Fab 5: Whitney Young vs Kenwood
Final: Whitney Young 59 – Kenwood 49
Whitney Young and Kenwood squared off a sectional semifinal at Proviso East HS with the winner moving on to face Oak-Park River Forest. Both teams were slow out of gate with the 1st quarter resulting in a 10-9 Kenwood lead. Manny Patterson asserted himself well early on with 4 points and 5 rebounds in the 1st for Kenwood before being sidelined with a shoulder injury, he would return, but wasn’t the same. The pace favored Kenwood early in a grind it out slow style game, and they lead at the half 22-19. The pace would pick up in the second half and that favored Whitney Young who jumped out to a 9-0 run to start the second half. The guard play of Juniors Javon Freeman and Xavier Castaneda in the second half propelled Whitney Young to the victory 59-49. Here are the Fab Five: Whitney Young vs Kenwood.
MVP:
G-Javon Freeman-Whitney Young (2018)
The 6’3 Freeman was once again electric out in the open court. He used a quick first step to get to the basket and in the 1st half did a good job attacking and drawing fouls on Kenwood. He helped spark a run for Whitney Young where he had a string of plays where he hit a three had a breakaway dunk and then an and-1 basket off a drive to the rim. We knew about his athletic ability and ability to drive to the basket but he also showed he could step out and hit the 3, he defended well and had some key assist also. Freeman finished with a game high 19 points 7 rebounds and 4 assist.
Offensive performance:
G- Xavier Castaneda- Whitney Young (2018)
Xavier Castaneda got it going in the second half he had 5 of the 9 points during the 9-0 run that Whitney Young started the half out with. Like Freeman, Castaneda excels in a up and down style game. However, the point guard showed some maturity down the stretch slowing it down once Whitney Young extended their lead. He also stepped out and hit a three, and hit a couple jumpers off the dribble from mid-range. Castaneda is a good ball handler who is strong with the ball and makes good decisions. He finished with 15 points.
Defensive Performance:
F-Manny Patterson- Kenwood (2017)
Patterson had a solid performance but was limited due to an injury he faced at the start of the 2nd quarter. Patterson had 4 points 5 rebounds 1 block when he went out and was active on defense helping plug the lanes for Kenwood. He would come back in the second half after the shoulder injury to give it a go. He finished with a game high 9 rebounds and chipped in 8 points.
Under-the-radar performance:
G-Octavius Parker-Kenwood (2017)
Parker finished with 11 points and 5 rebounds for Kenwood including 9 points in the second half as Kenwood would try to comeback late. Parked helped Kenwood on a 11-2 run in the 4th quarter including a three pointer a nice dribble drive to the hoop.
Best Intangibles:
G- Lucas Williamson- Whitney Young (2017)
Williamson hit some key shots down the stretch for Whitney Young, he knocked down a big three and had a couple nice baskets out in transition in the second half. Williamson started at the 5 spot for Whitney Young and guarded every positon out on the floor for the Dolphins. A versatile player that can score from all 3 levels. Williamson finished with 13 points for Whitney Young.