Chicago Sports

Because I’m in the business of offering unsolicited advice and because I’m such a giving person, I thought I’d bestow guidance on the Bears and the Packers today. A twofer tip: Shut down your starting quarterbacks for the rest of the season.

The Bears should give the beaten-up Justin Fields the rest of the season off so he can get healthy and stay healthy, which is a nice way of saying “so he doesn’t end up checking into the Motel Deep 6.”

The Packers should tell the injured, struggling Aaron Rodgers that, although he has had a fabulous career and very well could go back to being fabulous next season, the franchise needs to find out if Jordan Love can play. Now.

The 4-8 Packers have a small chance of making the playoffs, the chance based on their going 5-0 down the stretch, on teams ahead of them in the postseason picture faltering, and on Mars and Jupiter getting together and having a baby planet named Fred. The Bears’ chances are even slimmer.

The longtime rivals play Sunday for all the … OK, for maybe one marble. Pride.

Fields, who didn’t play against the Jets last week, was limited in practice Wednesday. Rodgers said he plans on playing Sunday, despite a broken thumb.

If we agree that Fields is the Bears’ future, then we can agree that the most important thing is to make sure he has a future. His separated left (non-throwing) shoulder means that offensive coordinator Luke Getsy can’t afford to let him do what he does best: run with the football. That means he’ll be a neon target in the pocket. As much as I want to find out if Fields can be more than a running quarterback, as much as I want to find out if he can sling the ball with precision, this is a recipe for disaster.

The other reason for sitting him is one that has been repeated until its proponents are navy blue in the face: This is a rebuilding franchise that should be striving for the highest first-round slot in next year’s draft. The Texans, the front-runners, have one victory. The Bears are one of three teams with three victories. In order to win in the draft, you do what you have to do to lose on the field.

This comes at a cost for anyone looking for trace amounts of excellence out of the Bears. Removing Fields from the equation means leaving us with Sundays devoid of panache. But that’s what you sign up for when you agree a rebuild is the best way to get from Point Awful to Point Brilliant.

Fields needs to get a lot better at going through his progressions, and the offensive line needs to get a lot better at pass blocking. This is not the time for on-the-job training. This is the time for Fields to be bubble-wrapped and shelved. Unwrap him when general manager Ryan Poles finds the kid some help and protection.

Rodgers turns 39 Friday. He didn’t act his age the previous two seasons, winning back-to-back league MVP awards. Now he looks like a country singer who’s been tied to the back of a tour bus and dragged down dirt roads. The broken thumb surely has affected his play. So has below-average talent around him.

It’s a tricky spot for the Packers, who are paying Rodgers $42 million this season and will pay him $59.5 million next season. He’s one of the best players in NFL history. How do you give him the utmost respect and ask him if he’d step aside for a bit? How do you do what’s best for the franchise without doing a legend wrong?

It’s a cold business. Rodgers knows this, having taken advantage of that chill when the Packers chose him over an aging Brett Favre. Now with Rodgers nearing the end of his career, Green Bay has to find out if Love is the answer. It would be malfeasance to simply assume he is without giving him more game action. Since the Packers used their 2020 first-round pick on Love, he has thrown 80 passes. His one start came when Rodgers, despite being “immunized” against COVID-19, somehow came down with it.

That’s not a large sample size of a young quarterback. It’s a sip, a nibble, a toe in the water. Rodgers very well could be the Packers’ starter next season, but the team has to have a plan in place for the day he’s gone. Is Love part of the plan? Should the Packers pay him in a few years? How would anyone know right now?

Fields and Rodgers, two quarterbacks on different poles of their careers, are joined together by a strong desire to play Sunday. Somebody besides me should tell them they need a long rest.

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Bears quarterback Justin Fields will be limited Wednesday and backup quarterback Trevor Siemian will be out for the practice with an oblique injury suffered during warmups Sunday morning.

The uncertainty surrounding the Bears’ quarterback situation prompted the Bears to add Tim Boyle off the Lions practice squad. Boyle has experience with offensive coordinator Luke Getsy from their days with the Packers.

Fields will take some starters’ snaps Wednesday, head coach Matt Eberflus said. Third-stringer Nathan Peterman will take the others.

Fields separated his left shoulder and suffered partial ligament damage when he was tackled on a planned run in the fourth quarter of the Bears’ loss to the Falcons on Nov. 20.

He was limited in practice all last week. The Bears ruled him questionable for the Jets game in the name of competitive advantage, but revealed later that he was not close to being able to play. The Bears had set three requirements in order to play: for Fields to play well, for the coach to feel good about his ability to perform, and for team doctors to clear him. None of the three happened.

The Bears have a bye scheduled for after the Packers game, followed by their final four games.

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Ohio State was No. 5 on Tuesday night in the second-to-last College Football Playoff rankings, positioned to possibly take advantage if one of the top four slips up on championship weekend.

Georgia (12-0) was No. 1 again. No. 2 Michigan (12-0) and No. 3 TCU (12-0) both moved up a spot, and Southern California (11-1) climbed two spots into the fourth slot.

The Buckeyes (11-1) dropped three spots after losing 45-23 to the rival Wolverines on Saturday at home. That game was 24-20 heading into the fourth quarter and 31-23 with 7:23 to go before Michigan blew it open.

“It was talked about in the committee room that going into, really early in the fourth quarter, the game was still close,” said selection committee chairman Boo Corrigan, who is North Carolina State’s athletic director. “That being said, you can’t completely dismiss the way the fourth quarter ended with Michigan kind of taking over the game there late.”

Alabama (10-2) moved up a spot to No. 6 and was followed by Southeastern Conference rival Tennessee, which beat the Crimson Tide in October.

