The author:Griselda
The submission date:August 17, 2011
Profile:https://profiles.google.com/revivaloiu
This was not a pure Kessel¡¯s Heat club team.
Coach Kyle Kessel borrowed here. He borrowed there.
He wound up putting together a gang of six to play in the Rockford Wildcats National Classic, held at local sites during the first weekend in August.
And, as it turned out, only a blizzard ¡ª the Wisconsin Blizzard ¡ª could cool off this Heat team.
The run to the title game was an impressive one. The Heat finished its eight-game set at 6-2, posting impressive wins over the Chicago Demons and the No. 1-seeded South Bend Shooters. Both of the losses came against the Blizzard ¡ª in pool play and in the title game.
Kessel figured this team could do some damage. The four guards were Quinn Pokora (Mundelein), Matt Mooney (Wauconda/Notre Dame High School), Ryan Roach (Lake Zurich) and Justin Berkson (Stevenson). The inside players were 6-foot-6 Sean O¡¯Brien (Mundelein) and 6-7 Sam Downey (Lake Forest).
Downey, according to Kessel, is a, ¡°diamond in the rough¡± who had a breakthrough offseason.
¡°He averaged about 24 points a game in this tournament,¡± said Kessel. ¡°No one has heard of him yet, but his best days are ahead him.¡±
Downey started his high school career on the freshman B team at Lake Forest.
¡°By the time he¡¯s a senior, he could be 6-9,¡± Kessel said.
Downey¡¯s got skills.
¡°He can shoot the three. He¡¯s got a soft touch,¡± the coach added.
O¡¯Brien, who recently helped the Rising Stars 16 Gold team to a seventh-place finish in the AAU Division I Nationals in Orlando, is a, ¡°dream player for a coach,¡± Kessel said.
O¡¯Brien¡¯s star has been rising ¡ª since he shot up to 6-6.
¡°Excellent passer,¡± Kessel said. ¡°Excellent hands.¡±
O¡¯Brien, who started as a sophomore on last winter¡¯s 29-win team at Mundelein, is now a big guy with point-guard skills.
¡°A very versatile player,¡± Kessel said.
Pokoro (6-0) is another Mundelein player who¡¯s spent a lot of time honing his basketball skills. He¡¯s on track to be that third option ¡ª behind Robert Knar and O¡¯Brien ¡ª for the Mustangs this winter.
¡°He plays hard,¡± said Kessel. ¡°And he¡¯s an excellent shooter. His 15-foot jumper is his bread and butter.¡±
Kessel also is high on Roach, who will be a 6-1 point guard for LZ.
¡°He¡¯s one of those great team players,¡± Kessel said. ¡°He goes out there and does all of the dirty work.¡±
The coach predicts that Roach will be LZ¡¯s starting point guard this winter.
Berkson and Mooney also are point guards.
Berkson, at 5-7, was the starting point guard on Stevenson¡¯s sophomore team last season.
¡°He¡¯s a good a little player,¡± Kessel said.
Mooney, a longtime gym rat and travel team player, will be making that long commute from Wauconda to Niles again this winter. He¡¯s moving fast in the ranks at Notre Dame.
Kessel¡¯s 10s
The Heat¡¯s best finish in the Rockford Wildcats Tournament was turned in by the fourth-grade squad.
The team finished 7-1, defeating Ray Allen Select (Wis.) 40-38 in the championship game.
Talk about taking care of business.
The Heat¡¯s lone setback came in pool play, when it dropped a 10-point decision to Ray Allen Select.
This was the second title for these Heat players. They finished first in the Hoops for the Game Tournament, held in Waukegan. The squad also had runner-up finishes at the Gym Rats Tournament in Fort Wayne, Ind., in June, and in the Pass the Rock Tournament in Lisle, in July.
The roster includes JR Cison (Lake Zurich), Ara Emerzian (Deerfield), Bryce Hopkins (Barrington), Brian Wilterdink (Libertyville), Matthew McGraw (Lake Villa), Johnny and Perry Smyros (Palatine), and Ja¡¯Veon Taylor (Waukegan).
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