Trey Brost returns and Bolingbrook cools off Evanston at the War on the Shore

Bolingbrook sophomore Brady Pettigrew knows that as one of the state’s elite players his team requires him to do much more than just score.

“I’m going to guard the opponent’s best player,” Pettigrew said. “I’m a two-way player that will give you effort on both sides.”

The plan on Saturday at the War on the Shore against host Evanston was for Pettigrew to slow down Wildkits’ sophomore Ben Ojala.

“We had to get the ball out of [Ojala’s] hands as much as possible,” Pettigrew said. “He’s an electric player. We knew what we were walking into. [Evanston] is the best shooting team in the state. But we did a good job limiting their threes.”

No. 9 Bolingbrook beat the No. 10 Wildkits 79-63.

Evanston was missing two of its best players. Senior Vito Rocca is out with an injury and junior Tate Schroeder was sick. The Raiders, on the other hand, are finally back at full strength. Senior point guard Trey Brost returned from injury on Friday. This was his second game back.

“You always see the difference with Trey,” Pettigrew said. “He’s one of my favorite point guards I’ve played with in my entire life. It takes a lot of pressure off me too when he is out there.”

Pettigrew scored 19 points for the Raiders (18-6). Brost added 12 points and Elijah Anderson, a 6-7 senior, added 11 points and six rebounds.

Bolingbrook received a major boost when TJ Williams transferred from Glenbard West over the summer. He’s quietly put together a very impressive season. The athletic, 6-3 guard scored 18 points.

“He’s a tough-shot maker,” Raiders coach Rob Brost said. “And obviously he’s a high-major athlete, one of the best in the area. He’s really coming into his own late in the year.”

Sophomore Mason Williams had 11 points and four rebounds off the bench for Bolingbrook.

“Mason was a huge spark for us today,” Rob Brost said. “He does a great job. And obviously having Trey back solidifies the whole thing. It takes pressure off everyone because he can handle it and distribute it and make threes when we need threes.”

Evanston entered on a 10-game win streak. The Wildkits typically bury the opponent in a mountain of three-pointers. They were 13-for-29 from the arc against Bolingbrook.

“[Bolingbrook] can put the ball in the basket and so can we,” Evanston coach Mike Ellis said. “Our guys battled. We will take some lessons from this game.”

Elliott Pratt, a 6-4 senior starting in place of Rocca, led the Wildkits (20-4) with 18 points and Ojala added 17. Senior Timi Ogunsanya scored 14 points.

Homewood-Flossmoor survives Loyola

Loyola is annually one of the state’s best defensive teams. This season’s squad is also full of capable scorers. That combination provided a stern test for young Homewood-Flossmoor in an earlier game at the event.

The No. 7 Vikings knocked off No. 14 Loyola 66-61. Senior Marvin Douglas led H-F (20-3) with 22 points and eight rebounds. Darrius Hawkins Jr. had nine points and 11 assists and junior Danny Ruffin scored 15.

Broderick Munsey-Johnson led the Ramblers (19-6) with 21 points and 10 rebounds and Sam Golden added 13 points.