Tucker Dazzles in St. Ignatius W vs Riley and Yorkville Christian

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The game we had circled in pool play at the St. Ignatius/De La Salle event was St. Ignatius vs Yorkville Christian.  It certainly lived up to the billing!  The stars came out and a highly ranked sophomore had his first big moment on the varsity stage as St. Ignatius won 84-76.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Top 15 2028 Tucker Arrives</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>St. Ignatius is a team that has a veteran star in Yale commit [player_tooltip player_id='2323283' first='Chris' last='Bolte'], a ton of depth, and a sophomore that was waiting to breakout in [player_tooltip player_id='2531962' first='Amir' last='Tucker'].&nbsp; Well he erupted for 26 points on Wednesday afternoon against Yorkville Christian.&nbsp; The talented point guard sits at #13 overall in the 2028 rankings, but got limited varsity tick last year.&nbsp; In the second half when Yorkville Christian's star was going at them, Tucker didn't back down and matched him point for point.&nbsp; Banged in a pair of threes, showed blow by ability off the bounce for creative finishes at the cup, and sealed the game at the foul line.&nbsp; Played with poise and looked very confident!</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Senior Inside/Outside Duo Key for St. Ignatius</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>In the first half Iggy got major production from 2026 guard [player_tooltip player_id='2734415' first='Napolean' last='Harris'].&nbsp; He is a scoring two guard that loves to win on straight line takes to the cup and push in transition.&nbsp; Also showed some improved playmaking with his passing as he had 18 points.&nbsp; Yale commit [player_tooltip player_id='2323283' first='Chris' last='Bolte'] is their go to player.&nbsp; The lefty power forward is coming off a monster June where he was one of the best players in the state.&nbsp; Plus mid-range shooter, very good passing big man, and can deck it which he showed in both the half court as well as the open floor for finishes.&nbsp; Tough rebounder that gives Ignatius a big advantage against most teams on the glass.&nbsp; He had 14 points.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Depth of St. Ignatius is Strength</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>One thing we really liked about this team coming into the year was they have so much depth.&nbsp; Long and rangy 2028 shooting guard DJ Caldwell stepped up in this game with his shot making from beyond the arc nailing three of them along with defending well and making some sound plays in a 13 point outing.&nbsp; Juniors [player_tooltip player_id='2839874' first='Chris' last='Chittaro'] and [player_tooltip player_id='2125620' first='Duke' last='Ross'] were solid in this game.&nbsp; Chittaro had 9 points as the guard seemed to have a nose for the ball including several put backs.&nbsp; Connective passer.&nbsp; [player_tooltip player_id='2125620' first='Duke' last='Ross'] is a wing that also made quite a few hustle plays and good passing.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>SIU-Edwardsville Might Have Next Star Guard in Riley</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>When SIU-Edwardsville got Raysean Taylor back in the day from Collinsville it seemed like he was the guy that could take them to the next level.&nbsp; He did as his senior year they went to March Madness.&nbsp; A player with that similar look is Yorkville Christian 2026 point guard [player_tooltip player_id='1874810' first='Jayden' last='Riley'].&nbsp; The senior SIUE commit did everything he could to keep his team in the game on Wednesday.&nbsp; Strong and athletic lead guard got his teammates involved early with pin point passing.&nbsp; Many think he is just a scorer, but early in his career his best attribute was making those around him better.&nbsp; He can blow by defenders with his quick first step finishing through and around contact.&nbsp; Multiple and-1 conversions.&nbsp; So physical with his body in the paint as a finisher.&nbsp; Can post up weaker guards.&nbsp; He had 36 points in the loss.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Shooters Play Well off Riley</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Riley has a trio of shooters that play well off him.&nbsp; Junior lefty guard [player_tooltip player_id='2125688' first='Tray' last='Alford'] was the one firing on all cylinders in the early going.&nbsp; He poured in four triples for 15 points.&nbsp; [player_tooltip player_id='2125654' first='Jordan' last='Purvis'] notched a pair for 6 points while strong bodied guard Kayden Maxwell also had a pair en route to 11 points.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->