WOODSTOCK – If someone had scripted Marian Central’s Christian Bentancur scoring his 2,000th career point on a dunk off an alley-oop pass, it would have been rewritten for being too unrealistic.

But there was Bentancur, chilling on the left side, as Hurricanes guard Braedon Todd faked a pass to him, then lobbed the ball at the basket. The 6-foot-5 senior forward swooped in, slammed the ball through, and the crowd at Landers Pavilion went crazy.

With that basket, Bentancur created a brand-new club, with a membership of one. The Hurricanes’ star became the first player in IHSA history to score 2,000 points in basketball and have more than 200 receptions in football.

To top it all off, the Clemson football recruit finished with a triple-double (25 points, 22 rebounds and 10 assists) as the Hurricanes beat Marengo 88-62 in a nonconference game Tuesday night.

“It was amazing,” Bentancur said. “I got those points at Bishop Mac [42 on Saturday], and I’m grateful everyone came out at my school and supported me. It’s a really big deal, and I’m happy about it.

“We were trying to think of something creative this year. Todd was like, ‘Fake a cut and go to the rim.’ I was like, ‘Go! Go!’ and he faked the pass.”

Bentancur needed 20 points heading into Tuesday’s game to become the third boys player in area history to crack 2,000 points with Johnsburg’s Zach Toussaint (2019 graduate, 2,249 points) and Crown’s Gary Gliesmann (1981, 2,011 points).

ExpandAutoplay

Image 1 of 11

Marian Central’s Christian Bentancur with his father, Patrick, mother, Elizabeth, and Marian Central Athletic Director Cody O'Neill as he is honored with becoming Marian Central’s leading score and the only Illinois athlete to score 2,000, points and have over 200 receptions in football at halftime of a basketball game against Marengo on Tuesday, Feb.13, 2024, at Marian Central High School. (Gregory Shaver/Gregory Shaver )

Marian (8-23) led 51-33 with 4:06 remaining when Todd lobbed the pass to Bentancur.

“No! It was organic,” Marian coach Sean Stochl said, when asked if the alley-oop was run on purpose for that basket. “It was nice. It was a nasty one. That was meaningful.”

Todd, who finished with a game-high 26 points and four 3-pointers, was looking for the alley-oop pass a couple of possessions earlier.

“We were talking about it,” Todd said. “I was waiting for the backdoor. We both know he can get up there. We were both waiting for it, and when I threw it I was waiting for him to catch it.

“It’s great. Not only can he score, he makes players around him better by being out there and drawing defenders toward him.”

Bentancur was honored at halftime with his parents, Patrick and Elizabeth, for becoming Marian’s career scoring leader. A congratulatory note from the former record-holder, Adam Pischke (2016), was read.

The game was stopped, and Bentancur received the ball when he scored 2,000. He briefly posed for a picture with four of his football teammates, who had the numbers 2-0-0-0 on their chests.

Bentancur said he had a few extra nerves with such a significant moment so close.

“I don’t really like to chase stuff like that, but 2,000 is a big deal, and people were like, ‘You have to get it,’ " he said. “I took some extra shots [in recent games].”

While that moment was not planned, Stochl did plan a play later in the game. Bentancur passed to Todd for his last 3, which gave him the triple-double with his 10th assist.

“He doesn’t chase the clout,” Stochl said. “When he gets it, he gets emotional about it because you set goals. He’s always a team-first driven person. It’s awesome. I’m happy that he keeps being a competitor.”

Marengo (4-25) was led by Sam Vandello, Derek Bibbings and Jett Lesiak with 13 points each.

“It was exiciting night for a young student-athlete,” said Indians coach Adam Webb, a 2004 Marian graduate. “We tried to make it tough on him. Our guys did an OK job at that. At the end of the day, it was a fun thing to see. Marian did it all the right way.”