Maine South senior Tommy Gardiner said he feels like he’s 100 percent healthy again after tearing his ACL and missing nearly all of last season. His performance in a 62-49 win over Richards suggests that he’s right.
Gardiner, a 6-foot-7 forward, had 15 points, a team-high nine rebounds and four assists in the opening-round game at the Hinsdale Central Holiday Classic on Wednesday.
“It feels good to get back,” Gardiner said. “I had surgery in January and then physical therapy, which was mentally and physically exhausting for sure. It’s a lot of work but I just wanted to come back and play basketball.”
Gardiner injured his knee in the sixth game of his junior year, disrupting what began as a breakout season. He was averaging 17 points and eight rebounds at the time of the injury.
“He was arguably our best player,” Maine South coach Tony Lavorato said.
Gardiner was cleared to play in August and began the slow journey back to basketball. Gardiner’s skills were rusted after after a year off.
“He got cleared and he started slow,” Lavorato said. “We put a lot of pressure on him early in the season and he just wasn’t ready. But he’s getting better and better and (Wednesday) you saw him take the ball real strong and finish strong. And he has defended well without fouling, too.”
Gardiner did a little of everything in the first quarter of the Hawks’ win over Richards. He had four points, two rebounds and two assists as the Hawks built a 15-3 lead.
“I feel like I’m all the way back,” Gardiner said.
Maine South junior guard Essam Hamwi led all scorers with 18 points and after the game he spoke to Gardiner’s value to the team.
“He’s a big post presence and a good defender, and he can bring the ball up a little, too,” Hamwi said. “He’s also got a nice shot from the outside.”
Gardiner, a Park Ridge resident, finished 7-for-12 from the field, including 0-for-1 from behind the arc, and picked up just one foul in 28 minutes.
Even though Gardiner believes his conditioning, confidence and feel for the game have all returned, Lavorato sees an even brighter future for him on the horizon.
“He may not be there until he’s in college, so that’s why anybody that’s recruiting him should know that his best basketball is ahead of him,” Lavorato said. “Right now it’s a wait-and-see approach and he’s being recruited. But they can see him now and they’ll see a different player in a month.”
Notes
*Gardiner and teammate Fillip Bulatovic each scored 12 points and grabbed five rebounds, but it wasn’t enough as the Hawks lost 48-43 to St. Rita in the Hinsdale Central Holiday Classic quarterfinals on Thursday.
Maine South led 19-8 after one quarter, but the Hawks were outscored in each of the next three quarters.
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Gardiner scored on a layup with 6:53 remaining in the fourth quarter to give Maine South a seven-point lead, 43-36, but St. Rita ended the game on a 12-0 run.
The Hawks dropped into the fifth-place bracket and will play Stevenson at 3:45 p.m. Friday.
*Bulatovic, a 6-4 junior guard, finished with 10 points against Richards on Wednesday. Senior guard Michael George added eight assists against three turnovers and grabbed seven rebounds. Senior forward Grant Miller had nine points and seven rebounds.
Gary Larsen is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.
Twitter @Pioneer_Press