As the main attraction of the 48th annual Proviso West Holiday Tournament, the fifth ranked Whitney Young Dolphins took the stage against the Pirates of Proviso East after returning from a sixth place finish in the Lolani Prep Classic in Honolulu, Hawaii.
As the main attraction of the 48th annual Proviso West Holiday Tournament, the fifth ranked Whitney Young Dolphins took the stage against the Pirates of Proviso East after returning from a sixth place finish in the Lolani Prep Classic in Honolulu, Hawaii.
“Sometimes the hardiest games to play are the early ones,” said Young head coach Tyrone Slaughter. “But every game is crucial.”
Young, tournament defending champs, came out sluggish in the first half shooting a horrific 61 percent from the free throw line as a team; finishing the half with a two point lead at 39-37.
“Coach was on us at halftime about our intensity,” said Young guard Ahmad Starks. “We wanted to prove that last year was not a fluke.”
Young woke up midway through the third quarter and put away Proviso East with a 19-2 explosion that reminded local fans who haven’t seen much of the ostentatious Dolphins just how well they can play in a 71-55 first-round victory at the tournament that was held Friday.
“This tournament means a lot, and we have a target on our backs after winning here last year,” said Young guard and Iowa State-bound Chris Colvin. “We just had to come out in the second half and play our kind of ball. I just try to get everyone involved.”
The Dolphins had balanced scoring from Chris Colvin (16 points), Anthony Johnson (15 points, eight rebounds), Ahmad Starks (13 points, eight assists, three steals) and Marcus Jordan (12 points).
“We decided to go away from our half-court man and change to a 1-3-1,” Slaughter said. “We wanted to take away from their penetration and kick that gave them open looks.”
In addition to Young’s win over Proviso East on Friday, several other games were played during the weekend-long tournament:
Proviso West 59, Fenwick 54: The Panthers’ 6-8 Robert Covington, a rising college prospect, came close to a triple-double with 18 points, 10 rebounds and seven blocks. Tremel Owens added 18 points for Proviso West (7-4), which survived a terrific performance by Fenwick’s Xavier Humphrey, who finished with 30 points, nine rebounds and four assists. Donald Singletary (eight points) hit six straight free throws in the final 1 minute 20 seconds to hold off Fenwick (5-4).
Zion Benton 55, St. Patrick 48. The fourth-ranked Zee-Bees survived a third-quarter lull and advanced to Monday’s semifinals to face host Proviso West. Zion-Benton (10-1) squandered a 15-point halftime lead and fell behind 42-38 early in the fourth quarter. But Lenzelle Smith (12 points, eight rebounds), Ronald Steward (12 points), Quintrell Love (12 points) and Markus Yarbrough (11 points, 12 rebounds) collaborated on a 13-2 run that doused St. Pat’s hopes of an upset. “Our turnovers in the third quarter gave them easy baskets, and they got the momentum,” Steward said. “We were pulling apart in the third quarter and started to come together in the fourth quarter when we came back to take the lead.”
St. Pat’s Bryant Smith was 2-for-13 shooting in the first half, but his first four shots were in the third quarter-including three from beyond the arc. He finished with 23 points and seven rebounds. The Shamrocks dropped to 8-2. “That’s how good shooters are–they keep shooting,” Steward said.
St. Joseph 62, Proviso East 44. Louis Green and Mantas Dubauskas scored 14 points each as the Chargers improved to 9-2. Proviso East fell to 4-6.
Hillcrest 56, Von Steuben 44. Travis Scott had a big game with 24 points, 11 rebounds and three blocks for Hillcrest (6-5). Von Steuben is 4-4.
No. 20 Foreman 73, New Trier 67. The trio of Lavonte Dority (28 points), Tommy Woolridge (20) and Mike McCall (17) helped lift the Hornets to 5-2. Division I recruit Alex Rossi had 25 points, 10 rebounds and five assists for New Trier (4-7).
No. 17 Thornton Fractional North 59, Evanston 43. Kyle Cain led the way for the Meteors (6-2) with 19 points and 11 rebounds while Sean Montgomery contributed 18 points. Eric Dortch led Evanston (6-5) with 19 points.
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