With three prime-time veterans out of the starting lineup for West Aurora, senior guard/forward Kael Adkins didn’t have to look far to figure out what his role was going to be Friday night.
It’s leadership with a capital L.
Adkins, along with some of his young friends, answered that bell. The key? Just check out what sophomore standout Travis Brown had to say about Adkins and senior center Gabe Gonzales.
“Kael and Gabe, I love those guys,” said Brown, who’s turning into a point guard extraordinaire. “They’ve been great. I like their leadership. As seniors, that’s what they’re supposed to do.”
That senior leadership was a valued commodity and at a premium as Adkins scored 13 points and grabbed seven rebounds in helping the host Blackhawks hold off upset-minded East Aurora for a 58-56 Upstate Eight Conference win in the resumption of one of the state’s oldest rivalries.
Gonzales added seven points and a game-high 11 rebounds as West Aurora (4-6, 4-1) countered the work of the active frontline of the Tomcats (1-11, 1-3) in taking a 141-92 edge in the series.
Junior forward Marcus Wallace Jr. led East Aurora with a game-high 18 points and eight rebounds. Jaiyon Spivey added 17 points and seven rebounds off the bench, while Davion Jackson contributed 11 points and eight rebounds.
The 6-foot-5 Adkins didn’t have a ton of varsity experience coming into the season but has stepped in as a starter with a trio of seniors — forwards Terrence Smith and Kewon Marshall and guard Jaden Edwards — still sidelined.
“We knew their front line was their bread and butter,” West Aurora coach Michael Fowler said. “Normally, it’s their guards, but the guys up front are athletic. We knew they would get after us.”
East Aurora did battle back from 31-23 halftime deficit, getting within 43-41 after three quarters, and then gained a 55-49 lead with 2:37 remaining.
Adkins got West Aurora going, however, with eight points in the first quarter for a 20-9 lead.
“We settled in,” Fowler said of the opening surge. “Our second quarter was rough, and we just went into a lull. Nothing was happening for us.”
It didn’t help that Brown sat out much of that second quarter with foul trouble, but he led the comeback and had a key defensive play late, stealing the ball with 41 seconds remaining.
His pass to sophomore forward Orlando Edwards for a layup produced a 57-55 lead. Earlier, Gonzales made a pair of free throws with 1:00 remaining to force a 55-55 tie before fouling out.
Brown finished with a team-high 14 points and four assists. Sophomore forward Jaden Matthews added 12 points and six rebounds for the Blackhawks.
“I thought we had it,” East Aurora coach Rick Robinson said. “At crucial moments, we’ve got to learn to control the tempo. We’re still trying to go like this, fast, fast, fast, and we didn’t need to.
“We were up by four points with 1:28 remaining, got the ball on the low block but didn’t square up, shoot the shot and miss. I had just called timeout and told them we didn’t need to do that.”
Robinson, encouraged by his team’s play, hopes it can be a turning point for his group.
“Give credit to West,” Robinson said. “They out-toughed us.”
Sophomore guard Bryson Chandler did have stretches doing a nice job of defending Brown for East Aurora.
“Chandler grew up playing with Travis since grade school,” Robinson said. “They know each other. We told Bryson he knows Brown better than any of us, so sit down on him. He did a good job.”
A typical back-and-forth affair between the Blackhawks and Tomcats left fans and players gasping.
“That was my first East-West varsity game,” Adkins said. “We were ready to go into it, but it really is something … you can barely hear each other. That atmosphere is so much fun.
“You just know something is riding on it.”
The rematch will be Feb. 7 at East Aurora.
