Jayden Riley plays point guard for Yorkville Christian, and more often than not, the talented junior is the center of attention for an opponent’s defense.
Such was the case Monday night as the lightning-quick Riley tried to ignite his team’s high-octane offense with creative drives to the basket, pull-up jumpers and precision passes.
“No. 3 was their guy and we did, I imagine, as good a job as anybody’s done with him,” Wheaton Academy coach Daniel Smith said of Riley. “He’s super, super talented.
“We just tried to give him different looks and did a pretty good job. We’re trying to develop a defensive identity.”
Riley came into the game averaging 23.6 points and hit that total right on the nose, scoring a team-high 23 points. He didn’t get a ton of help during a 76-48 setback in West Chicago.
Noah Aguado, a 6-foot-6 senior forward, contributed 11 points and nine rebounds for the Yorkville Christian (5-3). Wheaton Academy (6-0) answered with a 23-point, 10-rebound performance from 6-7 sophomore forward Hayden Schroeder.
The Warriors shared the ball well, getting 16 points from 6-3 senior forward Tyler Smith, 11 points from 6-1 senior guard Sam Swoboda and eight from 6-4 sophomore guard Jackson Snider.
It was a much-anticipated matchup for both coaches.
“They’ve got good length and their size is versatile,” Yorkville Christian coach Aaron Sovern said. “They’re not just big. They shot it. They can handle it. They’re a tough guard.
“We thought they’d try to go in close a little bit more, actually. We were trying to chase them off the (3-point) line, but our pressure just got discombobulated. We didn’t rotate correctly, and once they got some transition points, their confidence got going.”
The Warriors outscored the Mustangs in each quarter of a physical game, holding Riley to nine points in the first half.
“He can go and he usually handles the game,” Sovern said of Riley. “That’s the thing that’s most impressive — his ability to control a game with the ball. Because, believe it or not, he’s a pass-first kid. He’d rather have 10-15 assists than 25 points.”
Riley, who has an offer from Northern Illinois, is receiving recruiting interest from other mid-majors, including Northern Iowa and Illinois-Chicago.
“But there’s nights where we need him to go get it,” Sovern said. “Unfortunately, we didn’t finish. He pressed a little bit.”
Yorkville Christian shot 40% (19 of 48) from the floor and 21% (5 of 24) from beyond the 3-point line, compared to the Warriors’ 49% (33 of 68) and 35% (8 of 23), respectively.
“We like to get 30-plus (3-point) attempts,” Sovern said. “That means we’re getting the tempo going, getting some second shots. We’ve been making about 12 3-pointers and scoring about 80.
“They did a good job of being physical, and if you do that with our guards and we’re not at the free throw line, you’re gonna beat us. We have to be able to get downhill.”
Riley, who transferred from Oswego after his freshman year and averaged 24 points last season for the Mustangs, said defenders often try to get physical.
“I try not to let it get me rattled,” said Riley, who tallied a program-record 18 assists in a game this season and scored 31 and 35 points in two others. “I’ve gotta keep my cool and be a leader for my team. (Wheaton Academy) is definitely fast. I think we could’ve played a faster tempo.
“They didn’t do anything different. They just shot the ball better than what we expected.”
He likes playing the abundance of Class 3A and 4A teams on the 1A Mustangs’ schedule.
“It’s fun for us to play here,” Sovern said. “We try to schedule good teams. It’s good to get punched in the mouth here — not literally, I think we should’ve had a couple more free throws — but the proverbial punch in the mouth.
“We’ll need to regroup. Nothing is easy (but) … I like our group. If we stay together, pressure defensively and share the ball, we’re gonna be tough to beat.”
