Boys Sophomore Basketball - 2007-08
Sophomore Basketball update for the week of Feb 4-8:
The Trojans continued their excellent team play with a pair of impressive wins this week. On Tuesday Timothy defeated Montini Catholic 39-24 in a non-conference match-up. The Trojans came out strong and led 15-3 after the 1st quarter. Montini battled back and cut the lead to 6 points with 3 minutes to go in the third quarter. It was at that point that the Trojans re-established control by finishing the quarter on a 10-0 run. Derek Temple and Justin Peeples spearheaded the run. Temple hit a big 3 pointer and Peeples had 2 steals and a pair of driving baskets, one resulting in a 3 point play. Justin and Derek finished with 12 and points, respectively.
On Friday the Trojans closed out conference play by hosting the always tough Illiana Christian Vikings. In a truly impressive display of hard fought team basketball the Trojans completely dominated the Vikings from start to finish. The Trojans roared out to a 24-4 1st quarter lead and never let up. It was really fun to watch. Defensively the Trojans never let the Vikings get into any kind of rhythm and offensively they pushed the ball and shared it unselfishly leading to a number of easy baskets. The Trojans hit 23 of 36 field goals (64%) while holding the Vikings to 9 of 33 (27%). Justin Peeples in likely his best all around game in a very solid season hit 8 of 9 field goal attempts to go along with 5 assists and 2 steals. The tremendously athletic Kordel Smith hit 5 of 8 shots and totaled 13 points, and the quietly tenacious Derek Temple hit 4 of 5 for 11 points. Freshman Mark Penczak playing against bigger opponents in our 4 guard line-up continues to show his true understanding and feel for the game. Mark was 2 for 2 from the floor to go with 3 free throws for 7 points, 5 assists and 3 rebounds and 1 steal. Will Roelofs has really stepped up as our one big man in our 4 guard line-up. Will does all the dirty work: he sets countless screens, blocks out and either gets a touch or brings down the rebound himself. Matt Meyer and Marcelle Becton are huge for us off the bench for completely different reasons. Matt brings in a solid big man presence similar to Will’s while Marcelle brings in explosive athleticism similar to Kordel’s. Dante Williams brings in another big man’s body with great shot blocking ability and Rhett Cater brings in the ability to knock down the mid-range jumper. Brad Wieringa and Justin Barak bring an enthusiasm and love for the game and the team that is really what we are all about at Timothy. It has been great to work with this group of young men and to see them grow and develop into a really good basketball team. To finish league play 8-0 was a great accomplishment and a testament to how far these young men have come together.
Sophomore Boys Basketball Update for the week of Jan 28 to Feb 2:
The Sophomore team again rose to the challenge this week as they defeated a very strong Walther Lutheran team on Thursday by a score of 44-36. The victory was sweet for a number of reasons. First, it kept the Trojans undefeated in league play (7-0). Second, and equally rewarding, the victory was another in a string of 4 consecutive wins that was a total team effort. And third, the win avenged a 12 point loss the Trojans had suffered at the hands of the Broncos earlier in the season.
The Trojans got off to a sluggish start and fell behind early by 7. They maintained their poise and cut the margin to 2 by halftime (17-15). The Trojans did a great job defensively both in their half court man to man defense and their active 2-3 zone. The Trojans continue to make great strides in taking care of the ball, taking good shots, and hitting free throws down the stretch. In the 4th quarter the Trojans forced the Broncos to foul by being very patient and strong in protecting the ball. The Trojans hit 10 of 13 free throws in the final quarter to preserve the hard fought win. Derek Temple hit 2 huge free throws with less than a minute to go. Mark Penczak, Kordel Smith, Justin Peeples, and Matt Meyer all hit key free throws in the final quarter as well. It was a great win!
The Trojans face Montini at home on Tuesday before hosting the Illiana Vikings on Friday in their final league battle.
Sophomore Boys Basketball update for the week of Jan. 14 to 19:
The Timothy Christian Sophomore team traveled to York on Monday and came out on the short end 49-44. We came out flat and quickly fell behind 10-2. We battled back and cut it to 1 midway through the 4th quarter but free throws down the stretch were the difference.
We bounced back and had our best weekend to date. We played hard and well both Friday and Saturday nights and got a big league win at Aurora Christian on Friday night and a satisfying non-conference victory at home Saturday vs. always tough Holland Christian.
Friday’s win was especially sweet as it was part of a 6 game sweep of Aurora Christian that night. We came out very strong and took a 16-8 lead after one quarter. We extended that to 28-10 by half time and were in control 40-20 by the end of the third. The final score was 52-35 and lifted our PSL conference record to 5-0.Justin Peeples led the Trojan scoring with 20 points. Kordel Smith, Derek Temple, and Marcelle Becton added 10, 8, and 6 points, respectively to a balanced attack. Justin had 5 assists and 3 steals to go along with his season high 20 points.
Saturday’s win was equally as satisfying as we played as hard and as well as we had the night before. Holland Christian has been a very tough and enjoyable rivalry for a number of years and it was great to again come ready to play. We jumped out to an 18-7 lead after the 1st quarter and maintained a double digit lead pretty much throughout the contest. The final score was 51-37. Justin and Kordel lead our scoring with 14 and 23 points, respectively. Kordel had 13 rebounds and 5 assists and 3 steals to go along with his season high 23 points. Will Roelofs and Dante Williams snared 8 and 7 rebounds, respectively to lead a dominating Trojan effort on the boards (37 to 13 team rebounding advantage).
