IC Catholic junior point guard Austin Reed was a force and a constant presence on the court Friday. He was tenacious on both ends of the court and the only thing that slowed him down was a nasty cut he received on his cheek in the first quarter that forced him to briefly exit.
He shrugged it off and returned shortly as he led the Knights with 16 points, seven rebounds and five assists in a 78-49 loss to Riverside-Brookfield in a Metro Suburban West showdown in Riverside.
“I’m really proud of the effort he (Reed) displayed tonight. It was a big game and he played to the spotlight,” Knights coach T.J. Tyrrell said.
Reed directed the Knights (4-2, 0-1) for much of the contest and was able to penetrate past the Bulldogs (6-1, 2-0). He created room for his teammates, like senior forward Will Lyles.
“Our offense is about creating open space and for me it’s about moving the ball and finding the open man,” Reed said.
Upon occasion, Reed was the open man. He took advantage of his opportunities by going 4 of 8 from the floor and 4 of 4 from the free-throw line. He was able to match the Bulldogs guards on offense and helped keep the Knights in the game in the first half.
“Their guards played really tough against him and he handled it great,” Tyrrell said.
His skills on offense were matched by his tenacity and aggressive play on defense. He moved from the top of the key down to the blocks seamlessly and was solid in keeping himself between the Bulldogs attackers and the basket.
“I’m proud of my defense and it’s what I work on a lot. I’m always looking to make plays and be smart,” Reed said.
Tyrrell agreed. “He’s got good length and is a strong kid. And he was very aggressive, which is nice. He played defense at the top of the zone, but he’d go follow the shot and grab the rebound for us.”
Reed’s effort kept the Knights within 42-34 going into the second half. However, the Knights were unable to match the Bulldogs’ run in the third and fourth quarters. For much of the second half, Reed had the only field goals for the Knights.
“They were just making shots that they weren’t in the first half,” Reed said of the Bulldogs’ second-half surge. “And we were having trouble rotating on defense and they’re really quick and they were able to beat us on some plays.”
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Lyles had 10 points and senior guard Angel Ramirez added seven for the Knights. Junior guard Tony Gaudio had seven points and five rebounds.
Junior guard Jalen Clanton led all scorers with 19 points and five rebounds for the Bulldogs. Senior guard Daniko Jackson added 14 points and five steals.
Chris Vavra is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.