Eddie Ryan does not always get a lot of playing time, but Mount Carmel coach Phil Segroves knows exactly what he has in the reserve senior forward.
In fact, Segroves does not hesitate to draw a comparison between Ryan and a certain Hall of Famer and Chicago Bulls legend.
“He’s a guy who we wanted to come to Mount Carmel since he was in sixth grade,” Segroves said of Ryan. “He’s just an unbelievable hard worker. He never says boo about his playing time. He’s always ready to fight and scrap in practice every day.
“He’s a poor man’s Dennis Rodman. He’s a scrapper. And he’s a Carmel man.”
Ryan took full advantage of his opportunity to play extended minutes Monday night, scoring nine points as the host Caravan rolled to a 79-33 nonconference win over Eisenhower in Chicago.
Noah Mister scored 15 points to lead Mount Carmel (13-2), which got scoring from 12 players. Cameron Thomas and Kyle Chevalier added 10 points each, Keith Jenkins contributed nine points and 10 rebounds and George Gray finished with eight points and eight rebounds.
The Caravan played without Air Force recruit Grant Best, who Segroves said was expected to return to practice Tuesday after dealing with a minor hamstring injury.
Larnell Moore scored 18 points, Micah Calvin added 11 points and Davon Taylor pulled down seven rebounds for Eisenhower (5-9).
Ryan, meanwhile, provided an immediate boost off the bench. Entering the game for the first time midway through the second quarter, he had five points by halftime.
“You’ve just got to be ready to play your best whenever your number is called,” Ryan said. “Everybody’s got to buy in. You never know. Someone could get hurt. Someone could just have a bad game.”
As for Rodman, Mount Carmel’s players were not alive when “The Worm” was helping the Bulls win championships in the late 1990’s, but Chevalier knows his NBA history enough to believe the comparisons to Ryan are apt.
“I’d say that’s the perfect description,” Chevalier said. “(Ryan) is like a junkyard dog. He’s always in the paint battling and working.”
Ryan had a blast being part of the Class 3A runners-up last season.
“Even though I didn’t play as much, there was so much to learn from players like that and the experience going downstate,” he said. “It shows what it takes to be a great team.
“It’s not just talent. It takes a lot of hard work, patience and mental strength.”
As for Monday night, Mount Carmel jumped to a 42-16 halftime lead and cruised.
Segroves said it was special to coach against Eisenhower’s Mike Curta, who brought Segroves onto his staff when he was the head coach of the Caravan.
“Without him, I wouldn’t be here,” Segroves said. “He hired me 28 years ago, and although we’re only a couple years apart, he’s like a big brother to me.”
Chevalier, who is often one of the first players off Mount Carmel’s bench but started Monday with Best out, was thrilled to see so many of his teammates contribute against Curta’s team.
“I was like the 15th guy on the bench last year,” Chevalier said. “So, getting to see all those guys who don’t get to play all the time get in and show off what they can do, everyone’s happy and it’s the best part of the day.”
And Ryan got a chance to do his best Rodman impression.
“I mean that’s a heck of a compliment to be compared to someone like Dennis Rodman,” Ryan said. “He’s a guy I’d watch highlights of to see how to rebound, how to hustle and all that.
“You never know how much you’re going to score, but you can control your hustle, your effort and what you’re going to give on every single play.”
