Stifling defense trumped a cold shooting night as the Fenwick boys basketball team handled visiting St. Francis de Sales in Oak Park 64-37 Friday night.
The Friars (5-0, 2-0 Catholic League North) struggled to find their range in the first half, overshooting the basket on most of their attempts.
The lone bright spot, at least for a while, was sophomore standout Xavier Humphrey who tallied nine of his 13 points in the first quarter during which time he didn’t miss a shot.
After the opening frame in which Fenwick led 15-6, the Pioneers (1-5) effectively shadowed Humphrey all over the court.
“Xavier did a good job early,” Fenwick coach John Quinn said. “We have to do a better job of finding him when we need to.”
In the second half, fewer attempts from the field by Humphrey opened the door for junior guard Derek Tartt to catch fire. Tartt scored a game high 14 points, 12 coming in the third and fourth quarters in which Fenwick dominated the Pioneers on both ends of the floor.
But it wasn’t the offense with which Quinn was most impressed. It was senior point guard Newman Delany, who provided a shot in the arm for the Friars whenever it was needed.
“Newman was all over the floor tonight,” Quinn said. Delany, a football player in the off-season, was a human floor burn, diving after loose balls and collecting four steals leading to fast break baskets.
Another star off the football field, senior guard Nick Caldicott was seen sacrificing life and limb for the Friars’ cause as well.
“Caldicott did a good job shutting down their best player, [Tracy Wilson],” Quinn added.
Though Wilson ended up with a team high 14 points, he was noticeably flustered and bumped out of most of his cuts by Caldicott.
“We had a very good week of practice. We seemed a little sluggish out there, and we can do a much better job at the line,” Quinn noted.
With an impressive group of juniors, two-sport athletes serving as defensive stoppers, and one of the top sophomores in the state, Quinn’s squad should contend for a conference title this season and go deep into the playoffs.
Standing in their way, as always, is a solid St Joseph squad. The Chargers have been responsible for knocking the Friars out of the sectionals in each of the last three seasons.
While Quinn has to be impressed with a 27-point triumph over a conference foe, he maintains that there is still room for improvement.
“The effort was there, the execution wasn’t,” he said. “We’ve got stuff to work on.”