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WOODSTOCK – The Sycamore Spartans spent all season preparing for Friday night’s Class 3A Woodstock North Regional championship game.
Belvidere North, used man-to-man defense, a half-court zone, a full-court press, and a half-court press, but Sycamore was prepared for it all in a 59-44 win for its first regional title since 2017.
“We are battle-tested, we have taken this team to be prepared for every possible scenario. We’ve played teams from the city and suburbs, played against different styles, and it didn’t matter, our guys were prepared for the moment, and they rose to the occasion,” Sycamore coach Ethan Franklin said.
The Spartans (24-8) and Blue Thunder played a fairly even first quarter, with both teams hitting a pair of 3-pointers and both trying to establish their own identity on offense. Spartans sophomore Xander Lewis had the hot hand, scoring seven points, and contributing to a 16-14 lead at the end of the quarter. Lewis ended the game with 13 points.
Josiah Mitchell came off the bench for the Spartans and was a difference-maker in the second quarter. The junior provided a spark for Sycamore, scoring six of his eight points on the night in the quarter which helped the Spartans build a 28-23 lead at halftime.
The Spartans kept steadily building the lead, opening up an 11-point lead after the third quarter and then using a strong fourth quarter to clinch the win.
The one constant of the night, though, was the play of Sycamore’s Michael Chami. The 6-foot-6 senior stepped up on both offense and defense. Chami finished with 13 points, 11 rebounds, two blocked shots, and two assists, all while helping the Spartans break the full-court press the Blue Thunder (7-25) threw at the Spartans late in the game.
“I have been trying to build my confidence, my coaches have really helped me with that, and I am getting more aggressive with my shooting and rebounding, and this is the time to do it, so I am just happy to help the team however possible,” Chami said.
Preston Picolotti had a key steal and scored three points in the final period, Jakob Shipley scored four points and grabbed two rebounds in the fourth quarter, Carter McCormick added two points off the bench, Carter York had a basket and two rebounds, and Unique Shaw made all four of his free throws to help them advance to next week’s Sectional game.
“It feels amazing to finally get this Regional win. Ever since we lost to Belvidere North last year in this game, our focus has been to get back here and put a plaque on the wall,” York said.
While the Spartans advance to face Crystal Lake South in the Rochelle Sectional, they will cherish tonight’s win but then will get right back to work.
“We’ll enjoy everything about tonight, but when I wake up tomorrow, it’s back at it, we (the coaches) will put a gameplan together, install it, and prepare like we have all season, getting ready for the next challenge,” Franklin said.