Geneva, Hudson Kirby get the best of Wheaton Warrenville South once again to advance to sectional final

ST. CHARLES — Geneva senior Hudson Kirby could feel the game flowing in his favor.

With the Vikings taking a 26-19 lead into halftime against Wheaton Warrenville South in a Class 4A St. Charles East Sectional semifinal on Wednesday night, the Wisconsin-Parkside commit knew that it was unlikely he would face a double team he had seen the majority of the first half.

And that only meant one thing in his mind – it was time to drive in the paint and make some baskets. Even if it meant using his non-dominant hand to do so.

“We ran a practice where I caught a pass from the high post and went to work without using my right hand,” Kirby said. “They knew I could kill them with my right hand every time, so when they forced me to go to my left, it worked well.”

Kirby used that momentum to score 10 of his game-high 22 points in the third quarter, and added 11 rebounds to help the Vikings to a 59-43 victory over the Tigers to advance to the sectional championship, where they’ll face top-seeded Glenbard West at 7 p.m. Friday.

“He’s got such great touch and body control, and he did a really good job at the high post,” Geneva coach Scott Hennig said. “If anything, I thought I did a bad job not getting him the ball enough in the first half. That was a point of emphasis at halftime, and they got him the ball and put it away.”

Before the Vikings (29-4) focused their offense on driving low into the paint, a lot of their shot opportunities came after Kirby got the ball from the top of the key before slinging the ball out wide for 3-pointers, which led to the senior finishing with five assists.

“I just knew where everyone was going to be at,” Kirby said. “Normally, I’m passing out at the 3-point line, but when I get to the high post, it’s even easier because it’s quicker passes to my teammates, and they’re always ready to shoot every time.”

As for their 3-point shooting, the Vikings finished 9 of 22 from beyond the arc, with junior Gabe Jensen (15 points) and sophomore Nelson Wendell (nine points) each hitting three triples on the night.

“I just felt like I was on point,” Wendell said. “And that’s the best feeling to have in basketball, especially in front of a huge crowd.”

Once the Vikings shifted their game plan, the Tigers (26-8) couldn’t find a way to recover, even while consistently subbing four players onto the floor consistently throughout the third quarter.

But even with the team’s third loss to the Vikings on the season, WW South coach Mike Healy was not upset with how his team played against them.

“With them shooting the ball the way they shot it, and then with Hudson in the middle, you’ve just got to think about what you can do,” WW South coach Mike Healy said. “But I loved our kids mindset. The three games that we played them, our mindset was the best. We just missed a couple shots that could have changed the tide.”

Much like the previous two games against the Vikings, senior guard Luca Carbonaro faced some heavy resistance from defenders throughout the game. But the DuKane Conference Player of the Year still managed 18 points on 66% shooting (6 of 9) in his final game for the Tigers. Sophomore Brady McClatchy added 12 points on four 3-pointers.

“We talk to our guys about making sure that when they walk onto the court that they make sure they left it all out there and they did,” Healy said. “The memories that they created this year, that’s going to last forever. I wouldn’t trade this group in for anybody else, and I’m very proud of them.”