Basketball: Kays get everyone involved in runaway win over Clemente

KANKAKEE — Kankakee boys basketball coach Chris Pickett was the first to admit that the start to the Kays' senior night game against Clemente Friday night was “sloppy.”

The Kays had four uncharacteristic turnovers in the first four quarters against a Wildcats squad that came to town as losers of nine in a row, but once the Kays got things rolling in the right direction, they never stopped. Their defense forced 31 Clemente turnovers that went for 36 points the other way to fuel a 98-45 win.

The Kays, the No. 3 team in the latest IHSA Class 3A AP Poll, improved to 13-3 as the Panthers sit at 7-10, following a seven-game winning streak to open the year with a losing streak that’s now reached double digits.

“The biggest challenge when it comes to teenagers, is when they know they have an opportunity to have a blowout win, they get away from everything they’ve been taught,” Pickett said. “We hammered and hammered it, and some of the guys still came out with a lackadaisical approach. You can get hurt that way, get embarrassed that way, and sometimes you can let teams hang around for it to become a God awful tonight. I snatched a couple guys out early because I didn’t like their approach, but once we got it together we were able to take off.”

On senior night, senior guard Jordan Davis paced the Kays with 21 points. He was one of four scorers in double figures and one of eight Kays to score on the night. After spending his first three high school years at St. Anne, the Kankakee native came home for his senior year, and his homecoming made senior night that much more special.

“It feels good to be back at home with my boys and it felt great,” Davis said. “They made it that much better.”

Despite their early turnover struggles themselves, the Kays were still able to build a 30-8 lead by the end of the first quarter in a game that was decided just a few minutes in. That led to the shuffling of players in and out of the lineup as early as the second quarter, when team manager Corey Trapp saw the first action of his prep basketball career.

Trapp tallied four points himself on a pair of fast-break layups, the first causing so much excitement on the Kankakee bench that the Kays were issued a technical foul. Seeing the love that both the Kays bench and the fans in the crowd showed one of the school’s most adored students served as a reminder of what high school sports are all about.

“That’s what it’s all about; it’s high school,” Pickett said. “The people in the crowd were surprised when he came out of the locker room dressed. … He came out and scored and made everyone happy.

“He was nervous,” Pickett added. “During the national anthem I told him, ‘Let me see your chest, I want to make sure your heart isn’t beating through your shooter shirt.’”

The Kays have quite a busy week ahead, a five-game spurt that begins Monday with a matchup with Romeoville at Homewood-Flossmoor’s MLK Shootout and ends next Sunday against Antioch at the Rich Township Cancer Awareness Shootout.

“This is that turn towards the finish line as far as the regular season is concerned,” Pickett said. “Like we said before the game, it’s time to start seeing things develop so we can make a run for state.”

Also included in that stretch is a trip to St. Anne Wednesday. As a former Cardinal, Davis hopes his former school wins almost every game they play, with Wednesday’s meeting perhaps the lone exception.

“I’m excited,” Davis said. “I have a lot of love for the guys back at St. Anne, but business is business. We’ve still gotta go out there and still [play well].”

STAT BOOK

Davis finished with 21 points, one rebound, one assist and nine steals. Lincoln Williams went for 18 points, two rebounds, two assists, a steal and a block. Myair Thompson had 12 points, two rebounds, five assists and a block. Kenaz Jackson and Cedric Terrell III each were in double figures with 10 points. Senior KeShawn Wade had five of his nine steals in the first quarter and stuffed the stat sheet with seven points, five rebounds and six assists as well.

UP NEXT

The Kays will face Romeoville at 1:30 p.m. Monday at the Homewood-Flossmoor MLK Shootout.

https://daily-journal.com/sports/boys-basketball-kays-get-everyone-involved-in-runaway-win-over-clemente/article_67a3a44c-d551-11ef-9cd3-4bef96dc0ac8.html