* Wrapping Up with Round-Ball Accolades

Excellence was abundant on during this past hoops season. From the gloriously outstanding campaigns of the Huntley Red Raiders and Crystal Lake Central Tigers to the late-season victories finally garnered by struggling squads from Prairie Ridge and Lake Zurich, effort earned rewards.

In that same spirit, this column wraps up the 2010-11 basketball season by acknowledging the teams and individuals who made following the 17 clubs on The Tour an enjoyable experience.

I want to point out that selecting the top guards of this season was an especially difficult task. I could have easily acknowledged a dozen more back-court players.

Final Ranking of Top 10 Teams on the Hardwood Tour

1. Huntley Red Raiders (25-5) Won Sycamore Thanksgiving Tournament; captured Fox Valley Valley division championship; won Prairie Ridge 4A Regional Championship; and made it to 4A Jacobs Sectional championship game.
2. Crystal Lake Central Tigers (24-5) Won own Thanksgiving Tournament; Fox Valley Fox division champions; and were 3A Hampshire Regional champions. Top 3A team in Patch area.
3. Barrington Broncos (19-11) Co-champs of Mid-Suburban League West Division.
4. Fremd Vikings (19-10) Co-champs of Mid-Suburban League West Division;  won own Regional title.
5. Buffalo Grove Bison (17-10)
6. Jacobs Golden Eagles (16-13)
7. Grayslake Central Rams (17-13) Won 3A Vernon Hills Regional championship
8. Crystal Lake South Gators (15-12)
9. Grayslake North Knights (19-7) Established school record for wins in one season.
10. Stevenson Patriots (15-13)

THE ALL-PATCH HARDWOOD TOUR TEAM

First Team:

Guard—Zach Monaghan, 6-2 senior, Fremd Vikings

Guard—Nick Hofman, 6-3 senior, Jacobs Golden Eagles

Center—Sam Wacker, 6-7 junior, Buffalo Grove Bison

Forward—Mirko Grcic, 6-5 junior, Lake Zurich Bears

Forward—John Schneider, 6-7 junior, Barrington Broncos

Second Team:

Guard—Tyler Brunschon, 6-3 senior, Huntley Red Raiders

Guard—Jordan Taylor, 5-7 junior, Grayslake Central Rams

Center—Matt Gleixner, 6-7 senior, Crystal Lake Central Tigers

Forward—John Millin, 6-4 junior, Palatine Pirates

Forward—Dylan Neukirch, 6-3 senior, Huntley Red Raiders

Third Team:

Guard—Troy Miller, 5-11 junior, Huntley Red Raiders

Guard—Teddy Ludwick, 6-0 senior, Grayslake North Knights

Center—David Sparks, 6-6 senior, Grayslake North Knights

Forward—Jamel Kimbrough, 6-4 senior, Dundee-Crown Chargers

Forward—Jake Chrystal, 6-6 senior, Crystal Lake Central Tigers

Special Mention:

Nick Prus, 6-4 senior guard, Buffalo Grove Bison; Nick Richter, 6-2 senior guard, Cary-Grove Trojans; Ryan Barth, 6-0 senior guard, Libertyville Wildcats;

Honorable Mention:

Kevin Rogers, 6-4 senior forward, Crystal Lake South Gators; Joe Pijanowski, 6-2 junior guard, Crystal Lake Central Tigers; Ellis Matthews, 6-3 junior guard, Libertyville Wildcats; Sean Valentine, 6-3 junior forward, Prairie Ridge Wolves; Chase Cane, 6-1 junior point guard, Crystal Lake Central Tigers; Michael Fleming, 6-0 junior guard, Stevenson Patriots; Thomas Durrett, 6-3 junior forward, Lake Forest Scouts; Greg Gerrard, 6-2 senior guard, Barrington Broncos; Mike Peterson, 6-3 senior guard, Jacobs Golden Eagles 

