Record Newspapers Athlete of the Week: Jayden Riley, Yorkville Christian, basketball, junior

Name: Jayden Riley

Sport: Basketball

Why he was selected: Riley had 14 points and a school record 18 assists in a win over Lombard Prep, had 21 points and 3 assists in a win over Harvest Christian and had 21 points and eight assists in a win over Danville.

He was selected the Athlete of the Week in an online vote. Here is his interview with Sports Editor Joshua Welge.

The game with the assist record, did you realize during the game that you had that many assists? What does the record mean?

Riley: I would say during the game after the first quarter this was the game that I should try to make my teammates better and I didn’t realize until after halftime when one of my teammates told me that I had a bunch of assists but I was paying attention to it. I thought I fell short with 10 or 12 but when I was shocked when I saw 18. but it wouldn’t have been possible if my teammates didn’t make shots which they did so I thank them for that. For me the record means a lot because in my opinion I would rather have an assist than two points.

How are you feeling about the start to the season?

Riley: I feel great about the way we started this year. I would say I realized how good we can be against St. Ignatius when we played a good game and we had them all the way up until the end. But we have had our ups and downs this season even though it is early. But just glad we are having our ups and downs now because we want to win a state championship so the regular season is just getting us ready for playoffs to make sure we are ready to make the run that we know we can make.

You guys have most of your team back from last year. Where do you see the team’s improvement?

Riley: Us having our same team from last year is huge because we all got used to each other the way we play. We were in the gym together during the offseason. We all have just gotten closer. We have our big Noah [Aguado], we didn’t have him for the beginning of the season last year and we have Brady [Sovern] healthy and able to play which is crazy because he tore his ACL and he is playing and giving us minutes, Tray [Alford] improved a lot and our team got deeper as in bench wise where we can play 9-10 because of the way we play.

What parts of your game have you worked on?

Riley: I worked on my range and my shooting because it would just be easier for me and my teammates if they have to guard outside the 3-point line. It would just open the floor up much easier. I worked on my weak hand a lot so I can make the same passes that I do with my right and just learning how to be a leader and to lead my team the right way.

What’s going on with your recruiting?

Riley: I have interest from UIC, Valpo, Northern Iowa, South Dakota, Youngstown, Western Michigan and then I have the offer from NIU.