By Dominic Scianna

Marquis Clark needed 18 points to break the all-time Whitney Young boys basketball scoring record of 1,829 points set by former Dolphins star Quentin Richardson in 1998.

The stage was set on Thursday, Jan, 29, in the second round of the Chicago Public League (CPL) sectional basketball play-in tournament playoffs on Clark’s home court. The record had been held for 28 years by Richardson, a former DePaul University star and NBA professional, who led Whitney Young to a state championship during the ‘98 campaign playing for legendary Whitney Young coach George Stanton.

Clark, still playing with a face guard after suffering a broken nose in a December 30 win over Lincoln Park, wasted no time scoring all of his points in the first quarter versus Alcott College Prep, putting on a highlight reel performance with 19 points to gain sole possession of the scoring title with his 1,830th point in a Dolphins uniform. His name is now atop a list among the elite of Whitney Young’s honor roll of boys basketball greats the likes of Jahlil Okafor (2014), Javon Freeman-Liberty (2017), and D.J. Steward (2020), all playing under the guidance of current Dolphins mentor and head coach Tyrone Slaughter.

“The best way to describe what Marquis means to this team is – if you took a body and took all of its parts – he would be the heart. If we were to remove the heart, the body could not exist,” said Slaughter of his senior star, who is committed to playing for coach Rick Barnes and the University of Tennessee Volunteers next season.

“I’m overjoyed to have had the honor to coach him at Whitney Young for four years, and I think this is the culmination of all the hard work, commitment, and the great family that he comes from.”

The Whitney Young gymnasium fell silent moments after the record-breaking basket, as coach Slaughter stopped the game to present Clark with an award for his accomplishment, and then Clark got the chance to hug his Mom (Tanesha) and Dad (Jeffery) in an emotional tribute to their son before the fans gave the entire family a rousing ovation.

And that wasn’t all of the praise received by Clark recently during his journey to grab hold of the record.

Richardson posted on his X (formerly Twitter) from his social media account (@QRich) as preamble to the record for all to see in reaching out to Clark’s X account (Quisdabeast29) as well as making a private call to Clark to congratulate him in his quest for the record.

“Congratulations Marquis. You’ve earned every point – nothing given. It’s incredible to have two Q’s achieve such an honor,” noted Richardson.

Clark was thrilled and responded, in kind, “Respect always to @QRich. I’m just grateful to keep pushing the standard and represent where we’re from.”

The January 29th game itself was anticlimactic, as Whitney Young (19-6) rolled to victory over the Wildcats, staking its claim as a force to be reckoned with in the CPL playoffs moving forward. Whitney Young junior Anton Lee-Klein pitched in with 18 points for the winners and Michael Nichols led Alcott with 13 points in the loss.

The Whitney Young fans in attendance certainly came expecting a win, but much more than that, they became a part of history that now has Clark’s handprint all over it as a day that will go down in school lore for years to come.

“It means a lot to be known as the all-time leading scorer. It’s big for me knowing that it’s happened at our school with so many legendary players (before me),” said Clark after the win. “I feel like a legend, for real. For my name to be associated with players like that means I’m doing something good.”

The dream all started when he came to Whitney Young four years ago, noted Jeffery, who continued to drop his son off for 6 a.m. morning workouts before his high school days would begin to perfect his basketball skills.

“It’s surreal. He came into Whitney Young with a group of five as freshman and their intentions were to win a JV city championship and go on from there,” said Jeffery. “Since then, things have changed and players have moved on, and that’s a great thing for their careers, and for Marquis (to have achieved what he’s done).

“[Me and his mom] got a little emotional when he got the record. That was a nice moment and a great feeling. Another dream coming true next year will be to play for the University of Tennessee. It’s all been a great blessing for our family.” 

Clark’s mom also agrees that it’s been an amazing ride to witness her son’s successful trajectory.

“He’s a very reserved kid and he’s been so excited about it (approaching the record). To be among the greats here at Whitney Young, and one of Chicago’s great players too is just amazing, and I’m so happy for him and in awe of what he’s accomplished,” said Tanesha.

Now that the record’s been broken, there’s still more to come in this, Clark’s last high school season. The Dolphins are one of a handful of teams to be considered contenders for the coveted CPL City Championship crown as February 20 approaches, and hope to vie for a deep run in the Illinois High School (IHSA) boys basketball playoffs this coming March.

“’Quis is pretty nonchalant, but tonight you could see he was ready to break the record and we’re so happy for him,” said Lee-Klein. “When you have the best player in the state and the best supporting cast like we have, we’re all bought in, and that makes us strive for a championship and we all believe we can get there.”

Photos by Brandon Parker/OSA