State Finals: 1A & 2A Semis Notebook

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>PHI will have wall to wall coverage of the IHSA State Finals in Champaign.&nbsp; Thursday the day started off with 1A and 2A semis in the morning and early afternoon.&nbsp; We dive into the four contests to see what prospects shined and who will be advancing to the state championship games on Saturday.&nbsp; Here is our <strong>State Finals: 1A and 2A Semis Notebook</strong>!</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><u>1A Semis</u></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Hunter Dazzles with Double Double in Hope Academy Win</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The first game was dominated by Hope Academy behind their star 2026 point guard Tyjuan Hunter winning 56-50.&nbsp; He is a slick ball handler that makes those around him better which he certainly did in this game finding teammates on lob passes along with driving/kicking to open shooters.&nbsp; As scorer he gets in the lane for soft touch finishes, gets out in transition off his defense, and is a capable shooter as he had 17 points and 10 dimes.&nbsp; [player_tooltip player_id='2372438' first='Jaiden' last='Simmons'] is a human pogo stick with his quickness and bounce around the hoop.&nbsp; Showed it off on both ends throwing down three dunks, blocked multiple shots, and high pointed rebounds consistently for 8 points, 8 rebounds, and 2 blocks.&nbsp; [player_tooltip player_id='2411912' first='Malik' last='Meridy'] is a plus three point shooter for Hope who poured in four triples for 14 points.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Effingham St. Anthony star [player_tooltip player_id='1874866' first='Ryan' last='Schmidt'] fought through injuries throughout the game.&nbsp; The 6'4” wing is a crafty left handed wing who gets to the line, can push in the open floor going coast to coast, and has potential as a shooter netting 12 points.&nbsp; [player_tooltip player_id='2823637' first='Brock' last='Fearday'] is an undersized post that stepped up after Schmidt got injured.&nbsp; Active around the hoop, quality rebounder, drained some tough threes, and has a good feel scoring in the paint netting 26 points and grabbing 15 rebounds while also making some plays defensively.&nbsp; Both should be on small college radars.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Awender and Krogman Lead Way in Eastland Victory over Peoria Christian</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The second 1A semi final saw Eastland record a 55-35 win against Peoria Christian.&nbsp; For Eastland it was all about their inside/outside duo of [player_tooltip player_id='2815649' first='Adam' last='Awender'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1874861' first='Parker' last='Krogman'].&nbsp; Awender is a good athlete at the point guard position.&nbsp; The 5'10” senior loves to score in transition, convert acrobatic layups, and pop threes behind ball screens.&nbsp; He went for 17 points (7-11 FG).&nbsp; Krogman is a 6'4” power forward that is so crafty around the hoop.&nbsp; He works well in the high/low game, hits the offensive glass, and is an adept mid-range shooter.&nbsp; Went for 21 points (9-10 FG) and 6 rebounds.&nbsp; Also worth noting is the defensive effort by 6'4” junior [player_tooltip player_id='2823650' first='Zyacn' last='Haverland'] inside who swatted a 1A record 7 shots in the semi final victory as he made it difficult for Peoria Christian to get clean looks in the paint.&nbsp; Guard Peyton Spears stuffed the stat sheet for 8 points, 8 dimes, and 6 dimes.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>It took a while for [player_tooltip player_id='1598753' first='Malachi' last='Persinger'] to get rolling for Peoria Christian.&nbsp; Their all-state scoring combo guard couldn't get the long ball to fall, but he started to score with a couple of threes along with an and-1.&nbsp; He had 10 points (4-16 FG).&nbsp; Gavin Walder is the other player that caught our attention for Peoria Christian.&nbsp; Shooting guard that is a solid perimeter shooter netted 10 points.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><u>2A Semis</u></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Hill Stuffs Stat Sheet Pushing Althoff Past Christ the King</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>First up in 2A was Althoff against Christ the King.