Boys basketball: Dasean Patton, Oswego close out summer schedule in style at Morris Shootout

Oswego senior Dasean Patton made his final appearance in the Morris Shootout an unforgettable moment.

Patton closed out a strong showing by the Panthers at Morris by drilling a fadeaway 3-pointer at the buzzer to defeat Galesburg on the final day of the prestigious summer shootout.

“Playing five games was exhausting, but I knew I had to pull through for the championship game and close out the win,” Patton said. “The shot was awesome. I wasn’t really too surprised that I made the shot because I work on that spin move shot in the midrange, but this time I brought out the move outside the three. It was one of the most craziest experiences I’ve ever had, but I just enjoyed it and had fun playing at the Morris Shootout this year.”

First-year Oswego coach Nick Oraham said Patton’s game-winner was the ideal way to close out the productive June team season.

“We had a good June,” Oraham said. “The kids really bought into the new climate and culture we’re trying to instill. I think the biggest thing is the kids started practicing harder than what they did earlier on and bought in. Offensively, in terms of moving the basketball and spacing and eliminating the mid-range jump shot, the kids took to all of that. Overall, the kids improved every day in the game and in every game. We had fun.”

They also ended the June period with a fun victory, courtesy of Patton’s big shot.

“After we won our last game, it was great to see the guys celebrating together,” Oraham said. “That was really cool to see them come together. Our bench was engaged for the whole game. I wished we had another week or 10 days left together, so we could see more progress.”

Oraham said Patton was one of the key performers for the Panthers this summer.

“My role for this season is to be the leader of the team,” Patton said. “I’ve never got to play that role here, but having three years of varsity experience, I know I will be good being a leader for my teammates and coaches.”

Like Oraham, Patton said he witnessed a lot of growth from the entire team, which helped the Panthers play well against diverse competition from throughout the state.

“We all played together,” Patton said. “Every win that we had this summer came from us playing together as a team and playing the right way. This summer, we all got along with each other and had fun as a whole team.”

Patton said he’s been emphasizing several parts of his game to handle a bigger role in his senior season, mainly working on his dribbling and finishing at the rim.

“I know I can improve way more than what I can even do now, so during the offseason those will be my main goals and most importantly, getting stronger and working on my body,” Patton said.

Oraham said Patton showed his ability to score on many levels in June.

“I felt Dasean was our best player,” Oraham said. “He probably shot at 50% from three and 70% from the field. It’s always good getting buy-in from your best player. That’s always crucial. Dasean is set for a big July on the AAU circuit. He should be a college player in some capacity [next season].”

Oswego senior point guard Tyrell Mays said the Panthers have taken big leaps of improvement this summer.

“The positives that I saw were we played more together as a team,” Mays said. “We never gave up on each other. We played for each other. The most important things is that we all had fun while doing it.”

Mays said he plans on building for a special season by working on becoming a better all-around player to help Oswego on both ends.

“I’m trying to improve on getting stronger and being a better shot maker,” Mays said, “as well as handling a lot of pressure as the [primary] ballhandler and being more vocal as a point guard.”

Oraham said the Panthers should be a solid team with potential next season thanks to the improvement of several players.

“We have two really good guards in Mariano Velasco and Tyrell Mays,” he said. “Both are hounding guards who will force teams to grind out possession. Luke Roller, Brayden Borrowman and Bryson McCullough all stepped up. We had a well-rounded team. I think the biggest thing for us is creating a family atmosphere. We also had a good showing from the community with 130 kids signing up for our Future Panthers Camp. That was very encouraging. I think we’re a sleeping giant. There’s talent in the school. I’m really excited about the falls we’re about to have.”