Leo 60, Montini 37, CCL game at Montini, Friday, January 9
There it is – grab it!
The shooting touch that had escaped the Leo Lions while they were losing three of their previous five games and averaging 47 points in them surfaced in Lombard Friday night.
The Lions were on the mark from the beginning of a 60-37 romp past Montini in a Catholic :League White matchup, burying nine of their first 15 shots while seizing a 20-11 first-quarter lead that was never threatened.
Ball security – three first-half turnovers, eight for the game – also was a factor, as was Coach Jimalle Ridley’s decision to go to his bench early and often. An extended rotation had fresh Leo bodies on the floor at all times, and the Broncos (8-11, 1-2 CCL White) couldn’t match the Lions’ energy.
Old hands Brian Kizer (21 points), Asa Harris (13) and Jeremiah Echols (13) outscored Montini by themselves. But new-to-the-rotation senior Michael Lewis (six points) and freshman Kierre Brooks (five) provided additional firepower as Leo improved to 11-4 overall and 3-0 in the CCL White.
Robert Sansona, a willing and able three-point shooter, scored 16 points for Montini.
On two occasions Kizer took down defensive rebounds and took off coast-to-coast for layups, an indication that energy would not be an issue for the Lions this night. They’ll need more of the same in a four-games-in-eight-days stretch that began at 5:15 p.m.Saturday against Yorkville Christian (10.-5) in the Viking Shootout at St. Laurence.
Then it’s back to the CCL wars – at Fenwick (7-8) on Tuesday, at home for Alumni night vs. Providence Catholic (5-12) on Friday. A nonconference meeting with Crete-Monee (9-7) concludes the stretch on Saturday, January 17.
With victories in the freshman A and B games as well as the sophomore game, Leo finds Lombard nice this time of year.
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