For Jeremy Fears Jr. and Joliet West, this was the one that didn’t get away.
Fears hit a shot in the lane with 3.0 seconds left Saturday night to lift the No. 8 Tigers past Cam Christie and No. 5 Rolling Meadows 62-60 in the Steve Pappas Shootout at DePaul Prep.
Fears finished with a game-high 24 points in a back-and-forth showdown that featured 26 lead changes — 11 in the second quarter alone.
It was the kind of game, with high stakes and against another elite player, that the Michigan State-bound Fears came back to his hometown from La Lumiere (Ind.) to play. There have been others this season. The Tigers (15-4) beat St. Rita early, but couldn’t close the deal against Kenwood, Benet or Curie.
“We took two tough losses to end Pontiac [Benet and Curie] and we knew we had another opportunity to play a great team and just come back and get it,” Fears said. “Everybody was locked in and that’s what we did.”
The Tigers did it by playing what coach Jeremy Kreiger considers a throwback style.
“I get caught up speaking to them about Joliet basketball: the Roger Powell days, the Gary Bell days, the Michael Mines days,” Kreiger said. “Joliet was known as a hard-working city that was tough and physical.
“In recent years, we’ve been ultra-skilled and we’ve worked super hard. But I just wanted them to step on the floor and bring a level of physicality that might almost shock or stun the opponent from the beginning of the game.”
Christie was on the receiving end of some of that physical approach, including one moment in the second quarter.
“I was going up for a layup and I got clocked in the nose,” he said.
Then late in the fourth quarter, the Minnesota-bound Christie drove to the basket, was upended and landed hard, staying down for a few seconds. He got up and hit one of two free throws to tie the score at 58 with 1:40 left. Baskets by Joliet West’s Justus McNair and Rolling Meadows’ Tsvet Sotirov set the stage for Fears’ game-winner.
The Mustangs had a final shot from half-court, but it was off the mark and Joliet West had the signature win that had been so elusive. Despite those near-misses, Fears had no doubt this one would go the Tigers’ way.
“I had ultra confidence in myself,” he said. “I’ve seen a lot of shots go in and I knew this was my one opportunity, my one chance to make a big-time play for my team. And that’s what I was able to do.”
Fears’ brother Jeremiah added 14 points, while McNair and Drew King both scored seven.
Christie led Rolling Meadows with 19 points and seven rebounds, while 6-7 Mark Nikolich-Wilson did a little of everything with 16 points, 14 rebounds and five assists. Sotirov had 10 points.
Nikolich-Wilson, who shot a tourney-record 77.1% as the Mustangs won the Jack Tosh Holiday Tournament, continues to provide a potent offensive alternative to Christie.
“Teams can’t just stay out on me the whole time because he’s a really good post player,” Christie said. “Once he starts scoring, it causes them to sink the defense so I’ll be open for kick-outs.”
