Whitney Young Defeats St. Rita to Win Sectionals

Whitney Young Magnet high school continues its quest for the class 4A boy’s basketball state championship. The Dolphins pulled off a 75-66 victory in the Sectional Finals against St. Rita of the Chicago Catholic League.

Duke-bound Jahlil Okafor poured in 35 points. The 6-foot-11 inch center also grabbed 13 rebounds for the Dolphins. Miles Reynolds added major contributions with 14 points and 5 rebounds. St. Rita’s season comes to an end with a very respectable 21-8 record.

The game remained close most of the way. Charles Matthews (17 points 7 rebounds) beat the halftime buzzer with a break away dunk. That gave St. Rita a one point lead going into the locker room.

However, Okafor opened the fourth quarter with a dunk off of a nifty spin move. He hit a free throw to earn the three point play, and the Dolphins went on a 17-7 run.

With number one Curie loosing in the first round of the state tournament following an unfortunate scandal, teams are now aiming at the number two Dolphins. They take every team’s best shot game after game.

“Orr was up 15 at half and Simeon two nights ago didn’t miss a shot at all until the fourth quarter,” Okafor said. “We’ve definitely been getting everybody’s best shot. We have four seniors in the starting lineup and that helps a lot.

The Dolphins move on to face Wilmette Loyola Academy in the Super-Sectional game on March 18, 20014 at 7:00pm. The winner goes down state to play in the Illinois class 4A State Semi-Finals. Whitney Young’s last state championship came in 2009.