November 01, 2024
Boys Basketball

Boys Basketball: Lenschow keeps a straight face, powers Burlington Central past Kaneland

By JOSH WELGE
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Burlington Central's Joshua Hudgens (top) and Burlington Central's Jake Lenschow (center) fight Kaneland’s Ethan Feiza (left) and Kaneland’s Bryce Ebert (right) for a rebound during a semifinal game in the 57th annual Plano Christmas Classic in Plano Dec. 28. (Sean King)

PLANO – Jake Lenschow hardly seems to crack a smile, much less show any emotion on the basketball court.

Lenschow, a 6-foot-4 Burlington Central senior, isn't typically fazed by a good or bad play. Given his varsity experience for three seasons, he "kind of knows what it's like."

"I realize if you get angry or upset, it doesn't really help you personally," Lenschow said. "I just try to keep the same mindset and not get down on my self on misses or missed rotations or anything like that."

Lenschow let his play do the talking Saturday, powering the Rockets past Kaneland 52-45 in the Plano Christmas Classic semifinal.

Lenschow led the way for the Rockets with 17 points, 10 rebounds and four assists. The Rockets (9-3), who won the tournament title two years ago, return to Monday's championship game against the winner of King/Peoria Notre Dame at 8 p.m.

Kaneland (7-3), in the semifinals of the Plano Christmas Classic for the first time since 2012, will face the loser in the third place game at 6:30 p.m.

The Rockets clamped down defensively to close out Saturday's matchup. After Kaneland guard Will Cushman's layup pulled the Knights within 45-43 with 1:29 left, Burlington Central guard

Eddie Wells responded with a pair of free throws. Lenschow added a layup, but Knights senior Bryce Ebert's layup couldn't quite close the gap.

Lenschow split free throws before Gavin Sarvis knocked in a layup to close it out for the Rockets.

Kaneland led 25-23 at the half, but was hurt by a 34-18 disadvantage on the boards.

"Two things stood out: [Burlington] really rebounded well; they hurt us on the boards," Kaneland coach Ernie Colombe said.

"We had been rebounding really well. That's a credit to them...the other thing is we took tough shots. That's a credit to [Burlington], honestly. There were sometimes where I felt like we were standing a little bit, but really, their defense...I thought their length bothered us a little bit."

Brett David led the Knights with 16 points and five rebounds, while Bryce Ebert had 12 points. Will Cushman had nine points.

"He's stepping up; he's learning how to lead and he's becoming a leader," Colombe said of David. "We're starting to see that on the court. Coming into this as an outsider so-to-speak, I kind of got the vibe that he was a shooter. Then, when we're with him every day, he's playing defense, he's getting rebounds, he's getting loose balls...he's really become an all-around player and it's been nice to see."