April 15, 2025
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Boys basketball: Yorkville Christian’s defense, 3s topple Putnam County at Woodland

Jaden Schutt’s 21 points, defense negate big game by Panthers’ Jackson McDonald

By Charlie Ellerbrock
Yorkville Christian’s K.J. Vasser attempts a 3-pointer as Putnam County’s Drake Smith and Austin Mattingly defend Friday, March 4, 2022, at the IHSA sectional at Woodland in rural Streator.

Yorkville Christian’s K.J. Vasser lines up a shot as Putnam County’s Drake Smith (3) and Austin Mattingly defend Friday, March 4, 2022, at the IHSA sectional at Woodland in rural Streator. (Tom Sistak)

RURAL STREATOR – If there had been a poll taken of the capacity crowd in Woodland High School’s jam-packed Warrior Dome on Friday night, it would likely reveal that the Putnam County Panthers would have had to play flawlessly just to stay close to No. 1-seeded Yorkville Christian.

But the Panthers didn’t. They just didn’t.

For the second straight game at the Class 1A Woodland Sectional, the Mustangs used defense to create offense, forcing seven Putnam County turnovers in the first quarter as they raced to a 24-9 advantage. Though the Panthers awoke offensively a bit behind a superb effort by Jackson McDonald, Yorkville Christian forced seven more miscues in the second as it rolled to a 22-point advantage at halftime and ultimately to an 81-47, running-clock victory.

Yorkville Christian star Jaden Schutt elevates for a slam dunk late in the first quarter of the Mustangs' Woodland Sectional championship win over Putnam County on Friday, March 4, 2022, at the Warrior Dome in rural Streator. (Tom Sistak)

Jaden Schutt led the Mustangs with 21 points, while David Douglas Jr. chipped in 19 – 12 of those coming in the first quarter – to pace the winners. K.J. Vasser netted 18 points and Tyler Burrows 13 for Christian. The Mustangs will now take a 22-13 record and an eight-game winning streak into the Normal U-High Supersectional at 6 p.m. Monday against No. 5-seeded Lexington.

The Minutemen took down Decatur St. Teresa, 43-36, in the Watseka Sectional title tilt.

For Putnam County, which finishes 21-15, McDonald capped his junior season with a 25-point night that included six points in the opening period and 13 in the second, when the locals shook off the turnover-caused doldrums and played their best ball of the night.

Putnam County’s Austin Mattingly tries to slap the ball away from Yorkville Christian’s Tyler Burrows in the second period Friday, March 4, 2022, during the 1A Woodland Sectional championship game in rural Streator. (Tom Sistak)

However, by then a 9-3 burst at the end of the second quarter only got Putnam County as close as 16. Yorkville Christian forced 21 of Putnam County’s 22 turnovers through the first three periods to lead by 33 points heading into the fourth.

“We haven’t shot the ball very well on offense yet this postseason, but our defense has created offense and given us transition buckets, and that’s helped a lot,” Yorkville Christian coach Aaron Sovern said. “It’s been the defense, which I attribute to playing some really tough competition throughout the season, because we saw a lot of that ourselves.

[ Photos: Yorkville Christian vs. Putnam County ]

“We definitely tried to make a point of trying to speed [Putnam County] up early to force some turnovers, but when we stopped doing that, they found a hole and got McDonald the ball. He’s a really nice player.

“Believe me, we don’t take this for granted at all because of things like last year when there were no playoffs. This is huge, we love this, but we don’t have much time to savor it with the short turnaround to Monday. We’re excited and blessed to be where we’re at.”

Putnam County’s Drake Smith keeps the ball away from Yorkville Christian’s David Douglas (14) and Jaden Schutt (2) in the second period Friday, March 4, 2022, at the IHSA sectional at Woodland in rural Streator. (Tom Sistak)

Picking what aspect of a Mustangs attack that averages about 91 points a game this postseason to try to take away, Putnam County opted to allow the outside shot, but that failed when Yorkville Christian made half of the first six shots from beyond the arc.

Douglas’ big first quarter and 10 points from the Duke signee Schutt in the second helped offset the tremendous inside work by McDonald, who had 19 of his club’s 25 points at intermission.

From there it was more of the same in the third, though the Mustangs stepped up their defense on McDonald, holding him to four points, while finishing off their 10-for-35 night from the arc.

The Putnam County bench celebrates a big play against Yorkville Christian on Friday, March 4, 2022, at Woodland Sectional championship game. (Tom Sistak)

“Of course they try to get you to play too fast,” Putnam County coach Harold Fay said. “We got some good looks in the first half, some of them right there inside, but we were just going too fast, and unfortunately that’s something you can’t simulate in practice, no matter what you do.

“We just turned the ball over too much. You can’t do that against a team like this, because it’s so fast going back the other way. To slow them down you have to score, and we weren’t able to do that early. Then we got in a hole and tried to force things a little bit.

“But I would take my kids over anybody. We battled and did great. The bar is set. It’s been awhile since Putnam County has reached this point [in the postseason], and now the young kids will see this, see how hard these guys worked and work that hard themselves.”