DeKalb outguns Indian Creek, wins 93rd annual Dayton Holiday Classic

DeKALB – Instead of 16 teams there were three. Instead of being in December it was late February. And Instead of a packed house screaming and cheering on two county teams, it was a sparse crowd due to COVID-19 restrictions.

But it was still the 93rd annual Chuck Dayton Holiday Classic, and the DeKalb boys basketball team won their home tournament for the second year in a row, this time knocking off Indian Creek, 87-52.

Athletic director Peter Goff had said that getting the tournament in was a top priority to maintain its status as the longest consecutively running holiday tournament in the state. And with the edition on Saturday, the school achieved the goal.

“It’s different, but anytime there’s a trophy on the line you like to win it,” DeKalb coach Mike Reynolds said. “It’s nice to win and it’s nice we kept the tradition of the tournament going.”

Trenton Kyler picked up MVP honors, scoring 24 in the first game against Rockford Christian, a 64-46 win for the Barbs. After Indian Creek beat Rockford Christian, 60-50, Kyler put up 19 in the Barbs win over the Timberwolves to go 2-0 in the round-robin tournament.

“I’m not too worried about the MVP, I’m just happy we got the trophy,” Kyler said. “That was a big thing to me was winning this tournament. You don’t want to lose on your home court in your home tournament. It made me proud as a senior to win it on our home court.”

The Timberwolves (10-2) were without starter Brennen McNally, and starting point guard Drew Gaston picked up three fouls in the first four minutes as the Barbs (13-0) raced out to a 27-7 lead after the first quarter.

“When you’re one guy down, a lot of pressure is put on Gaston and [Cam] Russell to do the scoring,” Indian Creek coach Joe Piekarz said. “They did a nice job of taking Michael [Lampson] out of the 3-point opportunities. They do a good job. So we tried to find other ways to put the ball in the basket.”

Piekarz said he was glad his team got to play against a team like DeKalb, which does some similar things to the Timberwolves, especially with playing a fast style of offense and a high-pressure, smothering defense.

“When we play our 1A level of competition, we do those exact same type of things,” Piekarz said. “They do it at the 4A level and they do it really level. This is why this was such a great opportunity. We don’t get to play teams like this when it’s the 1A level. It was great for these guys to get out here and see what really good high-quality 4A basketball is all about.”

By the numbers: Martez Jackson led all DeKalb scoreres with 21 points and Jamarcus Winters added 14 points and four assists for the Barbs. Lane Mcvicar had eight points and eight rebounds for the Barbs. Gaston scored 21 for Indian Creek despite foul trouble, shooting 9 of 12 from the floor. Russell added 17 points and nine rebounds. Normally the Timberwolves force a lot of steals and drain a lot of 3s, but had just three steals and were 1 of 11 from beyond the arc.

Beyond the stats: The Timberwolves had a 41-game regular-season winning streak snapped on Tuesday in a 97-78 loss at Rockford Lutheran.

They said it: “They’re a good team and when they play their schedule they run through a lot of teams,” Kyler said. “I think it was good for us to play each other because I don’t know how long it’s been since DeKalb and Indian Creek have played each other. It was a good experience for both of us to see where both of us are at against good teams.”

Up next: The Barbs host Naperville North on Tuesday, while the Timberwolves host Hinckley-Big Rock on Monday.

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