Midway through the first quarter of the Class 4A Chicago State Supersectional on Tuesday, 6-foot-2 Stevenson guard Jalen Brunson bounced a reverse layup off the glass backboard.
The two points awarded were the 2,621st and 2,622nd of his career, giving him Lake County’s all-time boys basketball career scoring record. It was a familiar Brunson basket — elevated, no wasted motion, his body in perfect balance.
That same quarter, well below the rim, the body of Brunson’s senior teammate, Parker Nichols, moved in the opposite direction. In a chaotic heap of feet, legs, arms and torso, Nichols’ 6-5 frame crashed down onto the floor. Four times in Stevenson’s 62-45 win over Riverside-Brookfield, players were issued offensive fouls after colliding with Nichols.
Fans of the game may prefer the awe-inspiring beauty of Brunson’s graceful movements. But on the eve of Stevenson’s third consecutive state tournament appearance, Nichols’ value to the Patriots — while not as photogenic as Brunson’s — is clear to him, his coaches and his teammates.
“He’s a guy who brings his lunch pail to work every day. He comes to work,” senior guard Matt Johnson said.
“It’s huge defensively. We feel it’s a momentum shift,” senior guard Connor Cashaw said. “A charge is a huge play.”
Nichols added: “I love getting hit. I love hitting people. Taking charges, it makes me feel great.”
The act of taking a charge is a physical one. But Nichols has found beauty in the brutality.
“It’s a lot of pressuring the ball and funneling [opponents] to me. My teammates don’t get a lot of credit, but they are a big part of it,” Nichols said. “It’s great help defense. I just have to be in the right spot, stand there and take it.”
Nichols has taken 40 charges this year. He’s already broken the school record of 20, which he set last season. That number doesn’t include charges taken in practice sessions. Yes, like a true artist, Nichols practices his craft.
When he’s not preparing his body to receive an impending blow, Nichols sharpens his mind. Stevenson coach Pat Ambrose said Nichols regularly asks him or assistant coach John Taylor for intelligence on opposing players.
“[He’ll ask] who do you think will charge into me? It’s so he can see it and spot it,” Ambrose said. “Half the battle is recognizing it before it’s coming. He sees it.”
High up on a wall inside Stevenson’s main gymnasium is a black banner commemorating Brunson’s 2013-14 Gatorade Illinois Boys Basketball Player of the Year award. Below the banner is a green and white poster with the school’s boys basketball records written on it. Brunson holds the first five.
The sixth — for most charges taken — belongs to Nichols.
“I know my role is very important to the team, and I just love doing what I do,” Nichols said. “I just do the dirty work.”
And he might do it better than anyone in Stevenson boys basketball history.
Jon Kerr is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.
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