Auburn turns up pressure, runs away from Chicago Perspectives

 ROCKFORD - The Auburn Knights used a stifling press to turn a close game into a runaway, with a 54-33 win over Chicago Perspectives in Friday's first game at East High School.

The Knights led 23-17 at halftime but held the Wolves to just five third-quarter points.

In the fourth, Auburn was able to get everyone into the game. Ten different Knights scored, but none scored in double-digits. Adrian Agee led Auburn with nine points and Mike Jones had eight.

The win evens Auburn's record at 1-1. The Knights fell to Elgin Larkin on Tuesday night. Auburn plays East St. Louis at 3:15 p.m.

Friday's morning game was the season-opener for Perspectives. The Wolves play Harlem at 1:30 p.m.

Rockford Auburn 54, Chicago Perspectives 33
Chicago Perspectives
Player	2s	3s	FT	FTA	Pts
Mason	1	2	0	2	8
Burns	1	0	0	0	2
Marble	2	0	0	0	4
Ramsey	2	0	5	10	9
Lawson	0	0	0	0	0
Smith	0	0	0	0	0
Cox	4	0	0	0	8
Graham	1	0	0	0	2
Totals	11	2	5	12	33
Rockford Auburn
Player	2s	3s	FT	FTA	Pts
Agee	2	1	2	2	9
Ra. Chaney	1	0	2	2	4
Ro. Chaney	0	1	2	4	5
Harden	2	0	0	0	4
Neal	1	0	3	5	5
Horton	1	1	0	1	5
Horton-Lee	3	0	1	2	7
McKay	0	1	2	3	5
Hannah	0	0	0	0	0
Jones	4	0	0	2	8
Glass	1	0	0	0	2
Totals	15	4	12	21	54
	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	Final
Perspectives	10	7	5	11	33
Auburn	13	10	10	21	54

Wheeler-Thomas rewriting Tip-Off Class record books

Elgin Larkin's Damari Wheeler-Thomas has dominated in his first two games of this year's 205 Tip-Off Classic, bringing him within striking range of becoming the showcase event's all-time leading scorer.

The 5-11 senior has played varsity all four years for the Royals, who have played in every single Tip-Off Classic since it was launched in 2014.

Coming into this year's Classic, Wheeler-Thomas had 98 points in nine games from the 2018 and 2019 years. Then he scorched Rockford Guilford for 24 points on Monday and poured in 32 against Auburn on Tuesday.

That explosion tied him with Jefferson's Terry Ford for second-most in a single game. Ford scored 32 on Chicago St. Rita back in 2017. East's Sincere Parker had 33 against Huntington Beach Marina in 2018.

Wheeler-Thomas has three more tries to break Parker's record. Elgin Larkin plays Chicago Bogan at 2 p.m. at Jefferson and Harlem at 6:45 p.m. at East on Friday. The Royals wrap up their Tip-Off schedule on Saturday at East against the E-Rabs at 6 p.m. 

Wheeler-Thomas now has 154 points in 11 career games in the season-opening showcase. The all-time record of 211 points - in 16 games - is held by former East E-Rab  Chris Burnell. 

Wheeler-Thomas, who has signed to play Division I college basketball at North Dakota State, needs to average just under 20 points per game over the final three games to catch Burnell. That seems to be a tall order, but Wheeler-Thomas is averaging 23.2 points over his last five games in the Tip-Off Classic, dating back to his sophomore season in 2019.

Of course, if not for the coronavirus having canceled last year's Classic, Wheeler-Thomas likely already would have broken the record.

Updated 205 Tip-Off Classic Career Scoring Leaders

Defending champion Bogan Bengals outmuscle Harlem

ROCKFORD - The Chicago Bogan Bengals used a decided advantage on the offensive boards to fend off a Machesney Park Harlem rally, 76-61, at Rockford East High School.

Bogan, which went 4-0 in its first appearance in the 205 Tip-Off Classic back in 2019, led 34-29 and pushed the lead to 57-44 early in the fourth quarter. Harlem, though, went on a 10-1 run to cut the lead to four.

That was as close as the Huskies would come because Harlem was unable to keep the Bengals off the offensive glass. Bogan responded to the Harlem run by scoring 18 of the final 25 points.

Bogan used the 2019 Tip-Off Classic as a springboard to a 30-4 season and a second-place finish in the IHSA Class 3A tournament. The Bengals fell to 3-6 last season and then suffered a shock. Its coach, Arthur Goodwin, who had guided the program to a 258-81 record over 12 seasons, died in May at the age of 54.

