Riverside-Brookfield: Teddy's Saturday Notebook

It's always exciting to go back to Riverside-Brookfield every summer. I wish I was there yesterday, but I unfortunately had other plans with my job. Nonetheless, I had a great time covering some of the premier basketball talent on the Live stage today. Here's my notebook from Saturday.     Loyola Handles Bolinbgrook   The first game I covered was Loyola and Bolingbrook. Both physical, well-coached teams. Bolingbrook had the hot start early as [player_tooltip player_id='1552408' first='TJ' last='Williams'], the Glenbard West transfer, created numerous early buckets. But Loyola was right there. Much of that thanks to 2026 PG [player_tooltip player_id='1552480' first='Trey' last='Williams']. He showed an excellent ability to get guys involved as a playmaker with tons of assists. But his scoring from all three levels was just as important. He even made an impact on the interior with his rebounding. It was because of this, and much more from guys like [player_tooltip player_id='2875754' first='Charlie' last='Ellis'], Sam Golden, and Brody Munster-Johnson, who gave Loyola a comfortable lead for much of the second half. A late surge led by [player_tooltip player_id='2531973' first='Brady' last='Pettigrew'] and Williams made this an exciting game late. But Loyola held on for a 41-39 victory.   DePaul Prep Sparkles   I heard a lot of good things about my Alma mater, DePaul Prep, yesterday. I had no choice but to check them out this morning vs Deerfield. This Rams squad has tons of size. More than I've seen in recent years. Three different starters are over 6'5” with [player_tooltip player_id='1845360' first='Rashaun' last='Porter'], Gus Johnson, and Sacred Heart Griffin transfer [player_tooltip player_id='2376273' first='Zion' last='Lee']. Seniors [player_tooltip player_id='1435692' first='Rykan' last='Woo'] and [player_tooltip player_id='2323334' first='AJ' last='Chambers'] led the backcourt, which stood out early on. [player_tooltip player_id='1435692' first='Rykan' last='Woo'] knocked down a pair of outside shots and buried a pull-up jumper in the opening stages and never lost confidence in this matchup. Leading all scorers with 23 points. [player_tooltip player_id='2323334' first='AJ' last='Chambers'] was en elite facilitator too. Responsible for numerous buckets with his playmaking abilities. [player_tooltip player_id='1845360' first='Rashaun' last='Porter'] had a productive game in the front court. The part of his game that caught my attention the most was his passing. Added a nice floater as well as a pair of alley-oop dunks as the game went on. The Rams are going up to 4A next season and have shown they can be a legit threat to win a fourth consecutive state championship. Went 4-0 this weekend.   Seniors Impress in Benet vs Whitney Young Game   It was the seniors who took charge in the Benet vs Whitney Young clash. As always, [player_tooltip player_id='2105376' first='Colin' last='Stack'] was an outstanding interior presence. Blocked tons of shots on the defensive front with his ferocious 7'0” frame. Turning that into easy buckets on offense. Fellow 2026 Benet product [player_tooltip player_id='2105390' first='Jayden' last='Wright'] made his presence felt from long range. Burying a deep three in the middle of the first half to go along with 21 points in that period. For Whitney Young, [player_tooltip player_id='1552475' first='Marquis' last='Clark'] put on quite the clinic. Showed confidence as an outside shooter with numerous contested three-pointers. Can create shots both moving off the ball and off the dribble. All three put up big numbers. Wright scored 35, Stack 20, and Clark had 21 to lead the way. Benet won 71-56.   [player_tooltip player_id='2323283' first='Chris' last='Bolte'] Shines for Ignatius   The 2026 St Ignatius PF makes a huge impact as a stretch-forward. Finished with 20 points in the first game of the morning vs Waubonsie. Got to watch him more closely vs hosts Riverside-Brookfield, where he made a huge impact on both ends. He's a physical-bodied prospect who boxes out well and snags tough boards. Adds a tremendous ability to stretch the floor and added three first half triples in this game. Started to pass the ball more as the game went on with a pair of early assists in the 2nd half. Followed that up with a fadeaway jumper from the midrange.   New-Look Kenwood   It's out with the old and in with the new for Kenwood. The Broncos had a great showing vs Schaumburg in their first game. Winning by 30 points. They faced Yorkville Christian in their second matchup. A game where there was tons of grittiness from both teams. A name I like was 2027 [player_tooltip player_id='2323622' first='Damari' last='Stephens']. He made things difficult for YC with his physical frame. A terrific rebounder with underrated ball-handling abilities. Showed he can score attacking the lane with both hands, too. As the game went on, another 2027 prospect, [player_tooltip player_id='2864914' first='Osiris' last='Bell'], took charge. Hitting shots from all three levels and creating tons of plays as a defender. Best moment came when he soared over a player to tip a rebound to an open teammate. Cashing in on an easy assist part of a strong 2nd half run. [player_tooltip player_id='2323622' first='Damari' last='Stephens'] hit some free throws late to help secure another Kenwood win.   [player_tooltip player_id='2323571' first='Jaxson' last='Davis'] Propels Warren   Davis showed us exactly why he's the new #1 in our 2026 rankings. Had a great start vs Homewood-Flossmoor. Effective scoring off the dribble and making plays for others. He scored a tournament-high 38 points in their second game vs Leo. Winning the matchup 63-46. I've written about Davis so many times. His game only gets better every time I watch him.

It's always exciting to go back to Riverside-Brookfield every summer. I wish I was there yesterday, but I unfortunately had other plans with my job. Nonetheless, I had a great time covering some of the premier basketball talent on the Live stage today. Here's my notebook from Saturday.