In his primary sport of football, Aurora Christian’s Jalen Carter has to be a playmaker.
That’s the nature of the quarterback position, after all.
The sophomore guard has found a way to transfer that to the basketball court.
“I feel like I see the court pretty well, because as a QB, that’s what I do,” Carter said. “I can pick out certain things. I think that’s a good factor for me.”
Carter was in the middle of the Eagles’ decisive third quarter Tuesday night during a 48-31 Chicagoland Christian Conference win at St. Edward.
In a 15-5 run to open the second half, Carter assisted on four of the six baskets and also scored one, putting back a rebound.
Carter finished with seven points and nine rebounds for Aurora Christian (16-5, 5-2).
Marshawn Cocroft, who was the recipient of many of Carter’s playmaking efforts, led all scorers with 19 points. That included four 3-pointers in the third quarter. Cam Morel and Asa Johnson added nine points apiece.
Matthew Morrice led St. Edward (9-15, 2-6) with 14 points. Kaden Dawson added 10.
Aurora Christian coach Dan Beebe knows that Carter’s time under center is a huge benefit to his basketball team.
“He has a high IQ for sports,” Beebe said. “He’s a quarterback, so there alone you have to have a high IQ.
“Basketball-wise, he’s like a quarterback out there. He’s a leader for us. He has that basketball acumen. He just makes the right plays.”
After the Eagles shot 1 of 16 from 3-point range in the first half as a team, Cocroft wasted little time heating up in the third quarter.
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Cocroft sandwiched threes around Johnson’s layup to open a 28-12 lead. That advantage eventually moved to 35-17.
“Jalen is a really good defender,” Cocroft said. “He’s also a good playmaker. He likes to feed any of us when we’re hot. He was helping us out with his playmaking.
“We’re a great shooting team. Even if we’re missing, we know that eventually they’re going to fall down.”
Even though football is Carter’s main focus, Cocroft values what Carter brings to the basketball court. They both started as freshmen last season, so they’ve been through both varsity seasons together.
“He’s a great athlete,” Cocroft said. “He has a good IQ for both sports. He fits in really well with our team even though he’s focused on football most of the time. He fits in perfectly for our offense.”
Beebe takes Carter’s contributions to the team to an even bigger level, routinely assigning Carter to the role of locking down the opposition’s best offensive player.
Carter, who is one of the team’s best rebounders, can also contribute offensively, as evidenced by his four 3-pointers last week against Christ the King.
“He’s our unsung hero,” Beebe said. “He’s a guy that does everything we can possibly ask for. He’s a coach’s dream. He doesn’t get all of the accolades, but without him, we’re nowhere.
“We have 16 wins. Without Jalen Carter, I don’t know how many we’d have.”
Carter and Co. made life difficult for Dawson and Morrice. The Green Wave don’t have a lot of depth, so that can wear them down.
“They guard so well,” St. Edward coach Andy Zielinski said of Aurora Christian. “They’re just relentless on defense, and it’s 32 minutes of that.
“Matthew and Kaden were getting pounded. Teams that take them out, that guard hard, we struggle to score.”
Carter said he was humbled to hear that Beebe called him the team’s unsung hero. Just like when he takes on any assignment thrown his way, he takes compliments like that in stride as well.
“I’m honored to hear that, but it’s also my teammates helping me,” Carter said. “I don’t let it get to my head. At the end of the day, my team contributes as much as me.”
Paul Johnson is a freelance reporter for The Beacon-News.
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