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Boys basketball: Illineks win by 29, Renner nets 21

Gargoyle photo (click to enlarge) Senior Mike Renner, shown here in action against Judah Christian on Tuesday, led Uni with 21 points and 9 rebounds as the Illineks defeated Georgetown Notre Dame de LaSalette 81-52 Thursday in a nonconference game.

By Chris Yoder
Published: Friday, January 25, 2008 - 9:22pm
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POSTGAME COMMENTS:
ISAAC RADNITZER
Click to listen

Senior Isaac Radnitzer discusses what Uni tries to accomplish during a runaway win such as last night's.

Note: For a breakdown of stats from this game, click here. For season results and remaining games, click here. Listen to postgame comments at right.

GEORGETOWN — Mike Renner scored 21 points with 9 rebounds and fellow senior Chumar Williams added 10 points and 10 assists to lead Uni to an 81-52 nonconference victory Thursday over host Georgetown Notre Dame de LaSalette.

The win is Uni’s seventh in a row since losing its first two contests of 2008. Uni is now 16-5 overall, remaining 5-1 in the East Central Illinois Conference.

The Illineks came out of the gate strong on both sides of the ball, building a 22-8 lead in the first quarter. In the second period, the visitors continued to expand their lead, taking a 41-21 advantage into halftime.

Uni lost some ground in the third quarter, but not much, leading 55-38 as the final quarter began. If there was any doubt as to the outcome, the Illineks quickly squelched it, outscoring the Lions 27-14 in the last 8 minutes.

“We shot the ball extremely well in the first quarter,” said head coach Joel Beesley. “[We] got off to a good start, and offensively we played very well. Defensively we were still lax at times but maybe a little better [than Tuesday against Judah Christian].”

POSTGAME COMMENTS:
JOEL BEESLEY
Click to listen

Head coach Joel Beesley talks about last night's nonconference victory over Georgetown Notre Dame de LaSalette.

Joining Renner and Williams in double figures were seniors Isaac Radnitzer, with 11 points and 4 rebounds, and Frankie McFarland, with 10 points and 4 rebounds.

Junior Malcolm Taylor added 9 points, and senior Austin Rundus had 9 points on 3 treys.

“Last evening Chumar Williams did a very nice job of dictating the tempo and finding open men in the first half,” said Beesley.

The coach also noted that junior Alan Kessler played well off the bench, describing him as “aggressive on the boards, aggressive taking the ball to the basket.”

The Illineks had 36 rebounds, 17 assists, and 7 blocks. Uni shot 15-19 from the foul line.

In JV action, Uni fell to the hosts 22-21. Tonight the JV will play the Buckley Christ Lutheran varsity in a game that will count toward Uni's standing in the ECIC but will not be part of the varsity's overall record.

On Tuesday the Illineks will travel to Decatur Christian in what is probably the varsity's biggest game of the season.

Back on Jan. 4, Decatur Christian handed Uni its only conference loss of the season, a 63-60 defeat in overtime at Kenney Gym.

That was Uni's first game of the new year, coming a week after the team went 3-2 in the Hayden's Classic winter tournament. The Hayden's tourney was capped by a 60-42 loss to Fisher in the third-place game, which Renner had to sit out because of stomach flu.

If the Illineks are to win at least a share of their fourth straight ECIC title, they must beat the Warriors on the road next week. Decatur Christian is 8-0 in the ECIC and 17-2 overall.

The Warriors are led by Demeatrio Wade, a 6-foot-5 senior from Jamaica who came to America this year to attract the attention of college scouts, according to a profile of him published by the Decatur Herald & Review. Wade scored 10 points in his initial meeting with Uni.

“The first time we played them we weren't at the top of our game,” said Radnitzer, who scored 8 points and grabbed 8 rebounds in that contest. “We were coming off the winter tournament. We had a tough loss to Fisher there, so we weren't fully energized. We think we could have beaten them, but they're a good team, so I think this is going to be a good game. I think the key to the game is going to be limiting their big recruit from Jamaica.”

Varsity action is scheduled to begin at 7:30 p.m. at the Skywalker International Sports Complex, 400 E. Eldorado, Decatur. For directions, click here.

THE VARSITY SEASON SO FAR

2007-08 BOYS VARSITY BASKETBALL: 16-5 overall, 5-1 ECIC
(home matches listed in bold)

Nov. 19: Shiloh (Central Illinois Turkey Tourney), W 80-32

Nov. 20: Buckley Christ Lutheran (Central Illinois Turkey Tourney), W 69-17

Nov. 23: Bement (Central Illinois Turkey Tourney), W 73-59

Nov. 24: Martinsville (Central Illinois Turkey Tourney championship game), W 74-43

Nov. 30: at Shiloh, W 72-23

Dec. 4: St. Thomas More, W 63-45

Dec. 14: at Oakwood, L 67-54

Dec. 18: Uni JV vs. BCL Varsity, W 40-23 (counts toward Uni's ECIC record only)

Dec. 27: Heritage (Hayden's Classic at Heritage), W 67-32

Dec. 27: Georgetown-Ridge Farm (Hayden's Classic at Heritage), W 63-41

Dec. 28: Salt Fork (Hayden's Classic at Heritage), L 71-64

Dec. 28: Atwood-Hammond (Hayden's Classic at Heritage), W 59-42

Dec. 29: Fisher (Hayden's Classic at Bismarck-Henning), L 60-42

Jan. 4: Decatur Christian, L 63-60 (OT)

Jan. 5: Lexington, L 51-48

Jan. 8: at Normal Calvary Baptist, W 74-51

Jan. 11: at DeLand-Weldon, W 70-25

Jan. 12: at Fisher, W 71-60

Jan. 15: Paxton-Buckley-Loda, W 71-57

Jan. 17: Decatur Lutheran School Association, W 69-56

Jan. 22: Judah Christian, W 71-49

Jan. 24: at Georgetown Notre Dame de LaSalette, W 81-52

2007-08 schedule: Click here for the Gargoyle Scoreboard, which includes remaining varsity games.

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