TOP 10 INDIVIDUAL PERFORMANCES WITNESSED ON THE TOUR

1. AJ Fish, Grayslake North Knights sophomore guard, in a 59-56 home win vs. Crystal Lake Central, Jan. 19, 2011: Led team to biggest win of year with 18 points, four assists and three steals, consistently making superb decisions from his point guard position.
2. Dylan Neukirch, Huntley Red Raiders senior forward in 52-49 overtime road win vs. Jacobs on Feb. 8, 2011 that gave the Golden Eagles their first conference loss and vaulted the Raiders into first. The senior leader put up a game-high 21 points and was 7 for 8 from the free-throw line in overtime.
3. Nick Hofman, Jacobs Golden Eagles senior guard in 65-56 overtime home win vs. Libertyville, Feb. 19, 2011: Poured in 26 points on 12 of 18 shooting on a variety of drives and outside shots.
4. Kevin Rogers, Crystal Lake South Gators senior forward in 66-46 home win over Prairie Ridge, Dec. 4, 2010. When Rogers was hot, he owned the land beyond the arc, and on this night he ripped the cords for seven 3-pointers, including six in succession in a 30-point performance.
5. Ellis Matthews, Libertyville Wildcats junior guard in 64-62 overtime home loss to Zion-Benton, Dec. 11, 2010. With team’s star Ryan Barth out with injury, Matthews stepped up big time, scoring 26 points, including nine in the fourth quarter to send the game to an extra session.
6. Thomas Durrett, Lake Forest Scouts junior guard/forward in 67-56 road loss to Zion-Benton, Feb. 9, 2011. Scored 24 points, including a trio of treys while going 7 for 7 from foul line.
7. Robbie Lemke, Crystal Lake South Gators senior forward in 61-58 overtime road loss to McHenry Warriors, March 2, 2011. Led his team in scoring with 13 while coming up with an amazing total of seven steals. Also blocked two shots and dealt out a pair of assists in season-ending Regional defeat.
8. Tyler Weathered, Barrington Broncos senior guard in 75-61 road win vs. Fremd on Feb. 4, 2011. Knocked down three 3-pointers while scoring game-high 16 in crucial battle for first place in Mid-Suburban West.
9. Sam Wacker, Buffalo Grove Bison junior center in 60-48 home win vs. Stevenson, Nov. 27, 2010. The visiting Patriots had no answer for the 6-foot-7 senior, who led his team with 19 points, including 11 in the first quarter that gave Buffalo Grove a comfortable 21-6 lead.
10. Jordan Taylor, Grayslake Central junior guard in 51-50 loss at Mundelein Thanksgiving Tournament  vs. Barrington, Nov. 23, 2010. The diminutive point guard sizzled for 23 points, but the Rams were outscored 15-5 down the stretch and lost a tough one.

Scouting the Future

Here’s  a ranking of the top sophomores and freshmen who contributed on the varsity level this past season.

Talent is not lacking in the seasons to come. Stay tuned for next season.

TOP SOPHOMORES

1. Brad Zaumseil, 5-11 point guard, Barrington Broncos
2. Carter Bass, 6-2 guard, Lake Forest Scouts
3. AJ Fish, 6-2 point guard, Grayslake North Knights
4. Bryce Only, 6-1 guard, Huntley Red Raiders
5. Dylan Kissack, 6-2 forward, Dundee-Crown Chargers
6. Corban Murphy, 6-2 guard, Crystal Lake Central Tigers
7. Luke Potnik, 6-0 guard, Buffalo Grove Bison
8. Connor Conzelman, 6-1 forward, Jacobs Golden Eagles
9. Jake Dachman, 5-10 guard, Huntley Red Raiders
10. Alex Crowley, 6-6 center, Cary-Grove Trojans

TOP FRESHMEN

1. Amanze Egekeze, 6-5 center, Huntley Red Raiders
2. Riley Glassman, 6-3 guard, Fremd Vikings