Sectional Semis: Scotty B’s Tuesday Notebook

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Tuesday night I was able to check out three full games of Sectional Semi Final action.&nbsp; They were Bolingbrook vs Benet, Whitney Young vs Curie, and Glenbrook North vs Glenbrook South.&nbsp; We look at the prospects that shined here in <strong>Sectional Semis: Scotty B's Tuesday Notebook</strong>!</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Bolingbrook Balance Too Much for Benet</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This was the one we had circled on Tuesday night.&nbsp; The top sophomore in the state in [player_tooltip player_id='1552393' first='Gabriel' last='Sularski'] in Benet vs one of the elite freshman in [player_tooltip player_id='2323624' first='Davion' last='Thompson'] of Bolingbrook.&nbsp; Early on it was about the three ball as one team was hitting them and the other wasn't.&nbsp; Bolingbrook hit three early ones and besides Sularski Benet was not hitting theirs from beyond the arc.&nbsp; That gave Bolingbrook a comfortable lead at the half.&nbsp; They were never really in any danger in the second half although the margin did shrink to a winning spread of 65-59.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>North Park commit [player_tooltip player_id='1541243' first='DJ' last='Strong'] led the way in this one with 15 points for Bolingbrook.&nbsp; The southpaw is known as an ace defender, but he can be a spark on the offensive end especially with his shot making which he was in this game hitting three from deep.&nbsp; Freshman phenom [player_tooltip player_id='2323624' first='Davion' last='Thompson'] was special as always.&nbsp; Hit a couple threes including one off a ball screen that was just perfect.&nbsp; Most spectacular play was a coast to coast take for an and-1.&nbsp; Also got to the line in a 16 point outing.&nbsp; High-major all the way!&nbsp; [player_tooltip player_id='1385301' first='JT' last='Pettigrew'] is a junior that continues to get better each time we see him.&nbsp; In this one he had 15 points and 7 rebounds.&nbsp; Mobile and athletic post that has hook shots and consistently garnered deep post position often getting foul calls.&nbsp; Several and-1s in this game and rebounded in his area.&nbsp; Two other starters also played well with sophomore [player_tooltip player_id='1874876' first='Trey' last='Brost'] notching 9 points and 6 dimes while tough as nails senior KJ Cathey had 10 points.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Sularski was the show for Benet.&nbsp; He was really the only one that could get it going.&nbsp; The lefty has tremendous size on the perimeter along with plus shot making ability draining in a handful of them in this one.&nbsp; Smooth ball hanlder that took one steal coast to coast for a conversion.&nbsp; Slick getting to the rim and loves the euro step off the bounce.&nbsp; He had 25 points.&nbsp; Senior guard [player_tooltip player_id='2105081' first='Patrick' last='Walsh'] should find a nice home at the small college level with his toughness and shooting.&nbsp; Sophomore combo guard [player_tooltip player_id='2105390' first='Jayden' last='Wright'] is one to watch.&nbsp; Showed in this one he is more than just a shooter with a few nice moves off the dribble along with quality passing.&nbsp; He had 8 points.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Curie Opens CPS Blue Blood Tournament at RB with Win Over Whitney Young</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Riverside Brookfield Sectional looks like a who's who of Chicago Public League powers.&nbsp; The first matchup was between two of the best programs in the state Curie and Whitney Young.&nbsp; I remember seeing this game 11 years ago at the same stage when Cliff Alexander and Jahlil Okafor were juniors.&nbsp; Not quite that level of talent on the floor, but still a ton of big time prospects in the state.&nbsp; Whitney Young probably outplayed top ranked Curie in the first half.&nbsp; A put back on a shot at the buzzer by [player_tooltip player_id='1157211' first='Carlos' last='Harris'] gave Curie a 30-29 lead.&nbsp; They would slowly expand on it all second half never trailing winning 61-49.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>UIC commit [player_tooltip player_id='1157211' first='Carlos' last='Harris'] had to change jerseys after a bit of a slow start from his usual #2 to #10.&nbsp; It was like he put his Superman cape on as he was unstoppable!&nbsp; The senior took over the game with his toughness scoring on physical drives, hitting mid-range jumpers, getting on the glass, passing it, and blowing up plays defensively.