By Randy Whalen

There have been some struggles for the Joliet Central boys' basketball team in the last two years.

So, it was a very satisfying thing for the Steelmen to see their early perseverance pay off.  

After losing their first six games of the season, including a tough pair earlier in the week, the Steelmen broke through with a nice victory last week. That happened on Saturday, December 6 as Joliet Central took made sure a long drive north was worth it by defeating host Elk Grove 45-43.

In literally the final seconds, BJ Fox had the game winning layup after a pass from junior guard Michael Stokes with a second to play to send the Steelmen into celebration. Fox, a senior guard in his third varsity season, led the Steelmen with 17 points while freshmen guard Valentin Conejo added 10 points.

It was the first win of the season for Joliet Central. The Grenadiers (0-5) led much of the game, including 14-11 after the first quarter, 24-18 at halftime, and 32-29 after three. 

"It was great win for the team after having two great games during week where we came up short," Joliet Central coach Lawrence Thompson said. "With only three players returning from last year's team with a lot of playing time we looked a bit overwhelmed at the WJOL tourney. 

"Roles and leaders and team play on both ends of the floor was very inconsistent. But we have really worked on playing with each other, as opposed to just playing five guys on the floor. Building team chemistry takes time and find ways to work on it each day."

As usual, Joliet Central started the season at the WJOL Thanksgiving Tournament at the University of St. Francis. This is a tournament the Steelmen won two years ago. But in the 29th edition of it, they went winless. 

However, a bright spot was that they hung in a pair of games against good teams, and the signs of improvement from last season's 2-26 record. 

"I think our team chemistry is key," Joliet Central senior forward James Lee said after the team's first game. "It's us just wanting it more. We know what it feels like to lose and we know we can do a better job. 

"I think we did pretty well after having our first game jitters. It definitely builds confidence that we can compete."

Lee led the Steelmen in the opening game, which was on Monday, November 24, against Lockport Township, with 14 points and 8 rebounds. Freshman forward ReVell Gilbert had 9 points on 4-of-4 shooting and stokes added 8 points. But the Porters pulled away for a 61-46 victory.

Lockport (6-1 through December 9), pulled away from a 29-23 halftime lead with an 18-4 third quarter for a 47-27 lead after three. Junior twin brothers Nedas and Nojus Venckus led Lockport with an identical line of 15 points and 4 rebounds apiece. 

Thompson, who is in his 44th season of coaching basketball, was a coach at Lockport for 33 years, including the final 16 as head coach. He guided the Porters to an unprecedented three straight sectional championships between 2006-08, culminating in a Class 4A fourth place finish. 

"Give Lockport credit," Thompson said after the first game. "They have a lot of returners; they stuck to their guns and played well. Rebounding has been a weak spot for us (The Porters held a 46-30 rebounding edge). I've got a lot of hard-working kids; I just have to get them to get the rebound.

"But I'm satisfied with their effort. We've got a lot of underclass kids, with two sophomores and two freshmen."

In the rest of the games at WJOL, the Steelmen fell to Minooka 61-52 on Wednesday, November 26. Two days later they fell to a good Lincoln-Way West (5-2) team by a score of 53-46. On the final day, Saturday, November 29, Joliet Central lost to Bradley-Bourbonnais 71-54. The Boilermakers were 3-4 through December 9. 

The next week showed the promise of the team in a couple of Southwest Prairie Conference games. Those were a 53-50 loss in a rematch with Minooka (4-2, 2-0 through December 9) on Tuesday, December 2, and a 55-50 setback to Plainfield East (6-2, 2-1) on Friday, December 5.

Fox had 15 points, Stokes added 12 and sophomore guard Khobie Fowler chipped in with 10 points in the home game against Minooka. In the away Plainfield East game, Lee scored 15 and Fox added 12 points. 

In the most recent game, on Tuesday, December 9. Joliet Central traveled to Bolingbrook (5-1, 3-0) and lost to one of the top teams in the state and lost 72-27. The Steelmen (1-7, 0-3) were led by Fox with six points. 

"We hope that our experience and talent get us a few more wins," Thompson said earlier in the season.. "But I need people to play hard. Work comes from the heart, and we've done a good job working hard."