Raise your hand if you saw the Leo basketball team getting off to a 4-0 start this season.
Now pat yourself on the back.
After a white-knuckle, last-second win at Crane Medical in the season opener, the Lions rolled up three straight W’s at the Effingham St. Anthony Turkey Tournament, beating Effingham High, Effingham St. Anthony and Edwardsville. They were scheduled to face Mattoon for the tournament title on November 29, but the snowstorm that blanketed the state and discouraged travel forced cancellation of the final round of games.
So the Lions headed back to Chicago without a trophy, but with the knowledge that their quickness, depth and defensive tenacity should enable them to be competitive in the Chicago Catholic League.
The Crane game was something of a litmus test for the Lions: a Public League opponent on a Public League floor with Public League officials. But Leo held its own with the ultra-aggressive Cougars as the game swung back and forth all evening, with neither team leading by more than six points.
The Lions erased a five-point fourth-quarter deficit for a 43-all tie and had a slim chance of avoiding overtime when they inbounded with 1.7 seconds left … just enough time for freshman Elon Henderson to catch Asa Harris’ pass and flip in a three-pointer for the win.
The Effingham proceedings were more mundane as Leo registered three victories by a total of 43 points.
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Kizer’s 21 points and Hendsrson’s line of nine points, eight rebounds and three blocks carried the Lions past Effingham 53-27 in the opener.
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Leo’s 33 percent shooting and 16 turnovers helped St. Anthony hang around in Round 2. The hosts closed within 31-30 with just over three minutes to play, but Harris’ three-point play gave the Lions some breathing room, and Kizer’s four free throws sealed a 38-32 decision.
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The 53-42 victory over defending tournament champion Edwardsville was probably Leo’s most impressive, as the Tigers are a quality 4-A school from the St. Louis area. The Lions pulled away from a 34-all tie with seven minutes left to close the game on a 19-8 run and win comfortably. Kizer scored 21 points and newcomer Jeremiah Echols had 12, while Henderson and Nate Stephens provided rebounding and solid interior defense.
“They’re good,” Edwardsville Coach Dustin Battas said of the Lions. “They’re tough to play against because they’re fast and they can shoot, and they’re well coached.”
With the Edwardsville win, assistant Mario Pittman remained undefeated as Coach Jimalle Ridley’s interim replacement. Ridley missed the Effingham tournament while serving a four-game IHSA suspension imposed when Leo was sanctioned for participating in a scrimmage before the official start of practice.
Pittman also filled in with a win when Ridley served a one-game suspension following his ejection from the title game of the IC Catholic Christmas Tournament at IC Catholic last season.
The state’s three-point-shooting champion as a Leo guard in 2017, Pittman is now 5-0 as Leo’s coach. Ridley will be back in charge on Tuesday as Leo resumes what has the makings of an interesting season with a nonconference game against CPS campaigner Brooks (3-0) in the home opener at Leo. Tipoff is at 7 p.m.
The Lions open the Catholic League portion of their Catholic League schedule at home against St. Rita on Friday, December 5, also at 7 p.m.
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