The smallest school by enrollment in Class 3-A? No problem.
A tough opponent on its home floor before a boisterous, full-house crowd?
Bring it on.
Along with foul trouble, those were among the obstacles the Leo Lions dealt with Friday night in their IHSA Class 3-A Sectional title game against the Hillcrest Hawks in Country Club Hills. And they were impressively unfazed, grinding out a 72-64 victory that sends them on to the UIC Supersectional Monday for a 6 p.m. rematch against Hyde Park. The winner advances to next weekend’s state tournament in Champaign.
The Thunderbirds (25-9) dispatched De La Salle 43-40 in the title game of the De La Salle Sectional. They also strangled Leo 50-35 in a nonconference game back on January 4, a performance that might have been the Lions’ poorest of the season.
But they’ve gone 17-2 since to get to 27-6 for the season. And it’s fair to say they’re a different team.
“The suspension, the fact that we coach them so hard … I’ve put these guys through a lot this year,” an emotional Coach Jimalle Ridley said in Leo’s jubilant locker room. “They’ve given me everything they have.
“But the job’s not finished,” he added. “Our goal is to get downstate, and we’re not there yet. Let’s keep this going.”
A team that lives by the three-pointer also can die by the three, and that fate was a momentary concern for the Lions. They led by nine at the half, by 19 midway through the third period, and by15 with just under six minutes left as they buried nine three-pointers over the course of the evening.
But they suddenly developed the yips inbounding the ball, and Hillcrest’s Anthony Bradley knocked down three three-pointers in just over a minute. That 15-point lead was down to four after the Hawks converted Leo’s fourth turnover of the period into a bucket, and the partisan crowd was howling.
But Karon Shavers drained a cold-blooded three from the corner, Brian Kizer connected from the wing, and the lead was back to 10. The Lions then sealed it by making the Hawks pay for their slap-happy brand of defense, converting 12 of 13 fourth-quarter free throws and 18 of 22 in the second half.
Kizer led a balanced scoring effort with 19 points. Shavers added 18 and delivered another solid floor game, even as foul trouble forced him to play cautiously. Eight of Asa Harris’ 17 points came in the final five minutes, and Jeremiah Echols scored 11.
Nate Stephens did foul out, but only after helping Leo control things inside with 11 rebounds and three blocks. Sophomore Brandal Orr was solid at both ends and is becoming a confident contributor.
The sectional title is Leo’s ninth in school history. The supersectional appearance is its third in seven years – the Lions lost to Orr in a Class 2-A Super in 2019 and to DePaul Prep, also in 2-A, in 2022. Both teams went on to win state championships.
Leo’s last appearance in the state tournament came in 2016, when the Lions lost to Leroy in the Class 1-A title game.
“This is nice, but it’s not what we’re after,” Asa Harris said as he clutched the Sectional plaque in the locker room. “Let’s go get another one.”
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