Second Half Surge Powers Kits To 6th Win In A Row

There was no stopping Oswego East star Mason Lockett in the first half Saturday at the MLK: “The Dream Continues” High School Invitational basketball shootout hosted by Homewood-Flossmoor.

But there was no stopping Evanston in the second half.

Leading by just one point at halftime, the Wildkits blitzed Oswego with a 31-point explosion in the third quarter on their way to a running clock 83-54 victory behind double figure performances from all five starters.

Evanston earned its sixth win in a row and improved to 16-3 overall. Oswego East, now 14-6, got a game-high 23 points from DePaul University recruit Lockett but only mustered two points in the last five and one-half minutes of the third quarter when the contest was decided.

Player of the Game Timi Ogunsanya poured in 21 points for ETHS, including five 3-point buckets, and was backed up by Dion Lane Jr. (15 points), Ben Ojala (12 points, 5 rebounds, 5 assists), Tate Schroeder (11 points, 5 rebounds) and Vito Rocca (11 points, 5 rebounds).

Evanston connected on 14-of-27 3-point field goal attempts and, like most of the teams the Kits have faced to date, the confused losers didn’t know just who to concentrate on when it came to their defensive effort.

You can’t leave any of these Wildkits open for long.

“We do have a lot of weapons on this team,” noted Evanston assistant coach Dante Johnson. “It’s pretty hard to figure out what to do when it comes to guarding us. We can do a lot of things offensively that most teams can’t. Last year, we were a good shooting team, but these guys are really doing a good job this year.”

“Anybody on this team can be the leading scorer in any game,” said Ogunsanya, who shot 7-of-13 from the floor. “We don’t have to worry about offense --- we have to focus on defense. We aren’t that good on defense yet and it’s a work in progress.”

Astonishingly, the winners broke open the game in the third period without Ojala (foul trouble) and Rocca (lower body injury) available for much of that offensive surge. Evanston led 45-41 on a 3-pointer by Ogunsanya, then triggered the rout with a 20-0 run that blew the doors off the Wolves and handed them their third defeat in the past five games.

That explosion came after the only ones who could stop Lockett were the guys wearing striped shirts --- the officials. Lockett fired in 17 points in the first half, which ended just 37-36 in Evanston’s favor, but the 6-foot-5 senior picked up his third personal foul early in the third quarter and had to sit and watch in agony as the Wildkits built their big lead.

Lockett connected on 8-of-18 field goal attempts but was just 1-of-8 from 3-point range.

“We started sending a lot of bodies (defenders) at him in the second half because we knew they didn’t have a lot of other (good) shooters,” Johnson said. “And I can’t give Ben Ojala enough credit for all the plays he made today. We did a better job of rebounding in the second half, too (26-24 advantage overall).”

Evanston will host Loyola Academy in a girls/boys doubleheader on Tuesday. The Wildkits visit Glenbrook North next Friday in a game that might determine the Central Suburban League South division championship, and will host state-ranked Peoria Richwoods next Saturday.