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Devils top Niles to stay perfect
By Steve Ruman
NILES
Both Niles and McDonald did their best to keep fans on the edge of their seats in the second half of Tuesday’s non-conference game, played at Veterans Memorial Gymnasium.
The drama for Niles revolved around senior Cameron Kane-Johnson, who entered the game needing 14 points to reach 1,000 for his career. Kane-Johnson scored a game-high 31 points, becoming just the fourth player in school history to reach the milestone.
For McDonald fans, the drama was whether or not the Blue Devils would eclipse the 100-point barrier. The Devils missed out by just one point
Beyond that, there was little suspense in McDonald’s 99-70 victory in front of a packed house.
The Blue Devils — averaging just under 95 points per game — lifted their record to 9-0.
Niles, which has lost three straight, falls to 4-4.
Matt Howard led the way for McDonald, scoring 21 points. He was one of 10 McDonald players to score. Dylan Portolese added 13 points for the Blue Devils, while Zack Fedyski, Evan Magill and David Rebraca had 11 apiece.
The Niles cause was helped by senior Rich Limongi, who scored 12 points. Brylen Caddiell chipped in with 10.
After Kane-Johnson connected on a pair of free throws to tie the contest at 5 two minutes into the game, McDonald went on a 15-4 run to take a 20-9 lead at the end of the first quarter. The Blue Devils eventually built their lead to 24-9 and never looked back.
Seven players reached the scorebook in the first quarter for the Devils, led by Portolese’s five points. By contrast, Limongi’s four points came on the only two field goals made by Niles in the first eight minutes of play.
“You have to keep up with those guys, you can’t have a nine-point quarter and then try to play catch up against a really good team,” said Niles coach Ron Price. “I’m proud of our kids for fighting, but we just didn’t have enough.
“Give McDonald credit. That’s a really good and well-coached team. When they can shoot like that combined with the things they do with their press and their aggressive attacking, that’s a dangerous mix.”
Like in years past, McDonald is flying high thanks to a suffocating defense which thrives on the press. However, the Blue Devils are now attacking opponents on offense, and it has lifted the team to new heights.
McDonald coach Jeff Rasile believes this year’s club potentially could be one of the best he has coached at the school.
“We go nine deep and everyone knows their role and everyone is buying into what we are trying to accomplish,” Rasile said. “We still have work to do, but we’re doing a lot of things right and we’re playing hard at both ends of the court.”
Rasile said McDonald’s fast-paced offensive attack was implemented this past summer.
“We really worked at pushing the tempo,” Rasile said. “In the past, we used to score 80 points a game and give up 50. This year we’re scoring in the 90s and giving up 70. We told our guys that we want them to push it and chuck it, and they’ve done it.
“We really don’t do as much [in practice] as people think. We practice an hour and that’s it. They go so hard in games, we don’t want to burn them out in practice. But us being able to rotate nine guys has kept us fresh.”