Boys basketball: Bolingbrook's pressure defense leads to Tosh Title

Many signs pointed toward York as the favorite to win its second straight Jack Tosh Holiday Classic championship.

The Dukes earned quality wins over Rolling Meadows and knocked off Schaumburg in their past two games, two teams led by high-profile players Max Christie and Chris Hodges, respectively. They also had a large home crowd in their favor on Tuesday.

But the Dukes ran into a motivated and balanced Bolingbrook team intent on winning its first tournament championship.

Bolingbrook’s Kai Evans scored 18 points and added seven rebounds, Darius Burford added 14 points and 10 boards, and Isaiah Stafford had 13 points, as the Raiders used a collective effort and a stifling defense for a 57-45 win for the championship of the 46th annual Jack Tosh Holiday Classic.

The Dukes (10-1) went 4-1 in the tournament, falling short of defending their title. They were outrebounded, 36-22, committing 13 turnovers and shooting 32.7% from the field.

The Raiders’ pressure on the ball and their interior length caused fits for York, especially in their halfcourt offense. The Dukes were forced to lean on senior Nate Shockey to carry most of the offensive load. The 6-foot-3 Shockey shot 9 of 20 from the floor and finished with 23 points. Nick Hesch added 8 points.

“We’re going to learn from this. You hate to lose a championship game at your school,” Shockey said. “It’s an eye-opener for us. But we have made tremendous strides from the start of the season. They played really good defense and did a good job rebounding. This team has heart. We battled every game, had tough games, and a lot of guys stepped up.”

After York scored the game’s first four points, Bolingbrook (8-2) answered with a 9-0 run. Burford drilled a 3-pointer and Stafford knocked down a corner 3 in a key segment that gave the Raiders a 23-16 lead that they would not relinquish.

"The kids did a great job competing throughout the tournament. To lose to
a very good Bolingbrook team is nothing to hang your head on," York coach
Vince Doran said. "[Bolingbrook's] pressure covers a lot. They play hard, and they were a great addition to the tournament. They played better than us. It's a great experience to play a team like that, for there's only a few teams in our league that can simulate that type of pressure."

Burford put the game out of reach with two baskets late in the third quarter for a 40-28 lead. The Dukes were hampered when Jeff Grace fouled out at the 3:13 mark of the third quarter.

“Our defense was amazing,” Burford said. “We had our linebacker, Tyler McLaurin, in the back rebounding and getting his hands up and contesting all layups, and that was big.”