Junior guard Jalen Bealer fits the classic mold of an offensive juggernaut for East Aurora.
And when the opponent is West Aurora?
“I knew this game meant everything for my team,” he said.
In the state’s oldest boys basketball rivalry, Bealer brought just about everything Saturday night for the Tomcats. And realizing what was at stake, he provided the sizzle.
“I was hot,” said Bealer, who made five 3-pointers. “I was ready to play. I hit my first couple of shots, and that just turned me up — and I kept going.”
Bealer kept going to the tune of scoring a career-high 35 points as unheralded East Aurora defeated West Aurora 82-80 in the nonconference crosstown showdown.
The 6-foot-1 Bealer almost doubled his season scoring average of 16 points, proving to be efficient and incredibly accurate for the Tomcats (7-9), who maintained bragging rights.
East Aurora won its fourth straight in an iconic series that dates back to 1913, following the pageantry of West Aurora’s Hall of Fame induction ceremonies that preceded the game.
West Aurora (11-7), which holds the historic edge 139-92, came in as the favorite but senior guard Ralph Clark summed up the Tomcats’ thoughts.
“A lot of people doubted us and thought they were going to blow us out,” Clark said. “We didn’t feel any pressure. I’m 4-0 against West now.
“We came in here and showed we just wanted it more.”
Clark scored 11 points and added four assists and three steals. Senior forward Jabian Acosta led the Tomcats with 17 points and nine rebounds.
Junior point guard CJ Savage knew what Bealer was capable of doing. Savage transferred to West Aurora from East Aurora during the summer.
Savage even scored a crucial basket in the fourth quarter of the Tomcats’ victory last season.
“Jalen’s a great player,” said Savage, who scored nine points with four assists and three steals in his first game against his former team. “I have seen him go off like that all the time.
“He just knows how to play the game forever.”
Junior guard Jordan Brooks scored 26 points to pace the Blackhawks, who also received 18 points, nine rebounds and three blocked shots from sophomore forward Terrence Smith.
West Aurora could not match the Tomcats’ hustle and intensity. East Aurora repeatedly burned the Blackhawks, coming up with 22 second-chance points.
“The whole season has just been a roller coaster,” Savage said. “Right now, we are just trying to build a bond with each other so that we can win close games like this.”
East Aurora maintained its poise despite West Aurora slicing a 15-point deficit in the fourth quarter down to a single possession.
“We had a tough loss the night before against South Elgin, by one point, and that’s how our season has gone,” Clark said. “We have been losing some games we shouldn’t have. That gets the team low.
“This win is going to get our confidence up for the rest of the season.”
East Aurora coach Rick Robinson has a direct connection to the rivalry as a former high-scoring forward for the Tomcats. He flourished under legendary coach Ernie Kivisito in the late 1970s.
In Bealer, Robinson sees the classic diamond in the rough.
“I was reflecting over the summertime when I lost James Parker to Metea Valley and then CJ,” Robinson said. “I was down, but then I started looking at what I had.
“Jalen was the unknown person nobody knew about. I described him as Melvin Harden.”
Harden was a contemporary of Robinson, an explosive and unstoppable guard who averaged 33.3 points a game during the 1979-80 season.
“Just like Jalen, he was a downhill guy,” Robinson said of Harden. “I told Jalen before the game that nobody knew who he was and it was time for people to learn his name.”
Bealer sparked a 22-2 burst from the end of the second quarter to the start of the third.
It left him practically speechless afterward.
“I don’t know how to describe my style, really,” he said. “I just come out to play and have fun and try to keep the team positive. Stuff like that.”
Patrick Z. McGavin is a freelance reporter for The Beacon-News.