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lockportlegend.com SPORTS the Lockport Legend | November 22, 2017 | 37 Boys Basketball Porters to rely on perimeter shooting, intelligence this season Randy Whalen Freelance Reporter What the Lockport Township boys basketball team lacks in experience, it hopes to make up for with heart and hustle. The Porters bring back four returning players from last seasons squad, which finished 12-16 overall. Once again, the Porters will face a rough schedule. Last season all of their losses came to teams with 18 or more victories, while a trio of their victories came against conference champions. “We are very inexperienced with only four seniors and only two guys [junior guard Jake Karli and senior post player Zach Pytlewski] as the only two that had significant contributions last year,” Lockport coach Brett Hespell said. “The early part of our schedule will require the guys to get acclimated to the speed and intensity of varsity basketball. Perimeter shooting will hopefully be a strength of our team this year as we have a variety of players who can let it fly. “In addition, this is a very unselfish, positive group of kids who will represent the community and school in an admirable way.” Letting it fly could translate into more points for the Porters, who scored 50 or more in only nine games last season. But the key is for it to transfer into more victories, especially in the rugged Blue Division of the SouthWest Suburban Conference. “As for our conference, the Southwest Suburban Blue is one of the top divisions in the entire state of Illinois,” said Hespell, a 2001 Lockport graduate, who is in his 12th year as a coach at the school and third season as head coach. “When you play basketball at Lockport, you play against the best players around. Bolingbrook, Homewood-Flossmoor, and Lincoln-Way East will all be Top 25 teams in the state this year.” Of course to compete against the top teams will take some experience. Starting with the two aforementioned returners. the 6-foot Karli and 6-foot-6 inch Pytlewski. “Jake shot 40 percent from 3-point range last year as a sophomore,” Hespell said of “Perimeter shooting will hopefully be a strength of our team this year as we have a variety of players who can let it fly. In addition, this is a very unselfish, positive group of kids who will represent the community and school in an admirable way.” Brett Hespell — Lockport boys basketball coach, on the strengths of his team this season on and off the court Karli, who may lead the “let it fly” charge. “He is a tough, strong, physical athlete and the QB of our football team. He is a very good shooter from the perimeter and has grown as a ballhandler. He is our most experienced returning player from last season. As for Zach, he shot 50 percent from the field as a member of a crowded frontcourt last year.” Two other 6-foot-3 seniors will be looked to make key contributions this winter. They are forward Deondre Cooper and wingman Jack Michalowski. Both played a limited role off the bench last year. “Deondre is an athletic forward who will bring a spark to our team and add versatility to our group this year,” Hespell said. “Jack is a good shooter from the perimeter and has good length. “Our fourth senior is Kevin Horan, who did not play as a sophomore, but is pretty athletic and could be a difference-making player for us. He’d be a nice bounce back story.” With only the four seniors on the team, that means there’s plenty of newcomers. A foursome of key ones are 6-foot-4 sophomore guard/ forward Tommy Ferriter, 5-11 junior guard Emmanuel Allen, 6-1 junior guard Blake Sartin, and 6-foot junior guard Matt Hatzopoulos. “Look for Tommy to join the fray at the varsity level this year,” Hespell said of Ferriter. “He has good size and length for a guard, and is a solid ballhandler, who is emerging as a potent scorer. He’s a very versatile player, who averaged 8.5 points and six rebounds per game at the sophomore level last year as a freshman “Emmanuel [Allen] is a quick ballhandler who can create havoc on defense as he averaged over two steals per game on the sophomore team last year. Blake [Sartin] is a well-rounded, solid shooting guard who is starting to emerge as a varsity player, and Matt [Hatzopoulos] is a transfer from Providence. He is a great 3-point shooter who will help stretch defenses with that ability.” Hespell is proud to point out that his team should not only be smart on the court, it is very smart off the court as well. “I believe that we have the No. 1 student in the LTHS junior class in Eric Keta and the No. 1 student in the LTHS sophomore class in Tommy Ferriter on our varsity team,” Hespell said. “How often does that happen in a school our size? “Sticking with the good academic theme, we have five members of the National Honor Society on our varsity team [Aaron Grcevic, Karli, Keta, Michalowski, Sartin]. That’s over a third of our roster in NHS.” Unlike in the past few years, there’s no games scheduled for the old gym at the Lockport Central campus this season. There are numerous special games, however. Those include Military Appreciation Night vs. Sandburg on Jan. 19, Youth Please see BASKETBALL, 35 Tim Carroll repeats as Pressbox Picks champion Bill Jones, Managing Editor After a neck-and-neck battle all season long, it was fitting that it came down to one game. With editors Tim Carroll and Tom Czaja tied with records of 47-11 and both taking Lincoln-Way East over Maine South in the Class 8A Illinois High School Association football semifinals, the championship round all came down to their split on Class 6A Providence Catholic versus Nazareth Academy. Czaja went Providence and Carroll went with the winner, Nazareth, lifting him to 49- 11 to claim the title Saturday, Nov. 18, by one point over Czaja (48-12). “Sweet victory,” Carroll wrote in response to the win. “I called my shot. I made it clear from the outset that I was going to repeat as the Pressbox Picks champion. There were a lot of haters out there who said it could not be done, but I never let the noise distract me from picking the best games.” Czaja was gracious in defeat. “First off, congratulations to Tim,” he offered in a written statement. “I know this means a lot to him as sports editor to defend his Pressbox Picks crown. I am happy to have finished the season 48- 12. Everyone did well picking this year. Exciting stuff that it all came down to one last game.” Carroll called Czaja a “class act” all season long. “So much so that I did not even feel that I could take swipes at him in my prediction explanations, which was a real bummer for me,” he wrote. “Tom, Joe, Max and Heather all had good seasons, and I wish them a lot of luck in the future.” But there is no denying Carroll’s ego is growing along with his proverbial trophy case. “Tim Carroll should start to be recognized as a household name, because two years in, we’re looking at a potential Pressbox Picks Hall of Fame career,” he said. “At least, that’s what Tim Carroll thinks.” Also participating in this year’s Pressbox Picks was Publisher Joe Coughlin, who was eliminated in the semifinals with a 44-14 record; contributing editor Max Lapthorne, who was eliminated in the quarterfinals with a final record of 38-16; and Chief Events Officer Heather Warthen, whose season once again was the first to end, this year with a 35-15 record.
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