Boys basketball notes: Downers Grove North’s Jack Stanton reaches scoring milestone

Downers Grove North senior guard Jack Stanton is racking up an impressive number of achievements late in his career.

He helped guide the Trojans (12-2) to a Class 4A fourth-place finish last season, committed to Princeton late this summer and passed the 1,000-point career mark last week. The 6-foot-2 Stanton and teammate Alex Miller were both named to the Jack Tosh All-Tournament team. The Trojans placed third in the highly competitive tourney.

“I think this season has been great for the entire team this season,” Stanton said. “Our two losses have really allowed us to reflect and grow individually as a team.”

Stanton said the Trojans, who host Lyons on Friday, have thrived this season despite facing every team aiming to beat them after last season’s run to the Class 4A state tournament.

“We love it because it means we get everyone’s best shot every game,” Stanton said. “It forces us to make sure we’re at our best every day, on and off the court. It’s been an honor to play for this program and watch it group. We just always leave the program better than when we received it, but we would also like to go downstate again.”

Stanton said he geared up for his final season by hitting the weight room to become stronger and more physical. Stanton is averaging 14.5 points, 3.9 rebounds, 2.8 assists and 2.2 steals per game and shooting 40.2% on 3-pointers.

“My strength this year and athleticism has gotten a lot better since last year,” Stanton said. “I put on a good amount of muscle since last year.”

Young Lyons team showing growth

Losing records are a rare occurrence for Lyons, especially in the Tom Sloan era.

“We’re knew going into the season that this team was an inexperienced group,” Sloan said. “We play mostly seniors, but the seniors did not get a ton of varsity playing experience last two years. They’re a great group of kids and have really good chemistry. We have a few guys with experience. Brady Chambers played significantly off the bench last year. Caleb Greer, a football player, played some minutes last year. Those two guys are the only ones who have any real varsity minutes in crunch time of games last year.”

The Lions showed some signs of growth at the Jack Tosh which bodes well for the final two months of the season. Lyons beat St. Patrick and St. Francis, losing to Yorkville and Riverside-Brookfield.

“We have played four very competitive and good teams at York,” Sloan said. “We’re making a lot of progress on both ends of the court. We have a really good group to work with. They work really hard and are a really competitive team. Unfortunately, our schedule hasn’t done us any favors, playing really good teams, so there’s not a big margin of error for us.”

Glenbard West a group with upside

Glenbard West is another team aiming to turn a new leaf in 2024. The Hilltoppers (7-7) have turned over their roster for the second straight season.”

“They play extremely hard and continue to keep a positive attitude,” Glenbard West coach Jason Opoka said. “They’re committed to getting better and are a fun group to be around. We understand that we have to be playing our best basketball by February. We’re young and starting to mature, making our play become consistent. If we can stay positive and continue to focus on our attention to detail, our length and depth will make us a team with a massive upside.”

The Hilltoppers have received consistent contributions from sophomore guard TJ Williams and junior Drew Gacek. Williams averaged 9.2 points, 3.0 rebounds, 6.0 deflections and 3.0 steals in December. Gacek is shooting 40 percent (30-of-75) on 3-pointers and averaging 9.0 points.

“TJ has stepped into a more impactful role,” Opoka said. “His athleticism and activity has helped lead our defense. Drew has developed into a pure shooter. His ability to stretch the floor opens up our inside game.”