Larkin guard Anthony Lynch learned the facts of his school’s rivalry with Elgin from his father, former Elgin player Wallace Lynch.
Larkin coach Deryn Carter made sure there was supplementary education.
“Coaches will talk to players about the rivalry, but we bring in former players to speak to them, too,” Carter said.
The historical significance of Friday’s rematch at Elgin’s Chesbrough Field House for Larkin (11-10, 2-4 Upstate Eight River) is greater than ever. No team has won 12 straight In a series dating back to 1964, but on Friday Larkin can do that.
Larkin’s current 11-game run started Dec. 12, 2012 with a 76-73 win in double overtime. Elgin (11-8, 2-4) still controls the series overall, 79-51. The Maroons won 11 straight twice under coach Bill Chesbrough.
For Carter, a 1998 Larkin grad, the recent run is a complete turnaround from his playing days in a series that has had great swings. Elgin also dominated when Carter started coaching Larkin, and the Royals had to try to contain Elgin standout Kory Brown.
“I loved playing against them, especially in their gym,” Carter said. “We only beat them once then.
“I love coaching there. I love being in their gym, a historic gym. It wasn’t fun losing to them when we played, but the competition was always intense.”
Lynch, a transfer from South Elgin, experienced the rivalry’s intensity in Larkin’s 70-47 win Dec. 15 at home. Larkin blew it open in the second half.
“I liked it, I liked playing under the pressure,” Lynch said. “I think it brings out a lot in a lot of us on our team.”
The Royals dealt recently with pressure at games’ ends on a regular basis. A team that starts four juniors and a sophomore can use the experience.
They lost in the closing seconds to St. Charles North Friday, then finished 3-1 at the Rockford Jefferson Martin Luther King Tournament. It included a 68-66 win over Deerfield on Pierre Black’s last-second 3-pointer, and a 66-61 overtime loss to Rockford Boylan.
“It’s still a learning process for us,” Carter said.
On guard: Elgin guard Tim Wolf comes into the rematch with Larkin off a career-high 23 points in a 70-57 win Monday over Hampshire, but scoring isn’t front and center on the senior’s mind.
“I want to focus more on the defensive end,” Wolf said.
It’s something Elgin needs as an entire team, he said.
“We’ve got to get our mindset ready for regionals,” Wolf said.
Playing without 2015-16 leading scorer Reggie Cole due to illness, Elgin has the same problem to overcome now as earlier against Larkin.
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“Our biggest problem is playing at a high level for four straight quarters,” coach Mike Sitter said.
Sitter was upset after the earlier loss at Larkin over an inability to aggressively pursue the 50-50 ball on rebounds or deflections.
“We’ve got to be a little more active around the ball,” he said.
Sunny side: St. Charles East coach Patrick Woods found a positive side to the norovirus that forced postponement of the Jan. 7 game against rival St. Charles North until Jan. 31.
“If there was any benefit at all to not practicing or playing, it was finally an opportunity for Jack Zylke and Zach Mitchell to get a little bit of rest,” Woods said. “It was the only positive. It’s been a long time since they had a break.”
Mitchell averages 6.9 points and 3.5 assists. He went right from being the Saints quarterback for a Class 8A quarterfinal team, to playing guard in basketball. Zylke, a 6-foot-3 senor, was a defensive end in football and is averaging 5.6 points and 2.9 rebounds.
Woods tried to hold a practice Monday following cancellation of the Saturday Saints-North Stars game. There were 800 students absent that day.
“I had five players total at practice — that’s combined,” he said. “We put the sophomores and varsity together to have five for practice.”
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