For a few brief moments Monday in Geneva, West Aurora’s Jaden Edwards was able to experience how the other half lives.
Fitting, perhaps, on a night that college football’s championship was being decided in Atlanta.
Edwards is a 6-foot-1 senior guard for the Blackhawks in basketball whose future at the next level will be in football, most likely in the secondary at safety.
“He adds another dynamic for us,” West Aurora coach Michael Fowler said of Edwards. “Jayden’s quick. He’s athletic. He can guard the basketball.
“I wish he was a little bit better scoring the ball (Monday). He struggled there, but I tell him all the time, as long as you’re sound defensive-wise, we’re good to go.”
Adept at defending the pass in the fall, Edwards had an impact throwing a couple of them in the eighth and final game of Geneva’s Martin Luther King Showcase against the host Vikings.
Edwards connected with Iowa football wide receiver recruit Terrence Smith on back-to-back lob passes in the final 1:54, leading to a pair of game-clinching dunks in West Aurora’s 49-40 win.
Still, Edwards doesn’t profess to be a future Caleb Williams or even junior quarterback Mason Atkins, who led the Blackhawks to a perfect 9-0 regular season and the Class 8A playoffs last fall.
“We’ve just got a special connection,” Edwards said of Smith, a 6-4 senior forward. “I just know he’s gonna be open. Throw it up there, he’s gonna get it.”
Smith went scoreless in the first half against the Vikings (17-4), who led 19-14.
“I thought the pace was awesome,” Geneva coach Scott Hennig said. “We wanted to protect the paint and keep them in the half court. That was the recipe for success.
“The second half, they got out in transition, and it showed how dynamic and athletic they are when they get in the full court, especially Smith and (sophomore guard Travis) Brown.”
Smith scored 13 of his team’s final 19 points in the third quarter, helping to give West Aurora (11-8) a 33-28 lead. The dunks gave him a game-high 17 points.
Sophomore guard Abe Martinez scored all 10 of his points in the fourth quarter and Brown finished with nine points.
Senior forward Hudson Kirby, who led Geneva with 16 points, pointed to the Vikings plan.
“We knew Smith was a high flyer and can get anything at the rim,” Kirby said. “We tried to push him out as much as possible.”
Hennig also knew what Smith could do.
“He’s probably the best athlete we’ve seen and might see all year,” Hennig said. “There’s no one who is as athletic vertically as him in our league.”
Smith appreciates the chemistry with Edwards, who scored just two points.
“That’s just the connection we’ve got,” Smith said. “I was just kind of eyeing him, telling him to throw it up. From there, it was just fly. Throw it up anywhere, to be honest.
“Going a whole game without a dunk is not like me. It means I’m not playing hard enough.”
It was the sixth straight win for the Blackhawks, who haven’t lost in the new year. That’s when Smith made his season debut after missing the first 13 games due to an injury.
Edwards, who had five interceptions in six games as a junior before a shoulder injury cut his season short, has not yet committed to a college. He had 29 tackles and two fumble recoveries.
Recruiting interest for Edwards includes several Division II offers from 11 he has received. He’s also talking to Division I Holy Cross and hopes to make a visit to Massachusetts before reaching a decision in February.
Smith, for one, is in Edwards’ camp.
“I have high expectations for teammates, and he’s definitely playing the way he should be playing,” Smith said. “Jaden’s aggressive on defense and plays a big role for our offense, too.”