So this Bogan team is trying to build a new tradition under Ken Horton. Tarell Harden, a junior forward, started the new era by scoring 22 to lead the Bengals. Jaybari Moore added 16 and Terrion Langston had 14.

Harlem was led by junior Dane Dailing, who had 18, and Alex Wilson, who added 12. Harlem's top two returning scorers, Lathan Lewis and DeAndre Young, scored just 11 points combined.

Chicago Bogan 76, Machesney Park Harlem 61
Chicago Bogan
Player	2s	3s	FT	FTA	Pts
Langston	6	0	2	2	14
McNeal	1	0	2	5	4
Moore	7	0	2	4	16
Smith	1	0	0	0	2
Dixon	1	3	0	0	11
Lanier	0	0	1	2	1
Harden	8	0	6	9	22
Brown	1	0	0	0	2
McLauren	0	0	0	0	0
Hyde	2	0	0	0	0
Totals	27	3	13	22	76
Machesney Park Harlem
Player	2s	3s	FT	FTA	Pts
Henderson	0	0	0	0	0
Sherbon	0	0	0	0	0
Cline	0	0	0	0	0
Young	2	0	2	2	6
Lewis	1	0	3	8	5
Wilson	4	0	4	4	12
Horton-Lee	0	1	4	4	7
Dunbar	0	1	0	0	3
Winters	4	0	0	0	8
Phillips	1	0	0	0	2
Sheldon	0	2	0	0	6
Lundgren	0	0	1	2	1
Thornton	0	0	0	0	0
Dailing	3	3	3	4	18
Totals	15	6	13	20	61
Fouled out - none
	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	Final
Bogan	23	11	12	30	76
Harlem	18	11	10	22	61

Wheeler-Thomas puts on show as Larkin tops Auburn

ROCKFORD - Damari Wheeler-Thomas scored scored 25 of his 32 points in the second half to allow the Elgin Larkin Royals to hold off Auburn, 66-52.

Larkin and Auburn were scheduled to the be the second game Tuesday, but the schedule flipped when Chicago Bogan was delayed in traffic. 

Wheeler-Thomas, who had 24 points on Monday against Guilford, scored 18 of his points in the third quarter as Larkin built a 13-point cushion.

The Knights made a run in the fourth. Sophomore Mike Jones came off the bench to score 12-second half points. His layup with 5:45 left cut Larkin's lead to 48-46. The Royals responded with a 12-1 run to put the game away.

Wheeler-Thomas' 32 points ties for the second-most in 205 Tip-Off Classic history. Fernando Perez Jr. added 19 points. 

Jones' 12 points led Auburn. Robert Chaney added 11. 

Elgin Larkin 66, Rockford Auburn 52
Elgin Larkin
Player	2s	3s	FT	FTA	Pts
Blakely	0	0	4	4	4
Perez	6	0	7	9	19
Sharpe	0	0	0	0	0
Stubbs	1	0	0	0	2
Wheeler-Thomas	12	1	5	6	32
Wilder	0	0	0	3	0
Maxie	2	0	0	0	4
Ivy	1	1	0	0	5
Totals	22	2	16	19	66
Rockford Auburn
Player	2s	3s	FT	FTA	Pts
Agee	2	1	0	0	7
Ra. Chaney	0	1	0	0	3
Ro. Chaney	3	1	2	4	11
Harden	4	0	0	0	8
Neal	1	0	0	0	2
Horton	1	0	0	0	2
Horton-Lee	0	1	4	4	7
McKay	0	0	0	0	0
Hannah	0	0	0	0	0
Jones	5	0	2	4	12
Totals	16	4	8	12	52
Fouled out - none
	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	Final
Larkin	13	14	21	18	66
Auburn	9	15	16	12	52

Jefferson blows out overmatched DRW Prep

DRW College Prep, a small Chicago charter school, had a rough debut in the 205 Tip-Off Classic.

Jefferson raced out to a 22-2 lead in the first quarter and cruised to a 74-25 win over the Cheetahs.

Eleven J-Hawks played and 10 scored. Senior guard Nigel Posley led the way with 13 points. Juniors Josiah Williams and Nick James scored 12 and 10 respectively.

Senior guard Pierre Smith led DRW with nine points.

The win was Jefferson's eighth in a row in the Tip-Off Classic. The J-Hawks won their final three games of the 2018 Classic and then went a perfect 4-0 in 2019. Jefferson will go for nine in a row on Friday at 3:30 p.m. vs. North Chicago.

