St. Ignatius holds on in overtime for regional title

Mayor Rahm Emanuel decided to take in the Class 4A St. Ignatius Regional final Friday and was treated to a thrilling finish as the Wolfpack edged Kenwood 65-64 in overtime.

When asked what he thought of the game, in a hoarse voice he stated, “I need to check my blood pressure.”

For three quarters, St. Ignatius was in control of the game, building an 48-30 lead at the end of the third quarter. The Broncos mounted a comeback in the fourth and outscored St. Ignatius 27-9 to tie the game with 32 seconds remaining. Kenwood forced eight turnovers in the fourth quarter after the Wolfpack had only committed three until that point.

Daniel Ogele’s layup with 2:40 remaining in overtime gave St. Ignatius a 59-57 lead. The Wolfpack would not trail again. St. Ignatius led 65-61 after Brandon Snower sank the back end of a two free throw attempts to put the game out of reach with six seconds remaining.

Riley Doody had a team-high 18 points for St Ignatius. Ogele scored 16 and William Fleming added 15.

“They showered us with three-pointers, turned up the tempo, and we lost our composure,” St. Ignatius coach Rich Kehoe said. “Riley showed the type of player and leader he is by getting us back on track.”

Doody echoed his coach’s sentiment. “I’m glad we got our composure back down the stretch,” Doody said. “That was the worst quarter of basketball that we’ve played all year. We folded, but we had enough to fight our way through it and get the victory.”

Kenwood coach Marlo Finner said it was a tough loss. “This is the first time these kids have been in this type of situation, but we have showed that we are team that is on the rise. I’m proud of the way we fought back and never stop playing,” Finner said.

Steve Williams led Kenwood with 18 points. Robinson added 15, Zion Morgan had 11 and Jelani Sankey finished with 10.