CHAMPAIGN — The heavily taped left wrist sprained in practice three weeks earlier could have provided an excuse, but Kaneland’s Jeffrey Hassan wouldn’t go there.
Not at this moment. Not right now.
“The first week it was rough, but I’ve been playing with it,” he said. “It’s gotten a lot better. I’m fine.”
The outstanding play of the 6-foot-9 junior center — especially during the second half Friday morning at the State Farm Center — certainly provided ample proof of that fact.
Hassan sparked a furious comeback from a 14-point deficit early in the third quarter, helping the Knights force overtime in an eventual 49-48 loss to Deerfield in a Class 3A state semifinal.
All good things did come to an end with a first loss of the season for Kaneland (36-1), which then went on to beat Leo 35-32 later Friday night in the third-place game.
Hassan ended up with 10 points in the semifinals to share team-high scoring honors with senior guard Evan Frieders. Hassan also added a game-high 15 rebounds and three blocked shots.
Kaneland controlled the ball in the final 26 seconds of OT in the semifinal but struggled to get a shot off, forcing Kaneland coach Ernie Colombe to call a timeout with 2.4 seconds left.
“We wanted to get someone going to the rim, to get the ball in the paint, but it was going away,” Colombe said. “I wanted to make sure we got a shot.”
The Knights did, with senior guard Marshawn Cocroft taking a 3-pointer that was off the mark. Cocroft led Kaneland in scoring in the third-place game with 17 points.
“It was an open shot,” Colombe said. “That’s all you can ask for.”
With eight seconds left in regulation, Cocroft forced a 45-45 tie, driving the baseline and converting a floater off the glass.
Ironically, that has been the defensive goal all season for the Knights.
“We’re not gonna hang our heads,” Colombe said. “It’s a tough loss. Credit Deerfield. They played well. Our issue was we had some open looks early but missed some shots and fell behind.
“Defensively, no question, we played our tails off to get back in it.”
Hassan’s battle with Deerfield’s Jake Pollack, a 6-9 senior center, also stole the show.
Pollack finished with a game-high 20 points, seven rebounds and five blocked shots for the Warriors (25-11). He made the winner on a short jumper in the lane with 50 seconds left in OT.
Hassan had just two points and five rebounds in the first half but opened the second with a putback dunk. Five points from Tommy Donahue gave Deerfield a 34-20 lead with 5:04 remaining in the third quarter.
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The Warriors didn’t score for a span of 7:26, however, as Kaneland pulled within 34-33 on the strength of a 13-0 run.
Despite some high-scoring games, Kaneland’s calling card has been its defense.
“We play defense,” said Cocroft, a Grand Valley State recruit. “It’s a very important part of our game. You may not be able to make everything on offense, but defense is all energy and effort.
“We know that you can give it every game.”
Hassan did just that during Kaneland’s big push, delivering all three of his blocked shots, scoring twice on dunks and adding a pair of free throws.
“In the third quarter, you saw why Kaneland is who they are,” Deerfield coach Dan McKendrick said. “They were putting good solid defensive pressure on us.
“It’s a state semifinal, maybe we felt it a little bit, got a little timid. In overtime, we found the baskets when we needed them.”
Hassan and Pollack both had four fouls by late in the fourth quarter, adding tension. It meant the Knights often switched on defense, with senior guard Jalen Carter drawing Pollack as his assignment.
“He’s a great player,” Hassan said of Pollack. “I just tried to be there for my team. When he’d drive, I just tried to wall up. On offense, I was just trying to attack every time I got the ball.”