DRW doesn't play again until Saturday at noon at East against Guilford.

Rockford Jefferson 74, DRW College Prep 25
DRW College Prep
Player	2s	3s	FT	FTA	Pts
Doss	2	0	2	6	6
Knox	0	0	0	2	0
Smith	3	1	0	2	9
Thompson	1	0	0	0	2
Gamble	0	0	0	0	0
Watson	2	0	2	4	6
Moore	0	0	0	1	0
Jones	1	0	0	0	2
Willett	0	0	0	0	0
Totals	9	1	4	15	25
Rockford Jefferson
Player	2s	3s	FT	FTA	Pts
Posley	6	0	1	2	13
Williams	4	1	1	4	12
Gaines	1	0	1	2	3
Johnson	3	0	3	6	9
Gates	2	0	0	2	4
Gathright	2	0	0	0	4
Anderson	4	0	1	1	9
Franklin-King	0	0	0	0	0
James	4	0	2	4	10
Stine	1	1	0	0	5
Taylor	1	1	0	1	5
Totals	28	3	9	22	74
	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	Final
DRW Prep	2	7	11	5	25
Jefferson	22	24	15	13	74

Larkin holds off Guilford for Tip-Off Classic win

Senior guards Damari Wheeler-Thomas and Fernando Perez Jr. combined for 43 points for Elgin Larkin as the Royals raced out to a big lead and held off Guilford for a 78-66 win to open the 205 Tip-Off Classic.

Perez and Wheeler-Thomas scored 20 of Larkin's 24 points as the Royals raced out to a 24-13 lead. Larkin pushed it to 37-21 in the second quarter before Guilford began to chip away.

Guilford trailed by 13 points entering the fourth quarter but came charging back behind senior guard Bryson Hodge. Hodge scored 13 of his game-high 29 points in the fourth quarter. His layup with 1:38 to go cut the lead to five points, but then the Vikings turned the ball over on its next two possessions to end the rally. 

Hodge's 29 points ties for the eighth-highest game in Tip-Off Classic history.

Guilford played without highly touted sophomore guard Malachi Johnson, who is under quarantine.

Elgin Larkin 78, Rockford Guilford 66
Elgin Larkin
Player	2s	3s	FT	FTA	Pts
Blakely	1	3	4	4	15
Perez	4	2	5	7	19
Sharpe	0	0	0	0	0
Stubbs	2	0	2	3	6
Wheeler-Thomas	8	1	5	6	24
Wilder	1	0	0	0	2
Maxie	4	0	0	1	8
Ivy	1	0	2	2	4
Totals	21	6	18	23	78
Rockford Guilford
Player	2s	3s	FT	FTA	Pts
Burrell	0	0	0	0	0
Smith	2	0	0	0	4
Martin	0	0	0	0	0
Jordan	1	0	3	4	5
Hodge	9	3	2	2	29
Doby	3	0	0	3	6
Gray	1	2	0	0	8
Gary	1	0	1	2	3
Bolden	5	0	1	2	11
Magazin	0	0	0	0	0
Totals	22	5	7	13	66
Fouled out - Smith (G), Jordan (G)
	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	Final
Larkin	24	17	15	22	78
Guilford	13	13	17	23	66

Catching up with Tip-Off stars!

We take a look at what past Tip-Off Classic stars are doing now!

Jalen Shaw and Christian Negron

The first two great big men in 205 Tip-Off Classic have found happiness and playing time by taking a step down in competition.

The 6-7 Negron (to the far right) was the out of town star of the first two Tip-Off Classics in 2014 and 2015, scoring 132 points in eight games. His high-flying dunks made Elgin Larkin the top draw in both years.

Unfortunately in 2016, Negron tore an ACL in his knee and missed the season. He got to watch the 6-10 Shaw blossom into a star. Shaw would end up scoring 200 points in 13 Tip-Off Classic games over three seasons.

Despite the injury, Negron was a major recruit. He signed with Loyola Chicago.

Shaw had to take a more circuitous route. He chose to play with Triton Community College after a 2017-2018 season where he led the Royals to 24 wins and a spot in the IHSA Class 4A state tournament. After averaging 11.3 points on 65.8 percent shooting, 6.8 rebounds and blocking 65 shots, Shaw finally landed a NCAA Division I scholarship to St. Bonaventure.

