Game 1

This past Wednesday on February 22nd, the Scouts boys varsity basketball team opened up their 2022-2023 playoff run against Senn High School, which is just north of Wrigleyville in the City. Due to the Scouts having the number one seed heading into the 3A regional round of the IHSA basketball tournament,

they faced Senn, who was ranked 17th in the regional round. From the moment the ball was thrown up for the tip-off, the Scouts took control of the game. Commanding the pace of play as well as increasing the intensity, the Scouts were able to take advantage of the weak areas of Senn’s game style. The Scouts ended up winning the first round of the state tournament by an astounding score of 72-37. The Scouts were led by Asa Thomas and Noah Portalatin who both had 13 points of their own, as well as Hudson Scroggins added his own 7 points along with 10 rebounds. In an opening round like this, the Scouts were able to touch up on areas that they felt needed to be improved. Polishing off their offensive game style and keeping their defense to be disciplined yet aggressive, will help make the Scouts advance far into the IHSA 3A state tournament.

Game 2

After their victory over Senn, the Scouts squared off against Notre Dame Prep, an all-boys school. This was the predicted matchup for the Regional Championship prior to the semi-finals. Notre Dame came into the game with a 14-9 record while the scouts came in 21-10. This was an incredibly hard-fought game by both teams. Notre Dame was determined not to let Asa Thomas be the deciding factor in the game. They played a four-man zone defense against the scouts with the fifth man solely guarding Thomas. However, this didn’t stop Thomas from still being massively influential on the court. With 9 points, Thomas commanded the game when it mattered the most. Anthony Mordini and Tommie Aberle were also on the same level, being able to defeat the zone and rack up 9 points each. The main strength of the Scouts came from their defense. Every time Notre Dame got the ball, the Scouts would get a takeaway and have a quick and easy bucket. This still didn’t stop Notre Dame from staying with the Scouts and continuing to cause problems on the defensive side of the ball. In the end, the Scouts prevailed with a 34-27 win, advancing them to the Sectional semi-finals. 

Preview Game: 

On Tuesday, February 28th the Scouts will take on their next opponent, 7th seed Carmel Catholic, in the first round of the IHSA Sectional round. The Scouts will still carry their number one seed into this next round of state tournament games. In a due-or-die situation, the Scouts must keep winning to advance to the Sectional Championship. This game will take place at a neutral site, which is hosted by Grayslake Central. Scouts will need our support with these next couple of big games, as fans are an influential factor in the sport.