Around the hallways in the old brick building on 2200 Maple Ave. in Lisle, expectations of long postseason runs have recently been a rite of early spring.
A top-two seed in a sectional for the fifth time since the 2009-10 season, Benet enters the Class 4A East Aurora Sectional next week as its top seed for the second time in three years.
Whether the Redwings (25-3), winners of their last 10 games, can emerge out of the sectional for the second time in three years remains yet to be seen.
But for Benet coach Gene Heidkamp, whose team has won at least 25 games for the fifth time since 2009-10, the message is simple – no complacency.
“I don’t know if anybody would have expected us to be 25-3 with a piece of the conference championship back at the beginning of the year,” he said after his team beat Carmel on Feb. 24. “So I think it just speaks volumes about the kids on our team. Obviously we’re pleased. Now a whole new season starts and your record really doesn’t matter anymore.
“I think the conference championship was our immediate goal and we’ve gotten a piece of that. Now we start from scratch. We’re going to play tough teams. We’re going to start with tough teams and you got to play well or you won’t advance.”
Whereas Benet has won four regional titles since a 26-win year in 2009-10 and will be looking for a fifth inside the friendly confines of St. Ronald Gymnasium, Naperville North and Naperville Central have droughts.
Fresh off winning 22 games and the program’s first outright DuPage Valley Conference title since 2011-12, Naperville North heads to Lyons Township for regional play with high expectations.
As the third seed in the Class 4A East Aurora Sectional, Jeff Powers’ charges will take dead aim at claiming the program’s first regional title in 10 years.
Much hasn’t gone wrong for the Huskies since the calendar flipped to 2016 in January a two-point loss to Bloomington on Feb. 6 is the team’s only loss.
The 13-1 stretch Naperville North (22-4) is currently enjoying – paced by 2015-16 DuPage Valley Conference Player of the Year Mitch Lewis – gives Powers reason to feel good that the routine won’t change.
“Well, I think it’s all about … we don’t talk about that so much as we talk about are we improving and are we playing to the best of our ability,” Powers said of the program’s regional title drought. “If we are improving and we play to the best of our ability, I think good things are going to happen to this team.”
The Huskies’ 15-1 conference record included a season sweep over their crosstown rivals at Naperville Central (15-11), including a come-from-behind, 55-52 road win on Feb. 16.
The production of Matthew Meier, one of two unanimous selections to the All-DVC team for the Redhawks, gives them their best opportunity at ending a seven-year regional title drought.
Not since Drew Crawford led a program-best 27-win team to a regional title in 2008-09 has Naperville Central added to its trophy case.
Headed to Benet for regional play for the second time since 2012-13, any hope of the ninth-seeded Redhawks springing a couple upsets lays on getting Meier and his 16.96 PPG some scoring help.
In stretches, Harry Hallstrom, Nick Kramer and James Kendrick have all shown an ability to score at high levels.
But consistency is the word on Pete Kramer’s brain as he leads his team into a third meeting with Wheaton Warrenville South on Wednesday.
“it’s consistency and we haven’t had it all year,” Kramer said, “and we’ve been fighting to play with more consistency. I don’t know. Are we playing our best basketball at the right time? At times we are. So hopefully it starts Wednesday night and it carries over to Friday. You just don’t know, but I still think it comes down to who can put the ball in the basket consistently.”
While the two Napervilles are looking to end multi-year regional title droughts, Metea Valley is looking for a second straight regional crown following its run at Proviso West a year ago.
A 10-game winning streak helped spark Metea Valley to an upset of top-seeded Lyons Township and the program’s second regional title following its victory over Benet in 2011-12.
Ticketed to go over to Glenbard East for regionals, the 13th-seeded Mustangs (13-15) may not have the momentum last year’s group headed going into the postseason.
But coupled with the play of emerging sophomore forward Malik Hall and some experience back from last year’s 18-win team, Metea Valley has hopes to pick things up from last March.
“They’ve been through it,” Mustangs’ coach Bob Vozza said of seniors Dei’Ron Delarosa, Harrison Kranz and Matt Helwig. “We’ve talked about that group extensively throughout the year and just trying to get to the point where we’re playing at our highest level. I think we’ve shown flashes. Unfortunately, we haven’t been very consistent with it.
“But it’s just a matter of putting everything together and trying to get that high level. They’ve been through it. Hopefully, throughout this week and even in the games next week, they can build off that experience and kind of be our leaders with it.”
Whereas a 5-3 stretch in the second half of the DVC slate has Vozza feeling better about what his team could possibly do next week, their District 204 brethren face uphill battles.
With three freshmen – Eric Cannon, A.J. Hardaway and Davis Walker – playing frequent minutes, Waubonsie Valley has a bright future despite its 5-21 record.
As Chaz Taft prepares to take the Class 4A East Aurora Sectional’s 22nd seed to Lyons Township for regionals, he does so with hopes of getting his young team to continue to grow.
“It’s a process with the young kids,” Taft said earlier this month. “It’s keeping their spirits up. It’s making sure they’re playing hard every day in practice and then it translates over to the game. And then when they get into the game, the game’s going 50 miles an hour past them in their head.
“So they got to slow the game down, have slow mind but still have fast feet. So that’s one of the biggest things that we’re trying to teach those guys. They just got to slow everything down in their mind.”
Seeded 14th in the Class 4A Lockport Sectional, Neuqua Valley gets an opportunity to play at home for regionals as it seeks a ninth regional title.
To that end, getting Joe Sieger and Cal Poly-bound Jacob Cushing some scoring help will be imperative for the Wildcats (10-18).
Sieger and Cushing have paced the Wildcats’ offense with averages of 16.8 and 12.8, respectively, while Alex Filo’s 7.5 PPG is the next highest on the team.
Neuqua Valley has won four of its last seven games and begins its postseason play on Monday against Lincoln-Way East.
