The one-two punch of Iman Shumpert and Daniel Barnes was too much for visiting Downers Grove North to handle as the OPRF boys basketball team thumped the Trojans 75-44 on Friday night in Oak Park.
OPRF (18-4, 7-1) took a commanding 23-9 first quarter lead on the hot hand of Shumpert, who scored 12 of his game high 18 in the opening frame without missing a field goal. Barnes (14 points), who seemed to feed off of Shumpert all game and thrived when the two were in at the same time, chipped in seven points in the first half.
“It’s really been a one-two-three punch this year,” OPRF coach Al Allen said after the victory. “Shumpert, Barnes and [Phil] Gary have led us all year.
“We have seven starters, five plus [Quinn] Peterson and [Lamont] Sanders. They all play right away and they all contribute.”
Helpful as it is for a team to be dependent on seven players, the 16th-ranked Huskies are benefiting from a collective cool on the court, a poise that has some players stepping up and exhibiting leadership under fire. Gary (13 points), among others, displays this demeanor and is not afraid to show it during the game.
“I was a little late coming to the floor,” Allen said. “We agree together what we’re going to do. When I got to the floor they were already in the huddle. I was ready to call a press and when I went to call it, I looked at [Phil] Gary. They had already decided on a different press so he looked at me and shook his head no. That’s all there was to it,” Allen said with a chuckle.
Coach Allen was pleased with the Huskies’ effort Friday night. More important to the coach than the lopsided victory though, was the fact that he was able to put in most of his bench, early and often.
With the win, the Huskies sit atop the West Suburban (Silver) Conference with Proviso West. Each team has one conference loss.
“We have five conference games left, every game will be close. There are no easy games in our conference, we were just fortunate tonight,” Allen said.
Nicholas Reicher led the Trojans (4-17, 0-8) with 13 points and sophomore Kameron Norton added 11. Downers North was short handed without there best shooter in guard Kevin Swatek. Though he might not have made a 30-point difference, the experience and leadership of the senior guard could have made the score a bit more respectable.
“We played together tonight,” Barnes said before Shumpert nearly finished his next sentence-“One of us gets hot and plays off the other. We make each other better in practice,” Shumpert added.
The Huskies capped off a successful weekend by prevailing over Highland Park 45-40 on the road in a non-conference nail-biter Saturday night. Shumpert paced the Huskies with 15 points, while Barnes added 13.
OPRF hosts St. Charles East on Friday (7:30 p.m.) before traveling to Hinsdale Central on Saturday (7:30 p.m.). The Huskies will host co-conference leader Proviso West on Feb. 16.