&nbsp; It was pretty even early on, but Althoff ripped off a 12-0 run and they held the margin for the majority of the game winning by a final of 60-45.&nbsp; Oregon football commit [player_tooltip player_id='2105165' first='Dierre' last='Hill'] Jr is the man that makes everything go.&nbsp; He is a strong bodied and athletic two guard that scores in the paint with the best of them.&nbsp; Does it on slashes, in transition, and cuts off the ball.&nbsp; Love how well he crashes the offensive glass.&nbsp; More than just a scorer he rebounds for his position, was great at setting others up, and lockdown on defense.&nbsp; Finished with 22 points (7-14 FG) (7-10 FT), 7 rebounds, 5 dimes, 2 steals, and 1 block.&nbsp; His lead guard is [player_tooltip player_id='2105302' first='Bryden' last='Gryzmala'].&nbsp; The unsigned lead guard is such a terrific ball handler that has it on a string.&nbsp; He breaks down the defense off the bounce for scores and always seems to be around the ball to make a key play.&nbsp; Went for 14 points.&nbsp; [player_tooltip player_id='1977254' first='Luke' last='Smith'] is a junior guard that is a jack of all trades for this squad as he dives after loose balls creating more scoring chances, hits threes, pours in floaters, and is a ball mover on the offensive end.&nbsp; He had 9 points (2-2 3 PT).</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Christ the King never really found their footing in this game with foul trouble and couldn't establish their stars like they wanted.&nbsp; We did see flashes from [player_tooltip player_id='2539984' first='Aaron' last='McClure'].&nbsp; The big bodied and super athletic senior post is one that small colleges and JUCOs should be on.&nbsp; He is an explosive athlete that is best finishing out of the dunker spot along with using his quickness round the hoop for put backs.&nbsp; He had 10 points, 7 rebounds, and 2 blocks.&nbsp; [player_tooltip player_id='2815724' first='Aramis' last='Currin'] shot it well early in the game for CTK as the senior went for 7 points while late in the game 2026 shooting guard [player_tooltip player_id='2823516' first='Mike' last='Thomas'] showed flashes of his burst with the ball in his hands netting 9 points.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Dyett Tops Manual in Chaotic Semi #2</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>It wasn't the prettiest game for sure, but Dyett found a way to come out of the second semi final with a 54-50 victory against Manual.  Both teams combined to shoot under 40% from the field, under 25% from beyond the arc, and rack up 37 turnovers.  In the end Dyett got the lead and never gave it away.  It was truly their depth that pushed them across the finish line.  When you have a balanced team like Dyett even when one of your top players is in foul trouble like [player_tooltip player_id='2815712' first='Ricky' last='Coleman'] was you can overcome it.  Amaris Brown stepped up huge in this one pouring in mid-range jumpers, a three, and won on straight line takes leading the way with 13 points.  Jayden McKinnon is going to peak the interest of small colleges and JUCOs because of his size at 6'4”, strength, and long arms.  He can put it on the deck a little, did make one three, and was powerful scoring in the paint.  Devon Shelton was good at scoring off the dribble and getting to the foul line along with impacting defensively with 9 points and 3 steals.  [player_tooltip player_id='2815712' first='Ricky' last='Coleman'] is a long and rangy 6'3” guard that can get downhill and to the foul line as he had 8 points.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Manual will kick themselves for missing so many bunnies in this game.&nbsp; They were right there despite missing a ton of shots right at the cup.&nbsp; Bradley commit [player_tooltip player_id='1576114' first='Dietrich' last='Richardson'] had a workman like 17 points (5-16 FG) and 14 rebounds.&nbsp; The top 5 senior didn't shoot it particularly well in this contest.&nbsp; He was at his best slithering through the defense for euro steps, along with getting to the free throw line.&nbsp; Have to commend him on how well he rebounded in this game including five on the offensive end.&nbsp; Listed with 3 assists, but you definitely saw the live dribble passing and ball movement that makes him intriguing for Braves fans as a 6'6” combo guard.&nbsp; Terrance Paige had 9 points for Manual in the loss.&nbsp; Tough and rugged wing that plays with physicality.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->