Neither Negron nor Shaw got the playing time they hoped for at their new destinations.  Negron played just 262 minutes in 46 games over the 2017-2018 and 2018-2019 seasons for Loyola, scoring just 73 points and grabbing 70 rebounds. Shaw played just 112 minutes in 20 games for St. Bonaventure in 2020-2021, scoring 34 points and grabbing 36 rebounds.

In 2019-2020, Negron left Loyola for Division II Grand Valley State in Allendale, Michigan. Negron has thrived. In 2019, he averaged 11.2 points and 7.2 rebounds and had the second highest number of blocked shots (77) in school history. He was second team All-GLIAC conference.

Last year, he upped his scored to 13.8 points per game, 9.2 rebounds and a school record 3.7 blocks per game. He was named first team all-conference. He has 32 points, 17 rebounds and six blocks through the first three games of this season.

After last season, Shaw also decided to transfer. He's playing for NCAA Division II Clayton State University in Morrow, Georgia. Jalen had a huge first game, scoring 25 points and recording five steals in the season-opener against Lincoln Memorial. Through six games, Shaw is averaging 14.8 points on 63.2 percent shooting and 7.8 rebounds per game.

Chris Burnell

Former Rockford East star Chris Burnell is playing this season at Rock Valley College, still searching for a permanent college to finish his career.

Burnell is the all-time leading scorer in 205 Tip-Off Classic history. Chris had 211 points over 16 games in four seasons. He was named second team All-Classic in 2015, 2016 and 2018. The 2018 E-Rabs won the Classic with a 4-0 record.

Burnell graduated from East as one of the most decorated players in Rockford Public Schools history. Chris is the all-time leading scorer in East history with 1,663 points, which ranks ninth in NIC-10 history. He also is the third leading rebounder in East history with 674 and is the all-time E-Rab leader in assists with 439.

His 2018 E-Rabs used the Tip-Off Classic as a springboard to a historic season. East went 34-4 on the year, going undefeated in NIC-10 play and advancing to the IHSA Class 3A Final Four.

Burnell spent the 2019-2020 and 2020-2021 seasons at Kirkwood Community College, a Division II junior college in Iowa.  He played in 25 games in 2019-2020, starting four, and averaging 5.9 points and 2.4 rebounds. In 2020-2021, he played in 24 games, starting 22, and upped his scoring average to 8.4 points per game with 2.6 assists.

For Rock Valley, he's averaging 11 points and 3.7 assists through three games.

Javon Freeman-Liberty

Former Chicago Whitney Young star Javon Freeman-Liberty is off to a dominant start in his second season at DePaul and fourth in NCAA Division I.

Freeman-Liberty scored 96 points in five 205-Tip-Off Classic games for Whitney Young, which went 5-0 in its only appearance in the Rockford Thanksgiving week tournament.

Javon went to Valparaiso in 2018-2019 and 2019-2020, scoring 992 points over 66 games. He transferred to DePaul in 2020-2021 and averaged 14.4 points per game. 

Javon is off to a huge start this season. He's scored 99 points in four games for the Blue Demons, including scoring 33 points, grabbing 11 rebounds and passing for four assists against Western Illinois. 

Jakob Alamudun

Huntington Beach (Calif.) Marina star Jakob Alamudun is in his third year with Lehigh, a Division I NCAA program in Pennsylvania.

Alamudun has been a consistent contributor for the Mountain Hawks from the beginning. He averaged 4.0 points per game in 26 games in 2019-2020. He played 13 games in 2020-2021, averaging 3.1 points. So far in 2021-2022, he's played played in three games and is averaging 4.7.

Marina made one trip to the 205 Tip-Off Classic in 2018, going 2-2. Alamudun scored 84 points in his four games, finishing second in Classic Scoring to East's Sincere Parker.

Quillin Dixon

Former Rockford Jefferson star Quillin Dixon is in his first season at Lincoln College, a NCAA Division II school in Lincoln, Illinois.

Dixon scored 111 points in eight 205-Tip-Off Classic games over three seasons for the J-Hawks. He ended his Jefferson career with 1,130 points, the eighth most in school history. Dixon's senior year he averaged 12.0 points while leading Jefferson to a school-record 26 wins.

So far for Lincoln, Dixon has played in nine games, starting two. He's averaging 3.7 points and 1.6 rebounds per game.

Terry Ford

Former Rockford Auburn and Rockford Jefferson star Terry Ford is back for his second season with Mineral Area Community College, a Division I junior college in Missouri.

