Hanging out in small-town Illinois: A night in Roxana

I spent my Thursday evening in Roxana (Ill) to take in a little small-town basketball, Illinois style. It has been several years since I’ve been in Roxana for an athletic event.

 The last time I was in Roxana for a game was back in 1986-87 when I covered the Shells run through the IHSA football playoffs. I covered all of their playoff games all the way to the state championship game in Champaign. I still remember the “39 Trap” play that the Shells used to run to perfection as well as head coach Charlie Raich and his victory cigars. When I first walked into the gym, the first thing I saw was the jersey and picture of basketball Hall of Famer and former Roxana star Harry Gallatin. Very cool

 As for the game, I was very anxious to see this South Central Conference West Division showdown between Alton Marquette and Roxana.

 I got a chance to see one of the area’s top young big men in Hunter Reine of Roxana as well as one of the area’s emerging young small-school teams in Alton Marquette. I was very impressed with both. The 6’8” Reine enjoyed a big performance with 22 points, 13 rebounds and five blocks. But, in the end, it was Marquette’s overall balance that made the difference in a 64-42 victory.

 Marquette won its 21^st game of the season last night, but the Explorers are just getting started. Coach Steve Medford has put together a young and talented nucleus that should be a major factor for years to come. In Marquette’s seven-player rotation, there are three freshmen, three sophomores and a junior. They play well together as a team for a group so young.

 The Explorers were led last night by 6’1” sophomore guard Sam Scheiter, who scored a team-high 15 points. Scheiter is a very smart guard who excels at getting to the basket. The most experienced player is 6’4” junior forward Derrik Starrett, who scored 10 points. He spent much of the night in the low post banging inside with Roxana’s Reine. Sophomore Jake Coddington, a 6’5” forward, added 10 points. He has a nice perimeter stroke. He hit a couple of 3-pointers, plus a nice 15-footer from the baseline.

 What takes this group to another level is the presence of three freshman guards who have different skill sets, but can all play. Deion Lavender is a smooth 5’10” guard who can really shoot it from downtown. He hit three 3-pointers last night and looked effortless doing it. D’Tae McMurray is a 5’6” point guard who can run the show, hit the 3-pointer and penetrate to the basket. He scored seven points last night. Mike Williams-Bey is a quick guard who is an excellent on-ball defender. He likes to pick the pocket of the ball-handler, which he did on more than one occasion last night.

 I was very impressed with Hunter Reine last night because he was surrounded by Marquette defenders all night and they were trying to get physical with him, but he kept playing hard and had a big night. As he continues to grow and become more explosive, he’s going to be even more of a force in the future. I know he is getting some good teaching from assistant varsity coach Mike Harmon, who was a great coach at Bethalto during the 1990’s.

 Roxana is also young as they start a sophomore and two juniors. The sophomore is 5’11” guard Jordan Briggs, who is a nice 3-point shooter. He can keep defenses honest when they try to sag inside on Reine. A couple of kids who didn’t play much, but I like for the future are 6’5” freshman Matt Hartnett and 5’6” sophomore Daniel Wilmurth. They are going to be nice players at Roxana before it’s all said and done. Roxana has 16 victories this season. I see more good things on the horizon for coach Mark Briggs’ crew.

 It was a very enjoyable night at Roxana. Also hanging out with me at the game were former Public High League and SLU standouts Anthony Bonner and Daryl “Pee Wee” Lenard. I’m sure it might have been a curious sight to see Anthony Bonner, Pee Wee and Earl Austin Jr. sitting courtside in Roxana, Ill., but it was all good. The people were wonderful and were very gracious. I also noticed that there were a lot of Billiken fans who wanted to talk a little SLU basketball.

 Also in the house was my buddy Brett Burkland, “The Voice of the Riverbend,” who was broadcasting the game for WGBZ in Alton. I also caught up with my old college friend Keith Sutorious, who I hadn’t see in 26 years. His daughter, Erin, is a freshman cheerleader at Roxana. My man Louie Korac from the Alton Telegraph was also in the house.

 We had a good time. Many thanks to Roxana principal Corey Wallis and everyone at Roxana for their fine hospitality last night.

 Looking forward to going back.