By Jack Lydon
“I feel like we came out and we just punched them in the mouth. We weren't trying to let them get going. We knew that they could get hot pretty fast. We wanted to limit their shots . . . We never gave them a chance to get going,” said DePaul Prep senior guard Rob Walls after the game.
Punched them in the mouth is a good way to describe how the DePaul Prep Rams dismantled the Kaneland Knights 68-28 in the 3A Super-sectional game at Hoffman Estates NOW Arena Monday evening.
It was by no means clear before the game started, how Kaneland would contend with competition such as DePaul Prep. Kaneland came into the game was a gaudy 32-1 record running through their competition with impressive wins over DeKalb and Crystal Lake South. But the Knights haven’t played anything like the level of competition that DePaul Prep would bring.
It showed in the first quarter. The Rams opened the game with 12-0 run. Senior forward Gus Donohue added two big three pointers in a row midway throw the first quarter opening an 18-2 advantage. It was 21-3 at the end of the quarter.
“I thought it was good to get the offense going. . . The guards got me the ball, [Kaneland] to help on our good guards and then I had wide open shots. I was happy that I could knock them down,” Donohue said.
The rest of the game was not much different. 43-12 at the half 60-22 after the third. Running clock and subs for both teams in the fourth with a 68-28 final.
DePaul Prep coach Tom Kleinschmidt was complementary of Kaneland.
“Three and five are excellent players. Five [Kaneland senior forward Freddy Hassan] is a thousand-point scorer,” said Kleinschmidt.
“Three [Kaneland’s junior point guard Marshawn Cocroft] is an unbelievable guard, all state last year in 2A. We wanted to make sure they saw a man and a half. I know we're a good defensive of team, but if you play those two guys, one on one, they give people problems. They're thirty-two and one.”
Kaneland is good. They have good players and are well coached. A team can’t go 32-1 without that. It just seemed the Rams were just that much better. Dialed in. Ready and anxious to get back downstate.
Kleinschmidt was a little more forthcoming about the season than he usually is.
“There's a reason we play the schedule we play. We played eight rank teams in like twelve days. We got beat by [Brother] Rice at home by one. The next day within thirteen hours, H-F beat us by one. The kids were really down after that H-F game. I told them when we get down state this weekend, it's gonna be that weekend that got us down state.
“We had Benet at home. I thought it was important to start seniors like Gus and Jonus who helped us build the program. [Benet] took it to us. We gave them another day off and then they have been laser focused at practice and I think that's why. We are rested, we're tested and we’re prepped.
The DePaul Prep Rams have put together such a string of successful seasons that it hardly seems real. They have advanced to the state finals five of the last six years which had state finals, including this year. They won 3A last year and 2A the year before that. In 2022, they finished in third place in 2A. And in 2019, the finished in third place in 3A. Oh, and in the COVID year 2021, they won the non-IHSA Chipotle Tournament ending the season ranked No. 1.
The Rams will face Glenwood High School (24-9, 6-4) from Chatham, Illinois (population 14,525), in Thursday evening’s IHSA 3A semi-final at the University of Illinois’ State Farm Center. The Glenwood Titans finished fourth in the Central State Eight conference behind MacArthur, Springfield and Lanphier.