Ford was a 205-Tip-Off Classic star for both Jefferson and Auburn. He was second-team All-Classic in 2016 for the Knights and then first team All-Classic for the J-Hawks in 2017.

He ranks third in all-time Tip-Off Classic scoring with 179 points in 12 games over three seasons.

Ford started out with Blackhawk College in 2019-2020, averaging 20.3 points, 5.4 rebounds and 3.3 assists and was named to the NJCAA IV All-Region team.

In 2020-2021, he transferred to Mineral Point, one of the nation's top Division I junior college programs. He averaged 6.8 points, 2.3 rebounds and 2.0 assists in 22 games.

Through six games this year, Ford is averaging 9.2 points, 3.8 rebounds and 4.0 assists per game.

Ahmoni Jones

Former Indianapolis Pike forward Ahmoni Jones is playing his third season at Wabash College, a Division III school in Indiana.

In 2019-2020, Jones averaged 7.1 points per game in 23 games. Jones played nine games last year in the coronavirus-shortened season, averaging 9.0 points per game.

This season, in four games, Jones is scoring at a 15.0 per game clip while adding 4.5 rebounds per game.

Jones was a first-team All-205-Tip-Off Classic pick in 2018 when he led the Red Devils to a 2-1 record. Jones scored 45 points in the three games.

Trevor Ward

Former Hollywood (Fla.) McArthur guard Trevor Ward is playing his second season at Southern Maine University, a Division III school.

Ward scored 47 points in four games in the 2019 205-Tip-Off Classic to be named to the second team. The Mustangs went 2-2 in their fourth visit to Rockford.

Ward was a three-year varsity player for the Mustangs who was even more impressive in the classroom. He graduated in the top 10 percent of his class with a 4.2 grade point average.

At Southern Maine, Trevor is studying exercise science. In 2021-2022, he scored 22 points in 34 minutes of action. So far this year, he has 18 points in three games.

Antonio Leavy

Former Rockford Jefferson star Antonio Leavy is off to a solid start in a reserve role for Division II junior college power South Suburban College.

Leavy has seen action in all for of South Suburban's wins. He's scored 22 points and grabbed 15 rebounds in 42 minutes of action.

At Jefferson, Leavy was second team All-Tip Off Classic back in 2019. He scored 54 points in four games to help the J-Hawks go 4-0.

That was his junior year. As a senior, Leavy averaged 15.6 points per game and led the NIC-10 in rebounding with 12.4 in the coronavirus-shortened season.

Sincere Parker

Former Rockford East star Sincere Parker is playing his second season at NJCAA Division 1 power Moberly Area Community College.

Parker set all kinds of records in the 2018 205 Tip-Off Classic. He set the all-time record for points in a game (33 against Huntington Beach Marina) and tournament (115 in four games). His explosion led the E-Rabs to a perfect 4-0 showing.

It was just a preview of what was to come. Parker set the East all-time single season scoring record of 639 points. He combined with fellow All-NIC-10 picks Chris Burnell and Sha'Den Clanton to lead East to a 34-4 record and a trip to the IHSA Class 4A final four.

Parker did all this as a junior. As a senior, he moved to Chandler, Arizona, to play at Compass Prep.

Last year, had a solid first season at Moberly. He averaged 15.6 points in 14 games with 4.9 rebounds. He shot 43.7 percent from the field, including 40.4 percent from the 3-point line. Because the NJCAA followed the lead of the NCAA and allowed athletes to compete last year without it counting against their eligibility, Parker will be a freshman again this year.

Moberly Area opens its season November 23.

Brenden Moss

Former Rockford Jefferson star Brenden Moss this summer verbally accepted a scholarship offer from Mid-American Conference power Kent State.

Moss was picked as a first team 205 Tip-Off Classic performer in 2019 for leading the J-Hawks to a 4-0 record. Moss led Jefferson by averaging 13.8 points per game.

Moss was a junior in 2019, but he left Rockford last season to enroll at Minnesota Prepatory Academy. Moss, who now is 6-5, is playing an additional season there before enrolling at Kent State for the 2022-2023 season.

He chose the Golden Flashes over Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Albany, Cleveland State, Wofford, Middle Tennessee State, Murray State, Rhode Island, Georgia State, Towson, Illinois-Chicago and IUPUI.

Dating back to the 1998-1999 season, Kent State has won 20 or more games 18 times and made the NCAA tournament six times. The Golden Flashes have made the NCAA tourney only once in the past 13 years, though.