Benet Academy wasted little time jumping all over Barrington in the semifinals of the 24th annual Hinkle Holiday Classic boys basketball tournament.

The Broncos scored the first point of the game only to see the Redwings roll off 23 straight points. They took a 19-point lead after one quarter and a 22-point lead at halftime.

From there, Benet (12-1) outscored the Broncos by eight points in the third quarter while posting a convincing 72-43 victory over Barrington (6-5) to advance to the championship game at 7:30 p.m. Friday.

Senior Jayden Wright (game-high 15 points) got the Redwings going by scoring their first 10 points. A 3-pointer at the first quarter buzzer by senior Ryan Walsh (9 points) staked Benet to a 26-7 lead.

The Broncos played Benet much tougher in the second quarter by only being outscored 15-12, but overall they were unable to contain the depth and athleticism of the Redwings.

“This is a first-class tournament so we get to see teams with a bunch of different styles so it’s a great experience for us,” Benet coach Gene Heidkamp said. “We’ve got a huge game on Friday against a really good team. I thought today was a good step in the right direction, and I think a point of emphasis has been to get off to a good start.”

Benet got rolling again in the third quarter as a dunk by 7-foot-1 center Colin Stack (12 points) gave the Redwings their biggest lead of the game at 51-23. The contest was played with a 35-second shot clock while the entire fourth quarter was played with a running clock.

Benet’s Aidan Renicker scored 11 points off the bench while teammate Edvardas Stasys added eight points. Barrington senior Oliver Gray scored all of his team-high 14 points in the first half.

“We’re excited to play every time we get on the floor,” said Walsh, who had three 3-pointers. “We definitely work hard in practice, it’s a team effort, and we went 10 deep in the first half.”

Barrington sophomore Luke Loughlin scored six points, and teammates Mike Trachtenberg and Sam Weibel scored five points apiece.

“They’re talented, they hurt you in a lot of ways, and they had that huge start,” said Barrington coach Bryan Tucker, whose team will play for third place on Friday. “They’re well-coached and they’re talented, and that’s a tough combination.”

The tourney honors long-time Jacobs Hall of Fame coach Jim Hinkle, who retired after the 2012-13 season. Hinkle also coached at Crown, where he guided his 1980-81 team to a 26-2 record, which included a 25-game winning streak.

https://www.dailyherald.com/20251223/boys-basketball/boys-basketball-benet-blows-out-barrington-to-reach-hinkle-championship-game/