State Finals: Hits & Misses

After a two year hiatus the IHSA State Championship has returned but back to a familiar place of Champaign. In this article I tackle the biggest hits and misses from this weekend’s games.   Hits New Venue Moving the IHSA State Championship games to the State Farm Center was a huge upgrade the state had to make. A much nicer new arena that just gives the feel of a big game. Seating was nice and I don’t think there is bad view in the house.   Fans I was very surprised at the attendance on Championship Saturday. It could have been because of the new format or it may have been that the right schools made it down state. For both sessions the lower and upper bowl was full of fans excited to watch games. And though every seat wasn’t full it wasn’t as notable as the last few years in Peoria.   Glenbard West All season this special group of kids played together as a team. Facing all types of opponents throughout the season. It’s rare to find a team that’s so well rounded with that type of size and skill. Led by [player_tooltip player_id="925183" first="Braden" last="Huff"] (Gonzaga) a 6’10 Forward who can shoot, pass, and handle the ball like a guard. Then to have special pieces around him [player_tooltip player_id="996060" first="Caden" last="Pierce"] (Dartmouth), [player_tooltip player_id="996070" first="Paxton" last="Warden"], [player_tooltip player_id="1106936" first="Ryan" last="Renfro"] (Army), and [player_tooltip player_id="863598" first="Bobby" last="Durkin"]. This group had one of the best high school seasons of any team in recent history. Well balanced on offense even without a traditional point guard they were totally ungaurdable. This team can now be talked about as one of the better teams ever in the state.   Yorkville Christian During the season I was asking why is this team just playing everyone under the sun? What I wasn’t aware of was that Yorkville Christian isn’t a part of any particular conference, so they scheduled basically all the top teams in the area which was a huge part in them making this incredible state run. Led by [player_tooltip player_id="863582" first="Jaden" last="Schutt"] (Duke) and [player_tooltip player_id="1210394" first="KJ" last="Vasser"] these guys played maybe the second toughest schedule in the state this year. On the state run they beat most teams by 20+ points up until the championship game against Liberty. At times I questioned their run and gun style of play but it seemed to be a major part of their success.   State Format I heard most people complain about all four classes in the same weekend, but I am one who is a fan of having all four championships on the same day. I think because of that format we did see a rise in attendance and more exciting atmosphere in the arena. I think the 3rd place game can be tweaked a bit but generally like seeing multiple teams all on the same weekend.     Misses 2A basketball As a 2A coach for a city (Julian) team I was expecting more from the semifinals and title game. But insert Nashville a team who just loves to win ugly. Big man [player_tooltip player_id="1106938" first="Saxton" last="Hoepker"] is a big part of how Nashville plays being an excellent rim protector which is also a major factor in how his team is able to slow the pace down and win games in the lower digits. What was a great feeling for this team was a struggle for most because it wasn’t the most entertaining basketball this weekend but it was the most effective.   Simeon The Wolverines made it to Champaign as the only real shot a team from Chicago had to bringing back a state championship. Metamora behind its trio of players destroyed those chances with its awareness to make Simeon play outside instead of in the paint. [player_tooltip player_id="939065" first="Ethan" last="Kizer"], [player_tooltip player_id="1371068" first="Tyson" last="Swanson"], and [player_tooltip player_id="1049101" first="Zack" last="Schroeder"] did a great job at keeping the guards out of the lane and cutting off angles for them to feed the post. The Rubin twins just weren’t able to be a force inside. After the loss Simeon just didn’t have any motivation to play for the third place game. After a pretty solid season for the Wolverines their trip downstate just wasn’t the ending they were looking to have.   Third Place Games As I just spoke about Simeon’s lack of enthusiasm to play for the third place after they had just loss hours earlier is a big issue that I’m sure IHSA picked up on Friday night. It’s tough to play that game later the same night in a pretty much empty arena. If possible, they should look to play the games the next day at one of the local high schools if they just have play the game. Its gives the players a night to get their mind right and come the next day to play a game knowing it’s the last game of the season and for seniors the last time they will play high school basketball.   March Madness Experience A huge part of going down to Peoria from the kid’s perspective was the March Madness Experience that was held in the convention hall space right next to the arena. With the move to Champaign the IHSA didn’t have an area to host this fun space with many basketball activities on hand. So to see parents walking around the State Farm concourse with their children and no place for them to shoot, dunk, and dribble basketballs in between the games seemed like a huge letdown. I hope some way they can find a space to incorporate it back in the future because it just created a fun family atmosphere, and you could also learn about the history on the IHSA State Championships.   Overall I had a great experience down in Champaign and am looking forward to more. I also want to say how much I enjoyed this season after the short month long season we experienced in 2021. Now I’m looking forward to the upcoming travel season on the Prep Hoops Circuit one of the best writers in the game Scott Burgess.