It needs a 6-foot-6 kid who is a rebounding fiend to somehow materialize in the school hallways.
With Mike Springs (point guard), Colin Nickerson (shooting guard) and Jereme Richmond (small forward), the pieces of the Bulldog puzzle that's missing is a big man in the middle who can defend opposing centers as well as get the ball off the glass to start the break.
Is there NOBODY in a school of 4,000 who's 6-6 and can play basketball?
You would think that the opportunity to play with Richmond would attract some big player to the Dog Pound. Here's hoping that happens.
Coming soon, The News-Sun is going to select its All-Lake County Boys Basketball Team for 2007-2008.
Here in The Locker Room, we're interested in finding out who YOU think should be on the five-man first team.
Remember, you need to pick 2 guards, 2 forwards and 1 center. Which means, you can't just pick the five best players in the area because this was a guard-rich area and you could easily have five guards on the first team.
In no particular order ...
1) Kentrall Wilson (North Chicago senior forward) -- the ultimate blue-collar player. The guy on the team willing to rebound without also needing to shoot. Every successful team has a guy like this ... and the Hawks certainly were successful.
2) Marc Grischeau (Grant senior center) -- on this team, the guards did the scoring. Still, he emerged during the season as a guy who could score inside and also did yeoman work on the boards.
3) Rashaan Melvin (Waukegan senior forward) -- where would Waukegan have been without him? In big trouble. He could score, rebound and run the floor.
It would be interesting to see just how far away people live who were ZBTHS grads and were following the team's success in the tournament. Like, were people in Arizona trying to get updates on the games? When something like this happens, it always seems like you discover there are alumni everywhere.
In the Locker Room, we've maintained for the past year that one of the best sophomore basketball players in the state is playing in Lake County.
Turns out we were right.
A tip of the Zee-Bee cap to Lenzelle Smith for showing this year how effective an extraordinariliy talented player can be when he molds his game into a team concept.
Back in 1972, North Chicago lost the super-sectional game to Evanston because they failed to block out on a missed free throw in the final seconds. Evanston got the rebound, scored on the put-back and won the game.
If we block out on the missed free throw at 65-63 with 16 seconds left, I know we go down and score either a deuce to tie or a 3-pointer to win.
The thing to remember though is this: These are 17-year--old kids and they're doing their best to block out. It's not any one or two or three players' fault. Losing this one was totally due to the great play of Richards.
That is, there is no rule that says you have to win them all to earn being called "winners."
Though our side didn't score the most points Saturday night, it was one of the great state-final games in IHSA history, and our guys are every bit as much winners as the team that took home the big trophy.
Besides, we know something that the Richards High Bulldogs people don't know:
Over here in The Locker Room, we're trying to find out who might be the longest-running (i.e. oldest) Zee-Bee fan in the neighborhood. The husband/wife team of Ken and Ann Miller has been suggested, but nobody in The Locker Room knows how to get hold of them. Can anyone help? Thanks
Since a lot of us can't make it down to Peoria for Friday's game, where would be a good place to go to in the Zion/Beach Park/Harbor corner of the universe at 6:30 p.m. Friday where a bunch proud card-carrying members of the Z-B Nation will be gathered to watch the game ... preferably on a big screen?
Zion-Benton vs. Evanston (likely) at 6:30 p.m. on Friday in semifinals.
64-50. Quintrell Love 19 points, but big Markus the true hero. Gentle giant comes through in the cluthc!
53-44 Zion. Elgin chasing as Zion is running clock. Z-B is too quick and has too many good ball-handlers so all Elgin can do is foul. Quintrell Love shooting 2 free throws with 2:44 left. He hits the first for 54-44. He hits the second for 55-44!
Elgin cut lead to 44-38 with 5:30 remaining and Elgin had to come out of zone defense and play man-to-man. Ronald Steward beat his man and scored on a runner for 46-38. Elgin responded with a 3-point bombm to make it 46-41 with five minutes left.
Zion gets first possesion of fourth quarter and lobs inside to 6-7 Markus Yarbrough who converted for a 40-35 lead. Markus has 12 points. Then, Antionio Stewart converted a Yarbrough miss for 42-35. Elgin respconded to make it 42-37 with 6:49 left to play.
Z-B leads 38-35 with 8 minutes to go. Nobody in foul trouble. Ronald Steward hit big 3-pointer to get zion up 38-33 and Elgin had last bucket of quarter, then just missed a tying trey at buzzer
24-18 lead for Z-B over Elgin. Zion shooting 10 of 30 from the field and with 9 turnovers. Games is played at a fast pace. Markus Yarbourgh 8 points and Lenzelle Smith 7 for the Bees.
84-54 in favor of Chicago Marshall. North Chicago season ends at 25-5. Marshall plays Washington from near Peoria in the Class 3A semifinals on Friday afternoon.
It's 67-41 in favor of Marshall, which finished third in each of the last two state tourneys, losing in the semfiinals both years to Simeon, which went on to take it all behind Derrick Rose (now at Memphis). Marshall had four starters back this year and figured to be a strong contender.
Figuratively, if not yet literally. Marshall was ahead 29-27 late in the first half, and then scored 38 of the game's next 48 points to take a 30-point lead at 67-37 late in the third quarter. North Chicago will finish its season one win shy of the school's all-time single-season record for victories. This year's team will close 25-5.
At halftime, it's 47-32 for Marshall over North Chicago. Keith Ford has 15 points and Kentrall Wilson 11 for the Hawks. Marshall has too much speed, forcing nine second-quarter turno
