It will be something of a full-circle experience for Illiana Christian junior Noah Sons.
The 5-foot-11 guard and the Vikings will play Hanover Central, which is led by his stepbrother Brad Rohde, in the first round of the Class 3A Kankakee Valley Sectional on Tuesday. Rohde helped stoke Sons’ interest in basketball when they were younger.
“It’s fun,” Sons said. “Our game earlier this year, we had family over afterward. We just go back and forth with each other. It doesn’t get too serious.
“But it’s all competitive. We’re very competitive.”
In their first matchup this season, Hanover Central won 45-35 on Jan. 3. There’s more on the line this time around.
Rohde and the Wildcats (12-12) will be seeking their first sectional title since 2020. Sons and the Vikings (10-13) will be trying to break through for their first sectional title after debuting in the Indiana High School Athletic Association postseason in 2021.
“It’s anyone’s game,” Sons said. “Anyone can win this one. We’ve been working very well as a team these past few weeks. We 100% have a chance to win.”
Sons, who is averaging a team-high 11.9 points, 2.7 rebounds, 2.1 assists and 2.0 steals this season, has become more dedicated to basketball in recent years. He began playing soccer when he was 6 years old and didn’t begin playing competitive basketball until a few years later.
But after suiting up for the Illiana Christian boys soccer team in his freshman and sophomore years, scoring seven goals in his second season, he opted not to play soccer again in order to focus on basketball.
“I played that all growing up,” Sons said of soccer. “That was my main sport. I played club ball. But sixth grade is when I started picking up basketball, and it’s been my favorite ever since.”
Sons moved into the Illiana Christian boys basketball team’s starting lineup last season after a teammate suffered an injury in late December, and he averaged 4.9 points, 2.2 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.8 steals.
This season, after the Vikings’ top three scorers graduated, Sons knew his role would expand.
“I just try to find my guys who are open, taking the ball up the floor, handling pressure, knocking down threes when they’re open,” he said. “I know I had a struggle midway through the season with shooting. But these past couple of games, I’ve gained my confidence back. Just finding my guys and getting everyone into the game. I’m just playing my game a little bit more.”
Illiana Christian senior guard/forward Jake Scott appreciates Sons’ game.
“I love playing with him,” Scott said. “He handles a lot of the pressure with his ballhandling, and he has a lot of nice moves. Last year, Noah would handle the pressure but wasn’t scoring as much, and that’s where he’s grown the most this year. He has a nice shot but doesn’t force it and can get to the hole whenever he needs to. Seeing his scoring ability grow this year has been really cool to see alongside him on the court.
“He opens up a lot of shots for guys because of his driving and finds the open man a lot of times. He keeps us in every game because of all this. If we need a bucket, he can knock down a three or get a layup. Then if he gets doubled, he finds the open guy. It brings consistency to our offense every game.”
Illiana Christian coach Tom Roozeboom liked the way Sons responded to his dip in shooting.
“He is shooting the ball better,” Roozeboom said. “He did go through that little bit of a slump. But a lot of people do. That just shows the mental capacity he has not to just give up and to keep fighting. That’s a character quality he most certainly has, being gritty, like, ‘I’m going to keep fighting.’
“That’s something I want our younger ones to see too. We talk about that here all the time: ‘Do you have grit? Do you have grit?’ Some do, some don’t, and he does. I want people to see that out of him.”
Sons’ teammates saw it. They voted for him and Scott to be the Vikings’ captains this season. Sons didn’t anticipate that outcome.
“I was kind of shocked because there are six senior guys and I didn’t think that would be me,” he said. “But I was voted, so I took that as a sign that they all respected me.
“I’ve been leading with my actions. Jake is a senior, so I try to talk to him first. Just try to lead through my actions and make sure we’re all focused and know what the goal is.”
Sons has earned Scott’s respect.
“Noah, first off, is a joy to be around,” Scott said. “He’s a great kid and an even better person. He’s a big reason we won games last year, and now this year we’re winning games because he makes the winning plays.”
Roozeboom believes Sons has room for additional development.
“He’s taken a step up this year,” Roozeboom said. “It’s that leadership quality. One thing that we’ll continue to work on is that vocal ability. But the leadership that he possesses now is more of, ‘Hey, watch what I do. I’m going to go 100% percent, so follow my lead.’ And that’s not a bad thing at all. That’s a great quality to have.
“That’s our job as coaches to continue to work with him to be that vocal leader. That might pop come this summer and into next year, like, ‘Hey, this is my senior year. This is what I want.’”
