Benet point guard Brennan White said it was one of the biggest crowds he’s ever played in front of.
“We knew it would be a big crowd for both teams,” White said. “The first play coach called, I couldn’t even hear him.
“I guess that’s a good thing if it’s your own fans, right?”
He certainly gave those fans plenty to cheer about.
White scored eight of his 12 points and dished all three of his assists in the first half Friday night to give the visiting Redwings an early lead they would never relinquish in a 59-41 East Suburban Catholic Conference victory over Nazareth.
The gym at the La Grange Park school was packed with fans, although Benet supporters outnumbered those of the host Roadrunners.
Still, it took Benet coach Gene Heidkamp a little while to get used to the noise.
“This is a very challenging environment but it’s a fun environment,” Heidkamp said. “You’re coming off a pandemic where we didn’t have crowd, now we’re coming into a gym and it’s loud.
“It’s been a while since I couldn’t communicate. They couldn’t hear me and it caused some disorganization for us. It was our fans a lot of the time too, but it’s good to have those problems again.”
White and junior forward Brady Kunka created plenty of problems for Nazareth (7-5, 1-3).
Kunka, who finished with a career-high 23 points and 10 rebounds for Benet (10-3, 4-0), opened the scoring with a 3-pointer.
White, a slender 6-foot senior, followed by sinking three free throws after being knocked down while attempting a 3-pointer on the next possession.
It wasn’t the first time White was fouled while shooting a 3-pointer — or the last time he made an impact.
The Redwings led 25-19 in the second quarter when White drove the lane and was took a hard foul. He somehow managed to get a shot up from a nearly prone position, then watched for a second while the ball rolled around the rim and dropped, igniting a thunderous roar from Benet’s fans.
White made the ensuing free throw, part of an 8-for-9 effort from the line.
“I got the ball and I was like, ‘I’ve got to make something happen — we’ve got to get this lead back up,’” White said. “I took it up strong and I wasn’t expecting it to go down, but then it dropped and I hit the free throw.”
Talen Pearson answered with a basket for Nazareth, which later missed a 3-pointer that would have cut the lead to five. White rebounded the miss and went coast-to-coast for a layup.
Trell Harris, who tallied a team-high 14 points for the Roadrunners, split a pair of free throws before White fired a perfect pass to Kunka for a transition layup that gave Benet a 32-22 cushion.
“They surprised us with some pressure and I found Brady under the rim,” White said. “Brady’s a great player. I can always count on him to be there to score the ball when no one else can.”
Kunka can always count on White as well.
“Brennan is a great point guard,” Kunka said. “I love playing with that kid.
“Over the summer and the fall, we kind of built the chemistry together. We trust each other to make shots in those kinds of moments.”
Heidkamp said White had plenty of those moments Friday.
“Brennan played a great floor game,” Heidkamp said. “He shot the ball well and he made some great plays in the open court. He made good decisions with the ball and he handled pressure well.
“His poise showed throughout the game. He was a huge part of the win.”
Matt Le Cren is a freelance reporter for the Naperville Sun.
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