By Mike Miazga
Correspondent
Things didn’t start out the greatest for the Timothy Christian boys basketball team at the recent Braidwood shootout at Reed-Custer High School.
The Trojans lost their first two games, but came back on the final day to win all three of their games and leave the event with positives to ponder.
“We lost the second game by two points and I don’t know if we should have lost that one,” said Timothy Christian coach Jack LeGrand. “But the guys came back and won the last three games.”
Timothy also has been playing in leagues at Riverside-Brookfield and Westmont. “It’s been a summer that has been packed full,” said LeGrand. “Between camps and playing games, we’re going Tuesday through Saturday and we’re playing some good competition. At R-B, we’ve had a good summer so far.”
And LeGrand is seeing his team take steps forward. “The guys are showing flashes and playing very good basketball,” he said. “We have good chemistry and the kids share the ball well. The problem is trying to get consistency the entire game.”
LeGrand said one big boost has been the sophomore class that will be juniors this fall. “The juniors who were sophomores had a lot of success at the lower level,” he said. “It’s been fun watching them get acclimated to the bigger-school pace of varsity basketball. In our first game you saw that ‘eyes in headlights look’, but that’s long gone now. They are getting better every day.”
Timothy has been led this summer by senior captain Joey Davidson. “Joey is our leader and captain and is having a great summer so far,” said LeGrand. “He was a good leader for us last year.”
The Trojans also have been bolstered by the play of Jonny Strube and Trayvon Williams. “Both of them have played very well,” said LeGrand, who also lauded the contributions of returning seniors Nick Tameling and Jon Hoekstra.
Juniors-to-be Brandon Orange and Ty Merrick have come out strong this summer. “Brandon is 6-5 and has a real nice touch around the basket,” said LeGrand. “Ty also has been playing very good basketball. He has a nice feel for the game. He sees the floor very well and does a lot of intangible things.”
Other contributors this summer include Michael Thomas, Michael Martens, Nick Huisman and Jimmy Allen. “Michael Thomas is playing good basketball,” said LeGrand. “Michael Martens was on the state soccer team and is a good guard for us who has played good minutes. The interesting thing is we have some height. Brandon is 6-5, Nick Huisman is 6-4/6-5 and Nick Tameling is 6-3 and is a strong kid. Theses kids have big bodies and are able to do some things for us and help us on the glass.”
Allen is a three-sport athlete for the Trojans. “Jimmy is very athletic and plays the three sports, so he’s only been with us a couple days,” said LeGrand. “He’s a piece to the puzzle for us as well.”
Timothy had shootouts on its remaining schedule at Westmont and Willowbrook. The Trojans also are wrapping up play in the R-B league.
“We are making progress,” said LeGrand. “And that starts with seeing more consistency. If we can be more consistent we can take the next step. We definitely are improved.”
