Larkin’s Jakob Blakely entered the summer as one of the top junior guards in Illinois.
And then came the injury.
Over the past few months, as the 6-foot Blakely worked his way through the arduous rehabilitation process, moments of doubt understandably crept into his mind.
“It was really discouraging,” Blakley said. “You’re really limited as to what you can do. Part of you kind of thinks that you won’t be back.
“You keep on working every day, take it day-by-day, baby steps, and you end up back on the court.”
That moment came Wednesday night for Blakley. He led all scorers with 18 points and added four steals for the Royals in a 70-29 Upstate Eight Conference win over Streamwood.
Although Larkin coach Deryn Carter said Blakely had been cleared for a couple of weeks, the Royals played it slow in what is a critical season for Blakley’s college future.
Darnell Wilder added 16 points for Larkin (4-6, 3-3). Genaud Phillips led Streamwood (0-11, 0-6) with nine points.
“It felt great to be out there and give my team a win, especially with the energy I brought,” Blakley said. “It definitely paid off, all the physical therapy hours, the weightlifting, all the basketball work.
“It all paid off. I was happy to be back out there to show that it paid off.”
Without Blakely, Larkin was up and down with a brand-new lineup.
Having him back, however, brought it all together in one of the most complete performances of the season for the Royals, whose stifling defense forced 25 turnovers.
“He brings a lot of things to the table,” Carter said of Blakely. “But there were a lot of other things that we brought to the table that he alone didn’t do.
“He brought out the spirit of the team, the enthusiasm of the team. He’s a leader for a reason. Those other guys brought it, too. He was the leader of that, and that’s what we expected out of him.”
Carter was always there as Blakley slowly worked his way back.
“Just because of the athlete he is, he was actually cleared for a few weeks,” Carter said. “We slow played it, and rightfully so. He’s got a lot riding on it. That’s an expensive knee.
“We’re excited because now that he’s back, he’s back.”
Blakley scored his first basket at the 2:46 mark of the first quarter, fittingly on a layup after a steal. He then hit an 18-footer from the wing and converted a driving layup.
All of those baskets came during a 16-3 burst that opened a 20-12 lead early in the second quarter.
Blakley added seven more points in the second quarter as Larkin took a 38-19 lead into halftime. He scored five more points in the third quarter before sitting down.
“I knew he was going to be out of shape,” Streamwood coach Quentin Ruff said of Blakely. “I knew he was going to be rusty. But he still has an effect on the game, very much.
“It was good to see him out there.”
It was a special night for Ruff, a 2013 Larkin graduate who went up against his former coach for the first time.
“This was one for the books,” Ruff said. “Something I’ll remember regardless of the scoreboard.”
Now that Blakley is back and his injury is behind him, Carter believes it’s just another chapter in his journey.
“Not to speak for him, but in a weird way, when it’s all said and done, it’s going to be a road he’s going to say was a big piece of where he’s going to end up,” Carter said. “Whether it was a little bit of a reset, sitting on the sidelines, watching things, he approached it the right way.
“In the big picture, it’s going to be a positive.”
Paul Johnson is a freelance reporter for The Beacon-News.