Whether he’s on a football field or a basketball court, Neuqua Valley senior Nic Lendino concentrates mainly on one thing.
Defense.
“It started when I was a kid, playing defense,” Lendino said. “My dad coached me. He always harped on ‘defense wins championships.'”
Lendino has followed that mindset to become a tough-as-nails defender in both sports. He was an all-area defensive back for Neuqua Valley’s football team that reached the second round of the Class 8A playoffs, and he’s bringing similar grit to his role as the power forward on the basketball team.
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Neuqua Valley basketball coach Todd Sutton gets down into a crouch to demonstrate how Lendino plays defense.
“Defensively, he’s fantastic,” Sutton said. “He’s always in position. Last week in practice, someone caught a ball, and I just laughed. Kid caught it, is making the turn, and Nic was right here. That’s the cornerback in football — jam the receiver.”
Lendino’s man did not score.
“He had absolutely no chance because Nic was right there,” Sutton said. “That was awesome.”
Coaches love to see kids who are willing to sacrifice offense for defense. Lendino does it in both sports, and it has served the Wildcats well.
That was the case again Wednesday, and this time it came with an added twist. Lendino led all players with a career-high 17 points and nine rebounds in Neuqua Valley’s 57-46 victory against host Oswego at the Hoops for Healing Tournament.
“Ever since I was younger, I really believed that our defense turns into offense, and as we saw plenty of times today, our defense had some transition buckets,” Lendino said. “So I think defense comes first. If you stop them from scoring points, it will give us more opportunities on offense.”
Lendino made plenty of stops last season, but he didn’t always take advantage of any resulting opportunities at the other end. His first instinct was to pass the ball rather than shoot it.
“Well, it’s his lack of confidence in shooting,” Sutton said. “He doesn’t pick up the ball in the offseason, so it takes awhile to get your confidence.
“He’s ahead of last year. As I told him, ‘You didn’t make a shot until February last year.’ I’m not joking.”
Sutton was exaggerating a little bit. Lendino did make some baskets before February, right?
“Maybe a few,” Lendino said. “But I would agree I’m a little bit more confident. The year of experience under my belt, it just changed a lot. I have a better feel for it and am just overall more confident.”
It showed against the Panthers (0-3), who led 28-26 until Lendino scored twice in the final 30 seconds of the second quarter to give the Wildcats (2-1) a 31-28 lead. The first basket was a layup off a pass from junior guard Luke Kinkade, and the second was a transition 3-point play with 0.7 seconds left.
The 6-foor-1 Lendino added six more points in the third quarter, including back-to-back inside baskets to complete a 20-0 run. He made 7 of 10 shots, and his four offensive rebounds matched Oswego’s team total.
“I got after him a little bit to score,” Sutton said. “He posted up once and kicked it out, and I was like, ‘What are you doing? You can score.’ So he looked to score a little bit second half.”
Lendino plans to play football in college and has an offer from Valparaiso. He said his footwork and defensive instincts transition well to basketball, and his aggressiveness is boosting his offensive game.
“I am more aggressive this year, and I’m a better decision-maker,” he said. “I still have turnovers every now and then, but I’m just a lot more comfortable on the court.”
Matt Le Cren is a freelance reporter for the Naperville Sun.