When the Kits defeated Glenbrook North on a chilly Friday night, the game left a bitter taste for fans who more. The Kits lacked offensive progression as they failed to put up more than thirty-eight points. That being said, just a day later, they delivered what the fans wanted. They exploded for 94 points against La Lumiere, winning by a final score of 94-39 and improving to (6-0).
“Yesterday was a sub-par performance, and our guys were a little embarrassed by how they played. That’s how they played with so much desire from the very start,” stated Head Coach Mike Ellis.
The Kits got off to a flying start as they overwhelmed the Lakers forcing turnovers and turning them into points at a remarkable rate. They scored fifteen points in the first three minutes, seven of which came from George Richardson. As the quarter progressed the Laker’s defense became unable to cope with the Kits’ quick ball movement, leading to wide-open three-point looks for Seniors Theo Rocca and Ian Peters. One play that summed up the first quarter, was when Sophomore Vitto Rocca picked off a pass. Passed the ball to his brother, Theo Rocca, who hit a vicious spin move to score an easy layup that would send the Kits fans inside Beardsley Gym wild. The Kits finished the first quarter leading by a score of 29-10.
“They’ve got guys that can score on the floor, three guards that can each get 25 points. They didn’t play solid in transition so we really tried to emphasize going two and zero. That’s how we did it, we almost beat them at our first game,” commented Ellis.
The second quarter saw more of the same from the Kits as they continued to drive up the court and take advantage of mishaps from Lumiere. Senior Ryan Ivory got the crowd roaring as he drove toward the hoop and threw down a sensational dunk. The Kits would finish the second quarter with an astonishing 61-7 lead.
The Kits maintained their dominance in the second half, continuing to break down Lumiere’s defense and rack up easy points on the board. The starting lineup continued to shine as Theo Rocca and George Richardson added to their stellar performances.
Star shooting guard Theo Rocca led the team with eighteen points, a bounce-back from Friday night’s game where he blanked. Despite La Lumiere appearing to be the bigger team with Seniors Grayson Bennett, Anton Strelnikov, and Jalen Haraslon all exceeding 6’7”, the Kits dominated both offensive and defensive rebounds receiving 76% of total rebounds. This was a key factor in their blowout win.
“Never doubt Theo. He is one of the hardest workers. He’s always in the gym putting in extra work. So if Theo’s down, he won’t be down for long, so I’m just not only happy for Theo but happy for everyone. Everybody played better today,” commented Ellis.
The Kits are set to play Bulls College Prep on Tuesday, December 12th, and will look to use this momentum to improve to (7-0).
