LTHS boys basketball seek success with new faces

Lyons Township High School senior guard Owen Carroll may forever be known for making the shot heard around the school last boys basketball season. His remarkable swish from just beyond half court beat the buzzer and gave the Lions to a 58-55 home victory over rival Hinsdale Central Feb. 18, also costing the Red Devils an outright West Suburban Conference Silver Division title.

“People bring it up to me every time. People love talking about it and I enjoy talking about it, too,” Carroll said. “It’s a fun memory that I’ll have for the rest of my life. It’s kind of something people growing up always dream about, beating your biggest rival with a buzzer-beater at home. Kind of surreal but something I will never forget.”

Carroll hopes for many more great memories this season with the Lions. He and junior guard Timmy Sloan are the only returnees with significant varsity experience from a 14-16 season in which the Lions improved significantly throughout the season. Also on the team are seniors Tommy Blyth, Dylan Holcer, Grant Pinta, Tommy Sloan, Matthew Stetler, Braden Sullivan and Luke Taylor, juniors Kyndell Barnes of Brookfield, Grayson Lee, Blake Ragsdale, Ty Smith, Byron Walton and Nate Woods and sophomore Grant Smith.

“I think we have a lot of interchangeable parts, guys that can do multiple things. We don’t have that 6-8, 6-9 size, but good size across the board,” said LTHS coach Tom Sloan, also father of Timmy and Tommy. “Our bigger guys can handle the ball and play on the perimeter. There’s flexibility there. And the team has good chemistry so far. We all seem to be pulling the same direction.”

Timmy Sloan emerged as a starting shooting guard last season. He was third in scoring average (6.4 points per game), had a team-best 131 assists and was second in three-pointers (38) and steals (23). Usually among the first off the bench, Carroll was fourth in scoring average (6.2 ppg) and threes (30) with 50 assists and 18 steals.

This group has confidence and motivation knowing that last year’s team excelled also with basically a new lineup. Graduated starter Ian Polonowski (14.1 ppg) was its only returning player with significant previous varsity experience. In last year’s Class 4A regional semifinals, LTHS led higher-seeded Curie on its home court in the third quarter before losing 74-65.

“Ian last year (took leadership) and Timmy and I have kind of stepped up, making sure everyone’s on the same page, making sure guys know the plays,” Carroll said. “Last year’s team, where they got going pretty quickly, helps to get us going. Just because we don’t have a lot of (varsity) experience doesn’t mean we can’t have a good season.”

Carroll will join the starting lineup. Blyth and Tommy Sloan, who both played a few varsity games, Smith and Woods also will be huge contributors as well as Ragsdale and transfer Walton. As a sophomore in football, the 6-6 Smith played tight end and was among the Lions’ best receivers.

“He’ll be on the floor as much as anybody. He’s very good,” coach Sloan said. “We always try to be fast paced. It’s just a matter of whether we have guys to do it and if that’s going to be successful for the group.”

The season began Monday with the Lions beating Maine South 80-65 in their opener at the Downers Grove North Tournament in place of their longtime home Thanksgiving tournament. The WSC Silver once again will be great training ground with every team expected to be talented with old or new faces. LTHS finished fourth at 5-7 last season.

“(Our keys are) if we can play solid defense and make it difficult for the other team to get easy stuff and share the ball offensively. If we can do those two things, we’ll give ourselves a chance to compete with most teams that we play,” coach Sloan said.

“Obviously we would like to win conference. That’s a huge achievement,” Carroll said. “Trying to beat Hinsdale Central is something LT looks forward to. And then just trying to take it one game at a time.”