Lake Forest Academy Splits Tourney Pair

Even with Dylan Ennis' 31-point eruption, quest for perfection came to an abrupt end on the final day of the Chicago Basketball Invite.

After posting a convincing 80-57 victory over Blair Academy on Saturday, Lake Forest Academy fell to Wilbraham and Monson Academy, 81-63, on Sunday.

The tournament offered a stark contrast in the Caxys' offensive abilities. Against Blair Academy, the Caxys put on a shooting barrage from beyond the arc. Lake Forest Academy shot a robust 72 percent (13-of-18) from the 3-point line to bury the Bucs.

In what Caxys coach Matthew Vaughn called "our most complete game of the year," Lake Forest Academy went into the half leading 41-28.  LFA's cushion never went lower than 11 points in the second half.

Charles Harris scored a game-high 25 points and Dylan Ennis chipped in 22, including an incredible 7-of-9 from beyond the arc. Tyler Ennis also finished with 10.

"We never let Blair get a run on us and that was huge," said Vaughn. "We came out with a lot of focus and played two complete halves."

The Caxys' shooting touch never appeared against Wilbraham and Monson Academy, which featured the 6-foot-8 UConn-bound Braeden Anderson.

With the game tied at 23 and six minutes left in the first half, the Caxys offense went cold allowing the Titans to go off on a 14-4 run to take the lead for good.  The Caxys trimmed the lead to 40-34 before the half ended.

In the first half, both Charles Harris and Faith Ekakitie committed three personal fouls and would spend a hefty amount of the second half on the bench.

"The foul trouble hurt us a lot, especially to the big men," said Tyler Ennis, who finished with 18 points. "With those guys out, we weren't able to run and gun like we usually do because we need all five guys to crash the boards."

The Caxys would catch an enormous break midway through the second half when Anderson, who finished with 12 points, would foul out. The Titans remained in control thanks to a team-high 27 points from Andrej Pajovic.

Turnovers and poor free throw shooting killed the Caxys as they missed seven free throws in the second half and finished the game with 16 turnovers.

"We had a lot of loose balls that just went straight through our hands," Vaughn said. "We kicked a lot of balls out of bounds."

Dylan Ennis finished with a game-high 31 points while Tyler Ennis added 18.

"Dylan showed us his versatility this weekend," said Vaughn. "Saturday was all three-pointers and today (Sunday) he drove to the hoop a lot more. He did a great job of adjusting to the defense."

Dylan attributed his success to his teammates' assistance.

"Blair was laying off of me on defense so my teammates were able to get me the open shots," Dylan Ennis said.  "Sunday, they really played me tight and my teammates were cutting and setting great screens, and that helped open up a lot for me."