Ogunsanya Nets 27 Points In Record Rout

Now that the Illinois High School Association permits football teams to hold one preseason scrimmage against another school, Evanston basketball coach Mike Ellis figures it’s only fair that the state organization allows basketball teams the same opportunity for a tune-up.

But the lack of a tune-up prior to the start of the 2024-25 season didn’t prevent the Wildkits from making school history Tuesday night in their debut.

To open the 125th varsity season of competition for ETHS, the Kits established a record for margin of victory by overwhelming Chicago Latin 97-15 in the opening round of the Fenton Thanksgiving Tournament in a mismatch that featured a sizzling start to the season for junior Timi Ogunsanya.

Ogunsanya erupted for 27 points --- including 7 3-point baskets --- in just 11 minutes on the court, converting 10-of-14 shots from the floor and Latin, a private school with an enrollment of about 500, committed 35 turnovers.

It all led to a running clock victory for the Wildkits and Ellis, who had his reserves hold the ball for the final 36 seconds of the game to keep the final score under the century mark. And the veteran head coach admitted he’d never seen anything quite like that 82-point margin.

The halftime score was 50-5 in Evanston’s favor.

“What I liked most about tonight was that we got to play against somebody else,” Ellis explained. “I’m hoping we get a chance to play an exhibition game before the season like they do in football. They’ve played against themselves through the fall and two weeks in the pre-season, and this was their first chance to guard somebody they didn’t know.

“And they really handled it well. It’s a good start for us, and if that’s a school record, that’s quite an accomplishment after all these years.”

The winners placed four players in double figures --- Theo Rocca with 15 points and Dion Lane Jr. and Kaidan Chatham with 10 apiece --- but the night belonged to Ogunsanya, whose grandfather passed away just last week.

A sweet shooter with a 3-point stroke that Steph Curry would love to have, Ogunsanya had a “cup of coffee” with the varsity last year but mostly starred for the sophomore squad. He had opportunities to help out a varsity team that struggled to score in 2023-24 but wasn’t ready for the varsity level yet.

“Now? Going forward, he’ll be on everyone’s scouting report as our (main) shooter,” Ellis said. “He might have been more wide open tonight than he will be the rest of the year. But give him credit, because he had opportunities and he made the most of them.

“After losing his grandfather, I’m just glad to see him have a night like this. Last year he wasn’t ready for the varsity level. He was too thin (physically) and not aware enough. He needed to be the guy for the sophomore team.

“He’s always had confidence in his shooting ability, so now it’s a matter of him getting confidence in the other parts of his game. He needs to help handle the ball, distribute and be a factor for us on defense.”

Ogunsanya accounted for the first of what could be many and various heat checks for Evanston’s shooters. The Wildkits connected on 16-of-34 shots from 3-point range, an impressive showing even though it came against inferior competition.

Seven of those bombs came from Ogunsanya, who seemed to step farther back on the floor every time he shot. His last couple of tries came from at least 25 feet.

“After I air-balled (missed the rim) on that first shot, I didn’t want people to think I couldn’t shoot,” said the 6-foot-2 junior. “I just got way more open looks than I expected tonight.

“When I did play with the varsity last year, they just wanted me to shoot. That’s what I was on the court for. I feel like my defense has gotten way better this year because I worked on it a lot this summer.”

Ellis cleared his bench entirely in the first half, and 13 players scored at least a bucket in the rout. The winners poured in 30 points in the third quarter and led 80-11 once the clock started to run (IHSA slaughter rule) to open the final period.

A pair of baskets from junior guard Miles Ross, on a drive to the hoop and then a 3-point swish, brought the 97th point with 1 minute, 22 seconds still showing on the clock. Then the Kits just held the ball after Latin’s last turnover.

The Chicago school shot 5-for-32 from the floor. Junior Connor Kernan paced the Romans with 8 points.

Evanston will play Willowbrook in the second round of the round-robin tourney on Wednesday at 6 p.m. The tournament concludes on Saturday.