Despite starting the tournament well, going undefeated in three games of pool play, Evanston lost 69-55 in the final of their Thanksgiving Tournament to Fremd. Unlike the Kits’ first two games of the season, their shots weren’t falling, and they couldn’t dominate with their offense. In their third game, their defense was unstoppable. This game was different.
Since 2023, Evanston Boy’s Basketball has opened their season by participating in the Chuck Mitchell Thanksgiving Tournament at Fenton High School. Their first appearance went well winning their first two games. However, they lost their third and final game in pool play to Rolling Meadows which prevented them from making the Championship game. However, after a strong win last year, the Wildkits looked to defend their title this year. The first two games went well for the Wildkits with dominant offensive showings in blowouts over Rolling Meadows and Montini Catholic.
“The first two games, we won with our shooting, we scored well.” stated Head Coach Mike Ellis.
However, Evanston encountered their first road block in their game against Wheaton South. The game was a defensive battle with no team being able to get their shots to fall and both defenses standing strong.
“Our shooting wasn’t a typical night, but when you’re a good basketball team, you can overcome poor shooting with sound defense,” remarked Ellis.
As the clock whittled down and less than five minutes remained, Evanston was losing 28-25 and needed to gain momentum quickly. Then, the Wildkits shrunk Wheaton’s lead to one with a backdoor pass from Junior Vito Rocca to surging Junior Tate Schroeder, who notched fourteen second-half points. After that, Evanston held Wheaton scoreless with sound defense and finished with a 35-28 win.
“That game validated what we always preach, which is being able to win with your defense,” commented Ellis.
With that win, the Wildkits then advanced to the championship game, where they faced Fremd.
Fremd was projected to be a top team in the state, and they backed that up in pool play, winning all three games by an average of 24 points. Led by Senior Illinois State commit Jordan Williams, Fremd was not going to be an easy win.
“It’s a huge test for us tonight, it’s gonna be a big challenge,” exclaimed Ellis.
The game started off well for Fremd as they torched Evanston’s defense early and led 35-24 at the half. By the end of the third quarter, Fremd extended its lead to sixteen. Evanston tried to battle back in the fourth, but it wasn’t enough as the game finished 69-55 for Fremd. Despite this, sophomore Ben Ojala and Junior Vito Rocca both earned all-tournament honors.
“I feel that for me, there’s room for improvement but we can keep making steps towards where we want to be every week.” reflected Rocca.
After this tough loss, Evanston’s next game will be their first conference game on Friday December 5th at Deerfield and first home game will come on December 9th versus Bulls College Prep.
