Manteno’s kids are figuring it out.
The Panthers start four sophomores and have a fifth in their rotation, so there were bound to be growing pains.
But the group has a history of success going back to middle school and is getting more acclimated to varsity basketball week by week.
The Panthers extended their winning streak to four games and reached the .500 mark overall by knocking off Illinois Central Eight rivals Lisle (51-44 on Feb. 3) and Reed-Custer (68-31 on Feb. 6) last week.
In the Lisle win, soph Ramsey Owens was 4-of-6 from 3-point range and scored a game-high 18 points. Fellow soph Dylan Polito had 12 points and eight rebounds, while senior Braden Campbell scored nine.
“We’ve been growing up with these upperclassmen for a while now,” Polito said. “And especially as sophomores, we;ve had chemistry and we’ve been playing (together) for years.”
The season has been a work in progress. Before this surge, the Panthers had dropped eight of 10.
Getting the ship righted just meant getting back to work.
“We’ve been focused on a lot of rebounding and more defensive (work), we’re packing that instead of offensive,” Polito said. “And now we’re getting on the boards and we’re taking those offensive boards away from the other team.”
In the Lisle game, Manteno also was on target from the foul line, hitting 15 of 18. That, plus Owens’ effectiveness from the perimeter, make for a winning formula.
“That’s amazing, I love assisting that kid,” Polito said. “He’s always in the corner and he’s ready to knock it down.”
Panthers coach Zack Myers understandably has been encouraged by his team’s recent play.
“Every day is a new day,” he said. “We’ve been making a lot of progress. We had some good games (the previous week) to gain a lot of confidence. And that can be a tough thing for young kids. … Ramsey has been shooting the ball really well lately, spent a lot of time in the gym getting shots up … so that’s great to see.”
After this week, the Panthers (13-13, 6-5 ICE through last week) have just one more regular-season game, at home vs. Wilmington on Feb. 17, before going onto the IHSA Class 2A playoffs. They’re in Sub-Sectional A of the Seneca Sectional, where the competition will include Bishop McNamara and Pontiac among others.
“I feel like we’re kind of trending upward,” Myers said. “Our postseason outlook is pretty tough with who’s there. But we keep talking about how we want to finish the regular season and things like that.
“And I do feel like we’re capable of playing with those teams. …”