Kays go for triple digits on opening night of Kankakee Holiday Tournament

KANKAKEE — After four road games that covered two states over the last two weeks — all wins — Kankakee boys basketball coach Chris Pickett said his Kays started realizing what he and the staff have been telling them since the summer.

“That really let our guys know what we’ve been telling them all long; they’re a state caliber team,” Pickett said.

Although the opponent wasn’t quite the same as the four respectable opponents they faced over that stretch, the Kays certainly looked the part of a state contender in Thursday’s first-round matchup against Von Steuben in the maroon bracket of the Riverside Orthopedic Specialists Kankakee Holiday Tournament. Behind a game-high 32 points from blue chipper Lincoln Williams, the Kays scored 25 of the game’s first 27 points on their way to a 103-41 win over the Panthers.

The win was their sixth in a row as they improved to 8-1 and advanced to Friday’s semifinal against Dunlap. The Panthers fell to 4-4.

All 11 players that dressed for the Kays Thursday scored in the first half, including a first quarter that saw four different players ignite the crowd with rim-rattling dunks, including seven slams from Williams in the game’s first eight minutes.

While Pickett always loves the energy the crowd gives off when embracing the Kays’ high-flying theatrics, he was even more pleased with the Kays’ aggressive defensive effort that allowed them the fast break and transition opportunities they took advantage of, forcing 30 Von Steuben turnovers on the night compared to 13 made shots.

“We locked in on what we wanted to do with their guards, and we turned them over … and we turned those into points,” Pickett said. “The way they play their zone, if we can get transition buckets and points off turnovers, that’s one less time we have to execute against their zone.”

After wins against Missouri schools Mexico (Norm Stewart Classic, University of Missouri) and Webster Groves (Midwest Showdown Shootout, St. Louis) were sandwiched by road wins against Decatur Eisenhower and Bloom, four schools that are ranked by various Illinois and Missouri polls in some form or fashion, Thursday provided the Kays the opportunity to breathe easy by the time they built a 36-12 lead after a quarter and 70-24 lead by the half, setting the stage for a running clock all second half.

Even with the game in hand relatively early, Pickett was pleased with the way the Kays kept their foot on the gas, not allowing the Panthers a chance to claw back into any sort of thoughts at a comeback.

“When we think there’s a team not at the level of the guys that we usually play against, we don’t want to let up. If you’re really that much better than them, then show them,” Pickett said. “Sometimes you can do that against teams, let them hang around. Then they’ll bank a 3-pointer, get a lucky layup, a couple foul calls and then boom, you’re in the dog fight.

“We wanted to punch them in the mouth repeatedly so they wouldn’t have any thoughts of pulling an upset.”

STAT BOOK

Williams’ 32 points came in just 17 minutes and on 15-for-21 (71%) shooting. He also had three rebounds, an assist and eight steals. Cedric Terrell III had 16 points, two rebounds, two assists and two steals. Kenaz Jackson went for 11 points on 4-for-4 shooting, six assists and three rebounds. Myair Thompson was also 4-for-4 from the floor, totaling 10 points, a rebound, an assist and two steals. As a team, the Kays shot 45-for-66 (68%) from the field.

UP NEXT

The Kays take on Dunlap at 6:30 p.m. Friday in the maroon bracket semifinals.

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