The Trojans next host the Wheaton Academy Warriors on Friday at 4:30, the first of the Homecoming night triple header.
Sophomore Update for the week of January 7-11:
The Sophomore Boys team resumed league play on Friday by defeating the Luther South Braves at home by a score of 45-36. Justin Peeples, Kordel Smith, and Mark Penczak led a balanced scoring attack with 16, 13, and 10 points, respectively. Will Roelofs and Matt Meyer led the Trojan rebounding effort by snaring 8 and 6 rebounds apiece.
The upcoming week looks to be a difficult one with away games Monday at York and Friday at Aurora Christian and a home game Saturday vs. Holland Christian.
Sophomore Boys Basketball update - Christmas Break
The sophomore team headed into Christmas break by splitting 4 games. We beat Westmont in a non-conference game on Tuesday, Dec 18 by a score of 47-25. Kordel Smith, Marcelle Becton, and Derek Temple led the Trojans in scoring with 14, 9 and 7 points, respectively. Will Roelofs led the Trojans with 8 rebounds. Justin Peoples had a team high 5 assists to go along with 5 points.
In the Westmont Christmas tournament the Sophomores went 1-2. We beat Aurora Central Catholic 53-50 in the opener on Wednesday. Kordel Smith, Justin Peoples, and Matt Meyer led the scoring with 19, 10, and 10 points, respectively. Kordel also had 6 steals and 7 rebounds. Matt had 6 rebounds and Will Roelofs had 9 boards. Will and Mark Penczak each had 4 assists.
We then dropped our next two games. We lost to Wheaton Academy 42-37 and Walther Lutheran 53-41. Derek Temple had a season high 17 points (15 in the 1st half) against an athletic Walther Lutheran team.
The Trojans head into the break with an overall record of 8-6 and a PSL conference record of 3-0. The Trojans return to action on Friday, January 11 at home vs Luther South.
Sophomore Basketball Update for the week of December 10-15:
The Timothy Sophomore Boys Basketball Team dropped 2 of 3 games this week. We lost on Tuesday at Nazareth Academy 53-35 and on Saturday at home versus Dyett 67-45. Fortunately the game we won was a PSL Conference match-up with Westminster Christian of Elgin. In that Friday night contest we jumped out to a 19-7 first quarter lead and held on to win by a final score of 52-31. Derek Temple was a key factor in both weekend games. He sparked us with 10 points and a solid defensive effort on Friday, but was sick and unable to play on Saturday against an athletic Dyett team.
The Sophomore’s record currently stands at 6-4 overall and 3-0 in the PSL Conference. We head into Christmas break with four games this coming week. We play a regular season game at Westmont on Tuesday and then 3 games in the Westmont Christmas Tournament on Wednesday, Friday and Saturday.
12/05/07 - vs. Lisle
The sophomores struggled a little with the second game of back to back games but still prevailed over a scrappy Lisle Lions team by a score of 50-47. The Trojans were sparked by Rhett Cater who came off the bench to score 8 points on 4 for 4 shooting. Derek Temple also chipped in 8 points, while Kordell Smith and Justin Peeples led the Trojans in scoring with 15 and 12 points, respectively. Matt Meyers led the Trojans with 6 rebounds.
12/04/07 - vs. Chicago Christian
Timothy’s sophomore boys basketball team played their best game of the season on Tuesday and defeated PSL conference rival Chicago Christian 49-26. Coach Zylstra was extremely pleased with his team’s effort and intensity. “We played hard for 28 minutes”. Statistically, Kordell Smith and Justin Peeples led the Trojans with a combined 24 points, 9 assists, and 6 steals, but this was a total team effort and win.
11/30/07 Timothy vs Luther North
The Timothy Sophomores opened league play with an impressive 55-26 win over Luther North on Friday. After a sluggish first half which had Timothy leading by a score of 18-13, the Trojans picked up the intensity and outscored the Wildcats 25 to 9 in the 3rd quarter. Derek Temple had 10 of his team high 13 points in the 3rd quarter. Justin Peeples contribute 12 points, 4 assists, 3 rebounds and 5 steals. Kordell Smith scored 9 points, and 4 rebounds while Will Roelofs and Matt Meyer had 8 and 6 rebounds, respectively.
11/27/07 Timothy vs Immaculate Conception
The Timothy Sophomores lost their home opener on Tuesday to Immaculate Conception by a score of 48-41. Kordell Smith led the Trojans with 17 points, 4 assists, 2 steals, and 13 rebounds. Will Roelofs had 10 points on 5 for 5 shooting and also snared 5 rebounds.
Lisle Thanksgiving Tournament:
The sophomore boys team started the 2007-2008 season well with a second place finish in the 6 team Lisle Thanksgiving Tournament. Timothy opened with a well played 43-34 win over Montini. Justin Peeples and Will Roelofs led the Trojans with 10 and 8 points, respectively. Matt Meyers dominated the boards with 11 rebounds for the Trojans.
In the second game of the tournament Timothy defeated Maine West by a score of 43-40. Timothy was led by Justin Peeples’ 16 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists, 4 steals and Kordell Smith’s 12 points and 3 assists.
In the championship game Timothy was defeated by a very athletic North Lawndale College Prep team by a score of 68-48. Leading scorers for Timothy were Kordell Smith, Derek Temple, and Justin Peeples with 10, 9, and 8 points, respectively.