Minooka boys basketball uses assists to defeat Providence at York

ELMHURST – For 20 minutes, Providence Catholic was right there.

Then Minooka’s experience and toughness, earned by a group that has largely grown up together, kicked in.

The passes were hitting the right players on the inside and the baskets were coming. What impressed Indians coach Scott Tanaka in Minooka’s 52-38 victory over Providence wasn’t their end score or the Indians’ 59 percentage in shooting.

It was the 15 assists the Indians piled up.

“We just made baskets,” Tanaka said, oversimplifying slightly. “And the big guy did a great job of finishing, too.”

The “big guy” Tanaka referred to is Blake Parzych, a center with a scoring touch, for whom the more lithe Celtics had no match. But Parzych’s 10 points would have been fewer had not the Butler brothers – Jonny and Joe – been feeding him and others in the course of Minooka’s 37-point second half. Each brother had four assists. Providence had six assists for the game.

“We were playing defense the whole game, but were able to hit more shots and ran our offense better; we played harder and found open guys,” Jonny Butler said. “We all have great chemistry.”

That chemistry was evident as the minutes clicked by. Providence played in bursts, but Minooka was steady. The Indians’ 8-3 run at the end of the third quarter wasn’t spectacular, but it was decisive, turning a 20-all deadlock into a 30-23 lead with eight minutes to go.

Minooka also owned the final quarter, a 22-15 advantage.

Joe Butler led Minooka with 13 points, with Jonny Butler adding 10. Larry Roberts’ 9 came on a trio of 3-pointers. Those totals would have been unexpected at the half, when the score was tied at 15 and Minooka had made only six of 16 field-goal attempts.

Experience revealed itself Tuesday in contrast with Monday’s contest, in which Hinsdale South appeared to score the winning basket after time expired, only to have it count, negating overtime. Tuesday’s success also earned the Indians (8-4) a game against Lake Forest, while Providence (3-8) moves against Stagg.

Celtic coach Tim Trendel saw in the first 20 minutes, plus how his team played in a loss to De La Salle and Monday’s win over Metea Valley, the seeds of cohesion.

“We played like a group that’s green under our noses in the second half,” Trendel said of Tuesday’s finish. “We let down after they hit a shot or two. It was like, ‘Coach, we gave you a lot here and great effort the last couple games ... On Dec. 29, that’s to be expected. Our message is, we’ve stolen the Cubs’ whole thing: Process over product. We’ve taken tremendous strides the last 21⁄2 games.

“Come March, we’re going to be a team to watch for.”

Jake Schutter’s 13 points led Providence. Scott Slocum added 9, and Anthony DiNardi, the lone returning veteran, 8.