When Sides Collide: Saturday Top Performers

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The 11th Annual When Sides Collide event took place this weekend. As always PHI was in attendance to catch the top-ranked teams from the Chicagoland area. This year's event at Benet Academy had 4 games. In this article I give you the results and the top players for each game.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Marist 65&nbsp; Waubonsie Valley 56</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Marist knocks off previously unbeaten Waubonsie Valley. This game went back and forth for a while until the Redhawks went on a mini-run and Waubonsie Valley just didn't have an answer.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Marist&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='2341349' first='Rokas' last='Zilys'] (2026) 25 points</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Zilys is a stocky guard who found different ways to score each time down the court. He has a sturdy build and was able to hit shots from beyond the arc when the defense played two steps off from him. He also attacked the basket when non-shot blockers looked to protect the rim. Rokas was very consistent at attacking the paint and finishing off two feet. He's a junior guard who many should have on their radar.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Waubonsie Valley&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='2326960' first='Tyreek' last='Coleman'] (2025) 24 points&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Arguably the best point guard in the state finally was able to showcase his talents in a showcase game. Coleman had everything going as he shot the ball well from three. Hitting key shots every time Marist made a mini-run. What makes Tyreek so good is his ability to get others around him going with his passing. His connection with [player_tooltip player_id='2326966' first='Moses' last='Wilson'] for an alley-oop was a huge momentum killer of a Marist run. Coleman did lose in his first showcase game but many people finally caught a glimpse of what makes him so special.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Warren 82&nbsp; Bolingbrook 71</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Warren bounced back with a huge win over the Brook behind the heroics of [player_tooltip player_id='2323571' first='Jaxson' last='Davis'] in the battle of top 2027 guards. Warren was in control for most of the game and seemed to put it away in the fourth shocking the top 5 Bolingbrook squad.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Warren&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='2323571' first='Jaxson' last='Davis'] (2027) 23 points</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Davis put on a show for the fans. He is so good in these types of marquee matchups. His highlights consist of him beating guys with his handle and step-back threes with guys chasing him and looking to disrupt his shot. Jaxson is poised and scores effortlessly. He also mixed in several dimes to his returning teammate [player_tooltip player_id='2291830' first='Javerion' last='Banks']. Davis put on a terrific performance for the packed gym.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Bolingbrook&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='2323624' first='Davion' last='Thompson'] (2027) 20 points&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Thompson didn't get to have his normal superman 4th quarter like he's done in other games but he still managed to get his points in what was a very exciting game. Davion is another effortless scoring threat who doesn't do a good job at creating contact with his body and finishing plays. When teams zone up he steps out and makes shots from the perimeter. It was a good showing in a losing effort.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Homewood Flossmoor 62&nbsp; DePaul Prep 61</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>In Battle of State Champions 3A v 4A this was an exciting game where guard play versus post play made the real difference. Homewood Flossmoor had an outside shooting from [player_tooltip player_id='1774274' first='Jayden' last='Tyler'] and [player_tooltip player_id='2105169' first='Arden' last='Eaves']. While DePaul depended heavily on scoring inside with [player_tooltip player_id='1845360' first='Rashaun' last='Porter']. In a game that came down to the last possession off a missed free throw and a coast-to-coast missed attempt the Vikings just escaped with the 1-point win.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Homewood Flossmoor&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='1774274' first='Jayden' last='Tyler'] (2025) 24 points&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Wofford commit made timely shots in the most critical times for Homewood Flossmoor. He's been one of the most consistent scoring threats this season. Tyler always made big plays when his team needed them the most. His shot clock buzzer beaters and catch and shoot threes were run stoppers. All played a big factor in the game. Not to mention his terrific on-ball defense that he turned into a two-handed dunk after the steal. Jayden found a way to score from all three levels and led his team to a bragging rights win.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>DePaul Prep</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='1845360' first='Rashaun' last='Porter'] (2026) 22 points 6 rebounds</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Porter just continues to play his best basketball right now. After the loss the night before Porter came to make an impressive statement against the smaller H-F team. Rashaun did just that scoring nearly half of his points in the paint. Punishing anyone playing behind him with textbook drop steps and jump hooks right near the rim. Rashaun didn't take many shots out or near the perimeter. After having a dunk fest the night before against Brother Rice he kept things much simpler against HF. Porter just missed the game-winning shot after dribbling coast to coast after after Tyler missed a free throw.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Benet 73&nbsp; Rich Township 56</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>South suburban power versus West suburban power. This game was close for maybe a few minutes in the second quarter before the host Benet took charge and never looked back. The tandem guard play of 2025 [player_tooltip player_id='1598658' first='Blake' last='Fagbemi'] and 2026 [player_tooltip player_id='2105390' first='Jayden' last='Wright'] paced the Redwings to a double-digit win over a strong Rich Township squad that had a double-digit winning streak headed into Saturday night's game.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Benet&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='1598658' first='Blake' last='Fagbemi'] 2025 22 points&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Blake had maybe the fastest start to anyone at when Sides Collide. He scored 11 points right out of the gate using his quickness off the dribble to blow past defenders combined with his awareness and body control when in the lane which led to several buckets and fouls for traditional 3 point plays. As Rich started to switch their defense Blake began to make shots from three.&nbsp; He connected on a pair at the beginning of the third quarter. This run pushed Benet's lead to double digits. One thing that impressed me was how well Blake navigated in the lane with his spin move finishes and touch shooting over defenders.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='2105390' first='Jayden' last='Wright'] 2026 17 points&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Wright played with tons of confidence alongside Fagbemi. He was the recipient of several passes that set him up for knock down threes. Jayden hit 4 trey balls that were big momentum swings for the Redwings. With the ball in his hands he also created off the dribble turning some paint touches into lobs for big man [player_tooltip player_id='2105376' first='Colin' last='Stack']. Wright has shown that he's college sleeper and hopefully woke some coaches up after his performance Saturday night.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->