&nbsp; Went for 18 points showing why he is a 1^st team All-State guy regardless of class.&nbsp; Inside senior [player_tooltip player_id='1157229' first='Taevion' last='Collier'] had an excellent game.&nbsp; Rebounded, protected the rim, and finished everything he got his mitts on.&nbsp; Had a really nice baseline spin on the block on his way to 10 points.&nbsp; [player_tooltip player_id='1157209' first='Will' last='Gonzalez'] is a long and rangy point-forward who showed off his elite passing feel for much of this game before getting his own late.&nbsp; Projectable wing that can defend, pass, and is a much improved shooter.&nbsp; Low-majors should be on this unsigned senior. He had 12 points playing on his old home floor at RB.&nbsp; [player_tooltip player_id='2318209' first='Mason' last='Minor'] chipped in with 7 while a prospect we didn't know much about Brad Johnson Jr gave them a spark with 8 points.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='1385300' first='Antonio' last='Munoz'] was the best player on the floor for Whitney Young in this game.&nbsp; The top 5 senior showed why with his elite athleticism around the hoop rebounding at a high level all game.&nbsp; Used his quickness and athleticism to score in the paint including a couple of massive dunks one on an alley-oop and another in transition.&nbsp; Good momentum carrying into a big spring for him as he had 20 points.&nbsp; The young core each had solid games for the Dolphins.&nbsp; Class of 2026 point guard [player_tooltip player_id='1435692' first='Rykan' last='Woo'] hit a three from the corner which is his spot!&nbsp; Also a sweeping layup, got to the line, and was a solid passer moving the ball finishing with 7 points.&nbsp; Saw flashes from [player_tooltip player_id='1552476' first='Nasir' last='Rankin'] with his athleticism and strength along with ultra smooth lead guard [player_tooltip player_id='1552475' first='Marquis' last='Clark'] who each had 5 points.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Glenbrook North Senior Guard Trio Lead to Victory Over Rival</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The final game of the night we took in was Glenbrook North vs Glenbrook South.&nbsp; This tip was delayed quite a bit because of a tornado warning in the area pushing the start back.&nbsp; Glenbrook North jumped out in the first half behind their senior guard trio.&nbsp; Glenbrook South pushed back with big man [player_tooltip player_id='1541233' first='Nick' last='Taylor'] getting things done inside getting them within a couple buckets in the second half.&nbsp; Glenbrook North pulled away late however winning 51-40.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='1373455' first='Josh' last='Fridman'] makes a ton of difference for this GBN squad.&nbsp; The Illinois Wesleyan commit brings a swagger and confidence to this team.&nbsp; He is a crisp passer that makes sound reads, has crisp handles, and drained a pair of threes for 10 points.&nbsp; [player_tooltip player_id='1583426' first='Owen' last='Giannoulias'] also had a big game for Glenbrook North.&nbsp; The 2024 two guard is a crafty scorer around the rim that brings toughness and the ability to finish through and around contact.&nbsp; Also hit a mid-range jumper and three netting 20 points.&nbsp; Combo guard [player_tooltip player_id='1965004' first='Sam' last='Lappin'] is a big time shooter that can really rip the nets from distance.&nbsp; He connected on several along with some stellar stop and pop mid-range shots for 14 points.&nbsp; Northwestern football commit [player_tooltip player_id='1285498' first='Pat' last='Schaller'] brought the toughness inside while finishing a couple buckets for 4 points.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Glenbrook South was led by their Winona State commit [player_tooltip player_id='1541233' first='Nick' last='Taylor'] in his final high school game.&nbsp; The power forward had 13 points.&nbsp; Couple sweeping layups early on.&nbsp; In the third quarter he went to work down low scoring with toughness and getting on the offensive glass.&nbsp; Going to be a really good D2 player.&nbsp; [player_tooltip player_id='1541241' first='Nate' last='Kasher'] is a 2024 that brings a lot of grit and scoring to the table at the point.&nbsp; He hit a corner three along with getting in the lane for an array of acrobatic finishes.&nbsp; [player_tooltip player_id='2104963' first='JP' last='Hubbard'] also notched 8 points in the GBS backcourt.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->