Boys basketball: Benet enjoys stellar 24-1 June season

Summer was almost perfect for Benet’s boys basketball team.

The Redwings played flawless basketball, combining a wealth of experience, quality coaching and motivation to be one of the main stories in June.

The Redwings won 24 of their 25 games in June, losing their final game of the season.

“I thought our kids played really well together, seemed like the guys enjoyed playing with each other, and we had a good amount of success,” Benet coach Gene Heidkamp said. “We return four players who played a lot for us last year. That experience really showed, and I really liked the trajectory that the team is showing.”

The Redwings showed plenty of reasons to be optimistic for another memorable season in 2024-25, even overcoming the transfer of star junior Gabe Sularski, who left for Lemont in early April after averaging 14 points, 4.3 rebounds and 2.1 assists a game last season.

The return of stellar big men Daniel Pauliukonis and Colin Stack, along with guards Jayden Wright and Brayden Fagbemi, made the Redwings a tough team to beat in June. Wright averaged 11 points, three rebounds and 2.2 assists his sophomore season.

“I don’t know if it was that big of an adjustment because we have a really good team,” Heidkamp said. “We might be better than last year. We have two really good bigs in Daniel Pauliukonis and Colin Stack and two really good guards in Jayden Wright and Brayden Fagbemi.

“Daniel had a very strong June for us, which resulted in multiple Division I offers. He’s a 6-9 forward who can really shoot the ball well and is becoming more of a focal point of the offense. He became much more aggressive and is just scratching the surface of his potential.

“Colin is a 7-footer with a well-documented family, especially as the cousin of Frank Kaminsky. He took another step forward and has grown into his body. We might have one of the best guard combinations in the state. Both of them are high-level players. Jayden averaged double digits last year. Blake is a dynamic point guard and playmaker.”

Pauliukonis said the Redwings had a June to remember.

“The keys to our strong showing in June were our unselfishness and our ability to play as a team and share the ball,” Pauliukonis said. “We also were getting lots of defensive stops and pushing in transition.”

Wright said he was encouraged by the team’s effort and growth in June.

“One major key for us as a team was the way we all played together and complemented each other very well,” Wright said. “We were very hungry because we didn’t like the way our season ended last year, and we played with a chip on our shoulder every game. We have a great group of guys this year and great team chemistry, which I believed played a big role in our success this summer.”

Wright, who was an Illinois Basketball Coaches Association Class 4A All-State special mention last season, said he’s gearing up for a big junior season.

“I’m focusing on every part of my game this summer because I’m nowhere near the player I want to be yet,” Wright said. “I have big goals for myself, and I’m striving to get better day by day so that I can achieve those goals and help my team be the best we can be.”

Fagbemi said June was a highly productive month for the team. Fagbemi said he plans on focusing on several parts of his game and his body for next season.

“One reason our team was really strong in June was because of our chemistry,” Fagbemi said. “We have been playing together since the seniors were sophomores and the juniors were freshmen, so we have had time to figure each other out and play with each other. I’m improving on the basic guard skills, such as shooting and ball handling because you can never shoot or dribble well enough. Another is athleticism. As an undersized player, improving my speed, vertical, lateral quickness and overall strength will help to make up for what I don’t have.”