23 points and Robert Johnson added 18 points for the host Tomcats (6-4) in a 81-75 win over Glenbard East.
Elgin: Matt Greenberg scored with eight seconds left to force overtime and then had five points in the extra session to spark Highland Park to a 58-53 defeat of defending tournament champ St. Patrick. Joey Paul and Andy Linton each scored 14 points for the Giants (10-2), while Matt Marino paced St. Patrick (6-3) with 15 points. . . . Dan Walser hit four three-pointers to finish with 18 points and Derek Meister chipped in with 16 points to lead Wheaton North (9-2) past Fremd 62-55. . . . Rickey Williams scored 15 of his 19 points in the second quarter to help Hubbard down Hoffman Estates 79-69. . . . Batavia (10-0) blasted Glenbrook South 86-53 as Nick Barajas scored 22 points to go with Travis Meeks’ 18 points and 10 rebounds. Dave Gershenzon’s 25 points paced South (5-7).
Kankakee: In Class AA games, Quinton Young had 22 points as Urbana held off Harlan 77-76. Matt Neaville scored 27 points for Harlan. . . . Dan Tira scored 15 points and Matt Wehrle added 12 points as Minooka edged Argo 48-45. Adesina Benton scored 14 points for Argo. . . . Bradley-Bourbonnais routed Bremen 63-33 behind Matt Brooks’ 12 points. . . . Kankakee blasted Dixon 79-49 as Chris Wallace scored 19 points.
In Class A, Iroquois West ripped Illiana Christian 75-45 behind Dan Wilson’s 13 points. Brandon Boomsma’s game-high 14 points led Illiana. . . . Bishop McNamara used Tim Keller’s 24 points and Micah Kirstein’s 17 points to defeat Clifton Central 62-46. . . . Jeff Brashares scored 25 points 1 as Peotone defeated Reed-Custer 58-43.
Luther North: Bo Flowers’ three-point play with five seconds remaining helped Walther Lutheran (9-3) slip past Morton 71-70. Flowers finished with a game-high 28 points for Walther, which battled back from a 38-28 halftime deficit. Hector Vargas led Morton (4-5) with 26 points. . . . Ricky Mojek scored 23 points and Jawond Gage added 20 points as Holy Cross (11-1) defeated Mather 64-57. Daniel Mendoza’s 29 points led Mather (8-3). . . . Andre White’s 21 points helped Zion-Benton (10-1) rout Immaculate Conception 72-44. Tom Hagerty led the Knights (6-7) with 21 points in the loss. . . . Jarrette Robinson hit three three-pointers in the fourth quarter to lift Taft (12-1) to a 73-71 win over Luther North. Eric Williams had 19 points for the host Wildcats (9-5).
Rockford: Scott Hearyman scored 13 of his 25 points in the fourth quarter to help Rockford Guilford (6-5) overcome De La Salle 78-60. Marc Harvey’s 21 points led the Meteors (5-4).
Wheeling: John Bowler’s 26 points and 10 rebounds helped Notre Dame (9-1) pull away from Maine South 44-36. Greg Kane led South (3-9) with 10 points. . . . St. Viator (4-6) used Brian Hare’s 18 points and Rob Costello’s 17 points to slip past Stevenson 65-62 in overtime. Reuben Trotter had 22 points and 10 rebounds for the Patriots (9-4) in the loss. . . . Loyola (9-3) breezed past Maine West 76-52 as Colin Falls scored 25 points on 6-of-9 shooting from three-point range. . . . Ryan Cibulka scored six of his game-high 22 points in overtime as Lake Park (5-6) upset Libertyville 79-75. Anthony Pavone, who finished with 18 points, hit a driving layup at the buzzer to send the game into the extra session. Pete Silvestri’s 18 points led Libertyville (11-2).
In the consolation bracket, St. Edward tipped Carmel 49-48 despite being outscored 24-9 in the fourth quarter. Robert Castro led the Green Wave (7-4) with 10 points, while Sean Walker paced Carmel with 12 points and eight rebounds. . . . Ryan Paradise’s 26 points helped Naperville Central (4-7) get past Wheeling 57-51.