Red Devils Top York in John K. Adams Tip-Off Classic, 90-78
NEWARK, N.J. – Eureka's Charlie McKinty (Elmwood, Ill./Elmwood) tallied a career-high 34 points and 10 rebounds to lead the Red Devils to a 90-78 victory over York in the consolation game of the John K. Adams Tip-Off Classic on Saturday afternoon.
The Red Devils are now 1-2 on the season as they head back to Illinois to host Knox on Wednesday at 7:30 p.m.
McKinty, the Red Devils' starting junior forward, recorded his first career double-double, shooting 11-for-19 from the field while making 4 of 9 3-point tries and going 8-for-10 from the line. It was his first time reaching double figures in rebounding in his career and his second time scoring more than 25.
Senior guard Ian Milsteadt (East Peoria, Ill./East Peoria) notched his first 20-point game of the season and added six rebounds, three assists and three steals.
J'Len Crawford (Bloomington, Ill./Bloomington), who led the Red Devils in scoring in a losing effort against Utica in the first game of the tournament on Friday, also posted his first career double-double. EC's lengthy forward tallied 10 points and gathered a career-high 14 rebounds, along with three assists and a steal.
Senior guard Jordan Brooks (St. Joseph, Ill./St. Joseph-Ogden) contributed nine points off the bench – all from 3-pointers. Sophomore big man Lane Thompson (Dwight, Ill./Dwight)) had a productive day, delivering seven points and seven rebounds in 17 minutes off the bench.
Senior point guard Jalen Hosea (Peoria, Ill./Richwoods) registered six rebounds and a team-high four assists, while sophomore guard Blake Castonguay (Watseka, Ill./Watseka) and junior big man Logan Dorethy (Hamilton, Ill./West Hancock) each chipped in with five points.
The Red Devils controlled the vast majority of the game on Saturday, but the team never quite pulled away from the Cardinals. EC led by as many as 10 in the first half following a Milsteadt jumper with 4 1/2 minutes until the break, and held a 13-point advantage on two occasions in the second half. The Cardinals spent most of the game lurking within single digits of the Red Devils.
York's Quran Dublin posted a team-high 28 points on 9-of-18 shooting from the floor and 5-of-7 shooting from beyond the arc for the Cardinals. Devine Chrisholm added 16 points, with 10 coming at the free-throw line, and Olawele Kila had 13 off the bench.
McKinty poured in 26 of his 34 points in the second half, accounting for half of the Red Devils' second-half output.
As a team, Eureka shot a season-best 41.7 percent from the field and a season-best 80 percent from the free-throw line while reaching the 90-point mark for the first time this season. But the team also really thrived on the glass, outrebounding York 53-41 and besting the Cardinals 16-9 on second-chance points.
On Wednesday, the Red Devils (1-2) will vie for their 10th win out of their last 11 home games at Christine Bonati Bollwinkle Arena and Convocation Center.