PONTIAC — Simeon has a losing record and keeps losing star players to injury but has somehow fought its way into the semifinals of the Pontiac Holiday Tournament.
Sophomore Ahamad Bynum injured his ankle and has been out for two weeks. The Wolverines suffered another major blow on Friday. AJ Casey, the 6-9 freshman phenom, injured his right elbow and is day to day.
Casey did not play in Simeon’s 56-52 win against St. Charles East in the quarterfinals of the Pontiac Holiday Tournament.
Three of the Wolverines’ unsung players stepped up in his place. Senior Jaylen Granger and juniors Jalawn Farrell and Sincere Callwood logged major minutes.
“They played well,” Smith said. “They aren’t big but they can do other things.”
Senior Antonio Reeves was terrific. He scored 28 points on 12 for 18 shooting and had five rebounds and five assists. One of his go-to moves is a smooth floater along the baseline.
“I work on that everyday after practice,” Reeves said. “I got up 50 to 100 shots in the other gym before the game so I was feeling good.”
Kejuan Clements added 14 points and six rebounds. Freshman guard Jaylen Drane made two crucial free throws with 21 seconds left to seal the win. Casey did the same in a win against Homewood-Flossmoor last week.
“Once again we have a freshman go to the line and make big free throws to ice the game,” Smith said. “They are really good players. We expect that of them.”
Simeon (5-6) led by eight after three quarters. The North Stars (5-7) tied the game at 55 on a three-pointer by Colin Nelson with 3:20 to play.
Lucas Helfen led St. Charles East with 14 points. Connor Linke added eight points and 12 rebounds and Tyler Czerniak scored nine.
The Wolverines will face Curie in the semifinals on Saturday.
The final minute of Simeon vs. St. Charles North https://t.co/focNvCb226
— Michael O'Brien (@michaelsobrien) December 28, 2018