Kenwood Makes History, Secures First-Ever Varsity Boys Basketball City Championship

By Mike Clark

Photos By: Ashley Harris (akaye_digital) | Brandon Parker (bpparker3) and Sydney Gaietto (snapshots.bysyd)

A year ago, TJ Seals was playing before small crowds in little gyms.The senior transferred from Johnson to Kenwood for his final prep season and, on the biggest stage in Chicago high school basketball, helped the Broncos make history on Saturday night. Seals scored 22 points, grabbed eight rebounds and had six assists as Kenwood held off defending champ Curie 67-65 at UIC’s Credit Union 1 Arena to win the first Public League title in program history.

The Broncos (27-1), who beat the Condors by 22 last month, also had 16 points from sophomore Devin Cleveland along with 15 points, six rebounds and four assists from senior Aleks Alston.

“It really means a lot to me,” Seals said. “Coming from a smaller stage to this, coming from a Noble (League) school to a CPL (school) where it’s way bigger, way more enthusiastic, I don’t really know how to explain it. I just know that … you’ve got to work. You can’t give up.”

He and his teammates never did, even after trailing by nine late in the first quarter and being down three to start the fourth.

An 11-1 surge to start that quarter included three straight baskets by Seals and was capped by Alston’s tip dunk.

“Devin was in foul trouble, Amari (Edwards) wasn’t really on,” Seals said. “So I had to take over in the paint, play aggressive, not get in foul trouble and stay ready.””Man, he’s that dog,” Alston said of Seals. “Last year, BJ (Duling) was our dog. Now it’s TJ. He stepped up to the plate, man. … He’s where he needs to be and he’s making the most of his opportunity.”

“TJ is our X-factor,” Kenwood coach Joe Mason said. “When you talk about a guy that does whatever we ask him to do — he’s gonna defend, he’s gonna rebound, he’s gonna score the basketball. He’s gonna do whatever we need him to do. And tonight he showcased his ability in front of 1,000-plus people. “Seals appreciates the way his new teammates welcomed him into one of the state’s elite programs.”It was moments where I felt like I was frustrated because of school, but they stayed on me,” he said. “They made sure I was doing good, made sure my grades (were) good … made sure I stayed on the court. So I love my boys.”

That run made it 51-44, but Curie scrambled back to make it 59-58 on Brad Johnson Jr.’s 3-pointer from the left wing with 1:02 remaining.But Alston’s three-point play and two free throws by Edwards made it 64-58 with 40.6 seconds left and Kenwood hung on.

The win gave Mason a city title in his first season as head coach.

“It definitely will sink in once I get home and kind of take it all in,” he said. “But it’s a beautiful feeling. I’m happy for the guys. They truly deserve it and I couldn’t be prouder of the guys.”

Curie (21-9) got back to the city final after graduating all five starters from last year’s title team. Junior Justin Oliver led the Condors with 22 points and eight assists, Johnson scored 14 and Jahkil Jackson added 13 points off the bench.

“That’s Curie basketball,” Condors coach Mike Oliver said. “Had a whole new team, took a little time to jell. … But we knew we had the talent, we knew we had the heart. It’s just a matter of meshing some of the juniors with the seniors. And I’m very proud of the guys. They worked their butt off to get to this point.”

Photos by Sydney Gaietto, Amundsen senior (IG: snapshots.bysyd)