When ETHS canceled school on Tuesday, it forced head coach Mike Ellis to postpone practice due to the cold temperatures. So it wouldn’t have been illogical to expect a shaky performance from the Kits going into Wednesday night’s matchup against Deerfield.
Jonny Dickson and the Kits put any of those suspicions to rest.
Dickson chipped in a career-best performance with fifteen points and five steals to pace Evanston to a dominant 53-34 win in Beardsley in a makeup game from Friday, Jan. 12. With the victory, the Kits (15-8, 3-3 CSL) completed the regular season sweep over Deerfield (10-9, 1-5).
“That was our last conference home game. That’s what I told the guys,” Ellis said. “You can go out winning your last conference game at home, or you can have an uphill fight with four [straight games] on the road now. So it was good to see the seniors play as well as they did tonight.”
Ellis experimented with multiple lineup changes throughout the night– one that started with sophomore Timi Ogunsanya drawing the start over junior Theo Rocca– a typical starter as the Kits’ top shooter. Junior Jayden Rodriguez saw fifteen minutes of playing time, and Ellis called on senior Tyler Dennis to contribute off the bench, where he dropped six points.
It appeared as if Evanston would have real trouble the entire night with Deerfield’s Jake Pollack after the top sophomore prospect scored all nine Warrior points in the first quarter, showcasing his versatility inside and behind the arc. But after the first eight minutes, the Kits paid greater attention to the forward and held him scoreless the entire second quarter. Evanston went on a 7-0 run to go up 20-14 midway through the quarter and Rocca closed out the half by knocking down a fadeaway corner three to give the Kits a 23-17 lead at the break.
Dickson and the Kits controlled the third quarter from the very first play. The senior guard pounced on a loose ball, resulting in a jump ball and Evanston’s possession with the arrow in their favor. Later in the quarter, Dickson connected for a putback two, a fastbreak layup, and a wide-open three. The Kits led 37-27 at the end of the third, with Dickson accounting for seven of their fourteen points in the quarter.
While Dickson has primarily been known for his stellar defense, he credited his success scoring the ball to the support of his coaching staff.
“Up until the midway point of the season, I hadn’t shot the ball much,” Dickson stated. “And that wasn’t on the coaches or my teammates. But they encouraged me to shoot– they supported me and they wanted me to shoot the ball. And that’s what I did tonight with the support of my guys.”
Evanston outscored the visitors 17-7 in the final quarter of play to easily secure the win. Closing has been an issue at times for the Kits late in games, but any spectator wouldn’t have known that by watching the hosts on Wednesday night.
“We had each other’s backs the whole game. Our communication was on point the whole game, and we imposed our will the whole game,” Dickson said. “I feel like we’re doing a much better job in the second half compared to the beginning half of the season.”
The Kits will hit the road for four straight away games, starting with Glenbrook North on Friday, Jan. 20. Evanston lost its only matchup against the Spartans this year, 49-31.
