By Bobby Narang
High school State basketball is set to return to the middle part of the State this month.
The four-class girls basketball field was finalized following Monday’s super-sectional action. In Class 3A, Nazareth Academy and Carmel are among the northern Illinois teams to reach the final four. Benet Academy, Bolingbrook, Barrington, and Stevenson all reached the final four in Class 4A, the largest class.
Carmel (26-7) defeated Sycamore (32-3), 49-37, in the 3A Dundee-Crown Super-sectional to reach State for the first time in program history. Senior center Grace Sullivan, a Bucknell University recruit, led the way with 16 points, 12 rebounds, four assists, and four blocked shots. Junior forward Mia Gillis collected 13 points and 12 rebounds.
“This is awesome,” Carmel head coach Ben Berg said. “I knew these girls were special. They made history for our program. We had some struggles midseason, but we got better. Mia and Grace played really well and played with so much poise.”
Nazareth, coached by Ed Stritzel, will play Morton in Friday’s second 3A semifinal. Nazareth beat Fenwick, 46-30, in the super-sectional to reach State for the third time in four playoff seasons.
Benet, a two-time State champion under head coach Joe Kilbride, is back on the big stage following an impressive 44-37 comeback victory over Whitney Young in the 4A Mother McAuley supersectional. Junior point guard Lenee Beaumont, who has over 35 scholarship offers, scored a Benet team-high 23 points. Benet (30-3) advances to State for the fourth time since 2015, where they will play Stevenson at 2:30 p.m. at Redbird Arena in Normal Friday. The Patriots (34-2) defeated Loyola Academy to reach the final four.
“I thought our defense was really solid,” Kilbride said.
• The boys high school sectional tournaments will conclude with championship games Friday this week and move to the super-sectional round Monday prior to convening at the State tournaments in four classes at the University of Illinois in Champaign-Urbana Thursday through Saturday.
• Donatian update:
Aurora native Camron Donatlan is making a big impact this season.
The 2018 West Aurora High School graduate is back to his old tricks in helping another team exceed expectations.
Donatlan is leading the South Suburban College men’s basketball team to reach new heights. The Bulldogs finished the regular season with an undefeated record for the first time in school history.
Twenty-seven opponents and 27 victories for the Bulldogs who entered the NJCAA (National Junior College Athletic Association) Division II playoffs ranked No. 1 in Region IV District III. The 6-foot-3 Donatlan, an athlete with elite skills, averaged 26.3 points, 10.3 rebounds, and 7.0 steals to earn the NJCAA Division II Player of the Week honors in early February.
The sophomore guard is taking advantage of his college experience, in playing for four colleges in four states and two sports in four years. A standout in basketball, Donatlan is back to his favorite sport after playing football and running track at the University of Wyoming, then playing football at Iowa Central Community College, and transferring to North Central Missouri to play basketball. He averaged 8.5 points in 24 games before circling back to play basketball in the Chicago area this season.
Led by Donatlan, the top-seeded Bulldogs (28-0) will play visiting Waubonsee Community College in the championship game of the Region IV, Division II tournament at 2 p.m. March 5 in South Holland.
Donatlan scored 16 points in a 68-57 victory over Illinois Valley Community College in the Bulldogs’ playoff opener.
Waubonsee, at home Sunday in Sugar Grove, defeated Bryant and Stratton College of Wisconsin, in a semifinal game, 83-77.