Michael O’Brien’s notebook: Dec. 11, 2018

It is only a few weeks into the season but it is pretty clear that if Bogan plays well it can beat any team in the area or the state. The Bengals are super long and deep and guards Jordan Booker and Jeremiah Washington are defensive hawks that can score and take care of the ball.

Simeon on the other hand, is still a bit of a mystery. Heading into the game the general concern around the Wolverines was about the bigs. Wolverines coach Robert Smith does not agree. He thinks that the experienced backcourt of seniors Antonio Reeves, Kejuan Clements and sophomore Ahamad Bynum need to step up and do more.

The numbers back him up. Simeon’s three bigs rebounded very well against the tallest team in the city tonight. AJ Casey is living up to the freshman hype for sure. Talented juniors and seniors have wilted in the hot, loud Bogan gym. Casey did not. I must admit that was one of the main things that drew me to this game tonight (other than the Twitter poll). I wanted to see how Casey fared at Bogan.

READ ALL ABOUT BOGAN’S OVERTIME WIN AGAINST SIMEON

Tuesday’s top games

No. 14 Waukegan 79, Libertyville 61: Bryant Brown poured in a career-high 40 points and grabbed nine rebounds. Jaylin Cunningham continued his strong play of late and had 20 points and eight rebounds. Andre White added 10 points and nine assists.

Oak Lawn 45, Leyden 44: The Chicago Ball Boys wisely took this one in tonight (stats are from their Twitter, give it a follow). Both teams have very interesting players. Spartans junior Sami Osmani continued his strong start to the season with 28 points. Ocean Johnson, a dynamic senior at Leyden, scored 14.

Glenbard West 63, Plainfield Central 51: The Hilltoppers are now 6-2 and have a star player in SIU recruit Evan Taylor, who scored 20.

No. 3 Curie 94, No. 4 Morgan Park 62: Absolute shocker of a score. Likely the worst loss as far as point differential that Nick Irvin has had at home since he’s been at Morgan Park. Damari Nixon drained six three-pointers and scored 24. DaJuan Gordon had 23 points and 10 rebounds and Ramean Hinton added 16 points and 11 boards.

Willowbrook 73, Hinsdale South 46: Thought this might be one of the most interesting non-Public League games of the night. Domination from Willowbrook. Junior Everett Stubblefield had 17 points and five steals.

Zion-Benton 55, Mundelein 53: The Zee-Bees get a huge conference win. Soph Conor Enright scored 24 for the Mustangs.

Thornwood 64, Thornton 58: Rivalry win for the Thunderbirds, who improve to 5-2. They looked very solid over Thanksgiving. Thornton gets the loss, but proves it will be a handful this season.

Joliet Central 40, Lincoln-Way East 31: Steelmen win.

Rolling Meadows 64, Wheaton Academy 57: Super sophomore Max Christie is going to average some insanely high numbers this season. He had 32 points and 10 rebounds and the Mustangs get a much-needed win.

Brother Rice 76, Carmel 53: Both of these teams were discussed on No Shot Clock this week. No shame in losing to the Crusaders, but that is a large margin for a team with as much talent as Carmel.

Dunbar 61, Solorio 47: Two teams we’ve been tracking in the notebook early in the season. Gavin Alston led the Mightymen with 21 points and 16 rebounds. Tyrese Scurlock had 14 points and 10 boards. Joaquell King led the Sun Warriors with 17 and freshman Donovan Jones added 16 points and nine boards.

No. 8 St. Viator 62, Marmion 38: Jeremiah Hernandez does it again, scored 25 points. Trey Calvin added 10.

TUESDAY’S FULL SCOREBOARD