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the Lockport Legend | November 30, 2017 | 45
Boys basketball
Celtics top Porters by 10 points in season-opener for both teams
RANDY WHALEN
Freelance Reporter
A team is not supposed
to play its best basketball in
the first game of the season.
So, the fact that Providence
and Lockport Township
combined to miss 58
shots, eight free throws and
commit 25 turnovers can
be excused because it was
the season opener for both
teams.
But it was Providence
that pulled away in the second
half and emerged with
a 45-35 victory over the
Porters on Nov. 20 in an
opening round game in
the 22nd Annual WJOL
Thanksgiving Classic at the
University of St. Francis in
Joliet.
“A win is a win, especially
at this time of the season,”
Providence coach Tim
Trendel said. “But I’m not
necessarily looking for wins
here. This tournament is going
to make us better toward
the end of the season. There
are no easy games, and
you really learn about your
team. Some tournaments
are set up for wins; this one
helps you at the end of the
season. You can’t ask for
more. We’ve got the pieces,
and once we put them together,
we’re going to be
better.”
Both Lockport and Providence
got a look at how
their teams were going to
be as they played a slew of
players. Providence played
13 guys, with eight of them
scoring. A dozen players
participated for the Porters,
who also had eight players
score.
Adam Taylor led the way
with 11 points, and fellow
junior guard Matt DiNardi
added nine points and three
assists for the Celtics (1-
0). Seniors Ethan Petric (5
rebounds) in the post and
Scott Slocum (4 assists, 4
rebounds) each added six
points, and senior forward
Brian Castelli came off the
bench to register a gamehigh
seven rebounds for
Providence.
“Matt DiNardi came out
in the second half and gave
us a great boost,” Trendel
said. “He’s our emotional
and vocal leader.”
Senior forward Deondre
Cooper led Lockport with
a game-high 13 points. Junior
guards Emmanuel Allen
and Matt Hatzopoulos
— who transferred in from
Providence — each added
six points. Senior guard
Jake Karli led the Porters in
rebounding with five, while
sophomore guard Tommy
Ferriter came off the bench
to play 20 minutes and register
a team-high four assists.
The Porters (0-1) received
a blow when starting
post player Zach Pytlewski
(2 points, 3 rebounds) went
out with an ankle injury
just over a minute into the
second half. He didn’t return,
but he is expected to
be OK, although his status
for the rest of the tournament
was unknown after the
game.
“We are really inexperienced,
and I knew there
were going to be some errors,
both mentally and
physically,” Lockport coach
Brett Hespell said. “Playing
as a group in your first
varsity game can be an eyeopening
experience. We
have a lot of new guys who
have to learn to play at the
appropriate speed.
“We had some good looks
around the basket, but we
missed too many easy shots,
too many layups. We have to
learn how to finish around
the basket. That will come
the more we play, but we
have to find a way to score.”
Neither team scored
much in the first half, and
Lockport never led the
whole game. Taylor hit a
3-pointer 21 seconds into
the game, and the Celtics
led the whole first quarter,
which ended with the score
7-5. The Porters tied it three
times in the second quarter,
the last time at 11-11 with
5:10 to play in the first half
on a steal and layup by Allen.
But Taylor hit a 3-pointer
two minutes later, as Providence
scored the next five
points to take the lead for
good. Ahead 19-18 at halftime,
four different Celtics
scored in an 11-2 burst for a
30-20 lead midway through
the third quarter. Lockport
crept within 33-27 after
three quarters and closed
within five points twice in
the opening moments of the
fourth quarter. The last time
was 35-30 with 6:14 left in
the third quarter.
The Celtics, however,
pulled away to hold on for
the win. DeNardi scored
their final six points in the
last 2:23 of the game.
“One thing we did well is
that everyone focused, and
we shared the ball well,”
Trendel said. ”This is going
to get us ready, and we kept
our poise down the stretch,
That’s something to build
on.”
The Porters completed
pool play with a 54-48
overtime loss to Plainfield
Central Nov. 22, a 46-38
loss to Lemont Friday, Nov.
24, and a 55-29 victory over
Lincoln-Way West on Saturday,
Nov. 25, in the seventh-place
game.
This week, Providence
hosts DePaul Prep at 7 p.m.
Lockport guard Jake Karli hoists a shot Nov. 20 during the 22nd annual WJOL
Thanksgiving Classic at University of St. Francis in Joliet. Photos by Adam Jomant/22nd
Century Media
Lockport guard Matt Hatzopoulos protects the ball from Providence guard Scott Slocum.
on Friday, Dec. 1. The Celtics
also are in action this Sunday,
Dec. 3 with a 1:30 p.m.
matchup against Forman at
the Ridgewood High School
Shootout in Norridge.
Lockport resumed play
this Friday, Dec. 1 with a
SouthWest Suburban Conference
crossover game at
scheduled for 6:30 p.m. at
Lincoln-Way West.