3A and 4A State Semis Notebook

The IHSA 3A and 4A State Semis were on Friday.  Let's dive into it with 3A and 4A State Semis Notebook!  Don't have a subscription?  Try it out at a special discounted rate of 30% by using code “Scottburgess30”.   Rubin and Griffith Continue to Show Out as Simeon Advances   The first 3A semi was closer than the score would show as Simeon won over St. Ignatius 60-42.  It was close throughout the first three quarters and then the Wolverines blew it open.  Once again it was [player_tooltip player_id='1048306' first='Miles' last='Rubin'] and [player_tooltip player_id='939059' first='Jalen' last='Griffith'] who shined as both set 3A state records for what they do best.  Loyola signee [player_tooltip player_id='1048306' first='Miles' last='Rubin'] was dominant on the interior throwing down dunk after dunk.  So explosive and quick twitched off the floor which also is why he is the state's best shot blocker.  He had 20 points (10-11 FG), 8 rebounds, and a state record 8 blocks in the win.  [player_tooltip player_id='939059' first='Jalen' last='Griffith'] was the one setting him up on many of those as he notched 12 points and a state record 12 assists.  He makes everyone around him better and has an innate feel for finding Rubin inside for slams.  Also hit a pair of threes and looked slick off the bounce scoring.  All of the wings did their part.  Toledo commit [player_tooltip player_id='939068' first='Sam' last='Lewis'] had 6 points, Stony Brook signee [player_tooltip player_id='994687' first='Kaiden' last='Space'] notched 8 points, [player_tooltip player_id='1048374' first='Michael' last='Ratliff'] had 5 points, and junior spark plug [player_tooltip player_id='1750596' first='Rashad' last='McKinnie'] hit a couple big threes for 6 points.  Should be noted that Simeon also set another record by shooting 77% from field in this game.   The story for St. Ignatius was their sophomore star [player_tooltip player_id='1385292' first='Phoenix' last='Gill'] who showed on the big stage why he is a high-major top 5 player in the class.  Silky smooth two guard made it look effortless as he hit jumpers and was weaving through the defense for scores at the rim.  Also was an active defender as he had 21 points.  Quiet game from George Mason commit [player_tooltip player_id='989270' first='Richard' last='Barron'] who notched only 5 points in the loss.   Metamora Advances to Second Straight 3A Title Game   This was a true toss up game between two of the best teams in the state..  East St. Louis and Metamora both have star power and tons of veteran role players.  ESL led for most of the game until the 4th quarter where the experience of being in Champaign a year ago made the difference.  They hit big shots, made free throws, and Metamora took home the win 50-43.  [player_tooltip player_id='939065' first='Ethan' last='Kizer'] came out strong early on as the Metamora star who is headed to South Alabama drained three first quarter jumpers including a three.  Late in the game he hit the big three pointer to give them the lead and had a key swat finishing with 16 points and 7 rebounds.  Another senior who was stellar for them was [player_tooltip player_id='1371068' first='Tyson' last='Swanson'].  The veteran came up clutch in the second half doing most of his damage by hitting jumpers, baseline take, and closed it out at the line for 11 points.  [player_tooltip player_id='1750712' first='Tyler' last='Mason'] is a junior guard that also had a strong performance as he recorded 11 points in the win.  Got to the rim on several strong drives.   East St. Louis was led by [player_tooltip player_id='939073' first='Macaleab' last='Rich'].  The Flyers star wing gave it everything he had.  Powerful small forward attacked on straight line takes, spin moves, and sliced his way through the D for dunks.  Also hit a three and showed solid passing feel in a 19 point (9-14 FG) and 7 rebound outing.  Big difference in the game was the number of trips to the line.  East St. Louis was only 5-8 while Metamora was 17-22.   Benet Loses One of Big 3 But Other Two Put On Show Advancing to 4A Final   This season Benet has seen their team revolve around their own version of the Big 3.  Early in their semifinal game against New Trier one of their stars [player_tooltip player_id='1371085' first='Brady' last='Kunka'] went down with a bad ankle injury.  The other two had his back as did the whole team.  Benet defeated New Trier 64-49 behind their perimeter shooting and offensive rebounding.  Dartmouth commit [player_tooltip player_id='1215311' first='Nikola' last='Abusara'] put on a show displaying the versatility and two way ability he has always been known for.  He stuffed the stat sheet for 18 points, 9 rebounds, 8 steals, and 4 dimes.  Did a little bit of everything and whatever his team needed in that moment.  His slashing, passing, and defense were top notch!  [player_tooltip player_id='1537986' first='Brayden' last='Fagbemi'] ran the show for Benet to perfection.  Played with pace and got everyone involved.  Made floaters and pull ups when they presented themselves as he had 18 points and 5 dimes.  Sam Driscoll stepped in for Kunka to drain three from distance along with the same from Andy Nash as Driscoll finished with 11 points and Nash had 9 points.  Inside [player_tooltip player_id='1285516' first='Parker' last='Sulaver'] did a nice job using his physicality on the glass and touch around the hoop for 12 points.   New Trier's star [player_tooltip player_id='1215287' first='Jake' last='Fiegen'] got his for sure in this one netting 26 points and grabbing 9 rebounds in the loss.  The future Cornell two guard used his grit getting in the lane for several scores, crisp baseline Js, and a pair of threes.  Kid is a flat out winner and will be a star in the Ivy League!   Moline Gets Off to Fast Start and Holds On Against Downers Grove North   In the last game of the day Moline spurted out to a lead in the early going behind their star point guard [player_tooltip player_id='989274' first='Brock' last='Harding'] who dropped 14 of his game high 21 points in the first 4 minutes of the game.  Downers Grove got close, but never quite over the hump as Moline won to move onto the championship by a final of 50-36.  Harding was on fire as he dropped three triples and a mid-range jumper early to get them rolling.  He then closed it out at the line late along with [player_tooltip player_id='989276' first='Grant' last='Welch'] who hit six free throws to help them get the win.  Along with Harding the other Iowa Hawkeyes commit on this team is [player_tooltip player_id='989265' first='Owen' last='Freeman'].  Not a huge scoring game from the big man, but he impacted the game with his rebounding and shot blocking.  Did most of his damage from the foul line as he had 9 points, 9 rebounds, and 4 blocks.  Undersized four man [player_tooltip player_id='1545132' first='Treyton' last='Taylor'] was a tough presence inside scoring 7 points.   One of the stars of the state tournament has been Downers Grove North 2024 shooting guard [player_tooltip player_id='1285524' first='Jack' last='Stanton'].  Moline focused in on him, but he still managed to score 19 points.  Shot 3-10 from distance along with getting out in transition for a few finishes.  Look out for a big summer from him.  South Carolina baseball commit George Wolkow gave them some nice energy inside finishing dump offs for 6 points.  Senior [player_tooltip player_id='1279764' first='Max' last='Haack'] will make for a nice small college shooting specialist as he had 6 points on a couple threes.   State Title Saturday Slate   The lineup for the four state championship games on Saturday are as follows:   1A - 11:00 AM           Gibault Catholic vs Scales Mound 2A - 12:45 PM           Bloomington Central Catholic vs DePaul Prep 3A - 5:30 PM             Simeon vs Metamora 4A - 7:15 PM             Moline vs Benet

The IHSA 3A and 4A State Semis were on Friday. Let's dive into it with 3A and 4A State Semis Notebook! Don't have a subscription? Try it out at a special discounted rate of 30% by using code “Scottburgess30”.