Jacob Baumann fires up Aurora Christian

Too close for comfort. And welcome to playoff basketball.

Aurora Christian Jacob Baumann He didn’t need much college experience Friday night to understand the importance of his team coming up strong offensively in the first half.

But as they say, better late than never.

“He’s an undrafted player with a slender build and a shot that looks a little different, but it works,” the coach said. And Beebe mentioned Baumann. “And he’s been one of our best defenders all year.”

Baumann, a 6-foot-10 guard, is one of four sophomores on the starting roster, along with the senior forward. Cameron Morel. And both aspects of his game continued in the second half.

Fueling the host Eagles’ comeback from a 30-15 deficit, Baumann engineered an 8-0 run in the third quarter of a 51-50 overtime victory over Earlville in the Class 1A Aurora Christian Regional championship game.

“He got us back in the game,” Beebe said. “And jalen carter “I made a couple 3-pointers in overtime.”

Carter finished with 17 points on Friday, while Morel and Baumann added 11 points each for Aurora Christian (22-8), which will play Rochelle Zell (21-5) in the Harvest Christian Regional semifinals on Tuesday at 7 p.m. .

“We were pretty stressed in the first half and were down 23-12,” Baumann said. “We are not locked in. We were moving the ball, but we were taking quick shots. “We performed much better in the second half.”

Beebe said his team shot 25% in the first half but found another way.

“I’ve been in a lot of plays in my 32 years,” Beebe said. “I will not forget this.

“We missed 10-12 layups, but if you go on a long run in the state playoffs, you realize that when you’re not at your best, you might have to find a way to win the game. “We had 27 turnovers and that made the difference.”

Baumann and the sophomore quarterback Marshawn Cocroft each had three of the Eagles’ 13 steals.

Carter and senior reserve Will McCracken He also had two steals. Sophomore center Asa Johnson and senior reserve forward Rudy Griffing each had one.

Baumann came off the bench last season and was a part of the Eagles’ run to the Class 2A regional final, gaining valuable playoff experience like many of his younger teammates.

“I liked moving into the starting role this season,” Baumann said. “I think I’m a lot like the seniors who started at that point last season. I adapted well and felt comfortable.

“The pressure continues to build in the playoffs, but I think there’s even more pressure on the seniors because they think it might be their last game. We have a few years as sophomores, but it’s still pretty big as you move forward. “It’s also a lot of fun.”

What’s in a name?

Kaneland (25-5) advances and hosts the Class 3A division. The Knights will play against Belvidere North (22-11) in the semifinals on Wednesday at 7 p.m., where Belvidere North will defeat the Knights’ Interstate Eight Conference rival Sycamore 69-54 to capture the first regional title in the program’s 17-year history. .

According to a report in the Rockford Register Star, the Thunder were led by three players named Brown. In the regional final, 6-2 senior forward Adam Brown scored 33 points, while 5-11 senior guard Braeden Brown added 28 points. 5-9 senior point guard Joseph Brown picked up three offensive fouls.

a block party

Waubonsie Valley had five players combine for nine blocked shots to beat Plainfield North 48-34 in the Class 4A Metea Valley Regional championship game. Reserve Cade Valek There were three as I started forward Moses Wilson And Matthew Sessom There were two in each.

Junior quarterback Tyreek Coleman was impressed with this defensive performance.

“It’s good that we have people who can deflect and eliminate easy shots for teams,” he said.