The final rankings and the four-team field for the College Football Playoff will be set Sunday. The semifinals will be played Dec. 31 in the Peach Bowl in Atlanta and the Fiesta Bowl in Glendale, Arizona.

The top four play in their conference championships game this weekend. The undefeated teams might not need to win this weekend to lock up a spot.

Georgia plays LSU (9-3), which fell nine spots to 14th, in the SEC title game. Michigan plays Purdue (8-4) for the Big Ten championship. TCU faces Kansas State, which is 10th in the latest rankings and has already lost to the surprising Horned Frogs.

USC and Heisman Trophy frontrunner Caleb Williams face Utah, No. 11 in the rankings, on Friday night in Las Vegas for the Pac-12 championship.

If the Trojans slip up, that could give Ohio State a second chance.

Since the college football playoff started in 2014, only one team has moved from outside the top four to inside and was selected to play in the semifinals without playing on championship weekend.

Alabama in 2017 was 11-1 and No. 5, but had lost to Auburn and finished second in the SEC West.

The Tigers then lost to Georgia in the SEC championship, which vaulted the Bulldogs from fifth to third.

Wisconsin was unbeaten and No. 4 heading into Big Ten championship game but was beaten by Ohio State, which had already lost twice and was No. 8.

That left the committee with an opening at No. 4 and it elevated Alabama instead of Ohio State, which finished No. 6 as the Big Ten champion with an 11-2 record.

NEW YEAR’S SIX POSSIBILITIES

Most of these scenarios involve the top four winning out and/or remaining the same after this weekend’s games.

Alabama being ahead of Tennessee would mean the Crimson Tide would go to the Sugar Bowl, which is contractually bound to get either the SEC champ or the highest-ranked SEC team available after the playoff has been filled.

That would put Tennessee in the Orange Bowl or the Cotton Bowl, depending on what the Rose Bowl does.

If Ohio State doesn’t make it into the playoff, the Buckeyes could go to the Rose Bowl for the second straight season. But with Penn State moving up to No. 8 this week, that opens up the possibility the Rose Bowl could select Penn State, leaving Ohio State to go to the Orange Bowl as the highest-ranked available Big Ten or SEC team.

If Ohio State ends up in the Rose Bowl, Penn State is a good bet for the Cotton.

The Buckeyes in the Orange Bowl against the winner of the Atlantic Coast Conference title game between Clemson and North Carolina bumps Tennessee to the Cotton against the highest-ranked champion from a Group of Five conference.

The latest rankings pretty much guaranteed that will be the winner of the American Athletic Conference championship between Tulane, ranked 18th, and No. 22 UCF.

No other team from a non-Power Five conference is ranked.

Kansas State is locked into the Sugar Bowl no matter the result of its game against TCU as either the Big 12 champion or runner-up in place of the Big 12 champ making the playoff.

Washington at No. 12 behind Utah puts the Huskies in great shape to make the Rose Bowl as the Pac-12’s representative if USC beats Utah and the Trojans make the playoff.

If Utah wins a second straight Pac-12 title, the Rose Bowl would again have some leeway to take another highly ranked team (Washington) instead of having a return trip to Pasadena, California, by the Utes.

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Ohio State was No. 5 on Tuesday night in the second-to-last College Football Playoff rankings, positioned to possibly take advantage if one of the top four slips up on championship weekend.

Georgia (12-0) was No. 1 again. No. 2 Michigan (12-0) and No. 3 TCU (12-0) both moved up a spot, and Southern California (11-1) climbed two spots into the fourth slot.

The Buckeyes (11-1) dropped three spots after losing 45-23 to the rival Wolverines on Saturday at home. That game was 24-20 heading into the fourth quarter and 31-23 with 7:23 to go before Michigan blew it open.

“It was talked about in the committee room that going into, really early in the fourth quarter, the game was still close,” said selection committee chairman Boo Corrigan, who is North Carolina State’s athletic director. “That being said, you can’t completely dismiss the way the fourth quarter ended with Michigan kind of taking over the game there late.”

Alabama (10-2) moved up a spot to No. 6 and was followed by Southeastern Conference rival Tennessee, which beat the Crimson Tide in October.

The final rankings and the four-team field for the College Football Playoff will be set Sunday. The semifinals will be played Dec. 31 in the Peach Bowl in Atlanta and the Fiesta Bowl in Glendale, Arizona.

The top four play in their conference championships game this weekend. The undefeated teams might not need to win this weekend to lock up a spot.

Georgia plays LSU (9-3), which fell nine spots to 14th, in the SEC title game. Michigan plays Purdue (8-4) for the Big Ten championship. TCU faces Kansas State, which is 10th in the latest rankings and has already lost to the surprising Horned Frogs.

USC and Heisman Trophy frontrunner Caleb Williams face Utah, No. 11 in the rankings, on Friday night in Las Vegas for the Pac-12 championship.

If the Trojans slip up, that could give Ohio State a second chance.

Since the college football playoff started in 2014, only one team has moved from outside the top four to inside and was selected to play in the semifinals without playing on championship weekend.

Alabama in 2017 was 11-1 and No. 5, but had lost to Auburn and finished second in the SEC West.

The Tigers then lost to Georgia in the SEC championship, which vaulted the Bulldogs from fifth to third.

Wisconsin was unbeaten and No. 4 heading into Big Ten championship game but was beaten by Ohio State, which had already lost twice and was No. 8.

That left the committee with an opening at No. 4 and it elevated Alabama instead of Ohio State, which finished No. 6 as the Big Ten champion with an 11-2 record.

NEW YEAR’S SIX POSSIBILITIES

Most of these scenarios involve the top four winning out and/or remaining the same after this weekend’s games.

Alabama being ahead of Tennessee would mean the Crimson Tide would go to the Sugar Bowl, which is contractually bound to get either the SEC champ or the highest-ranked SEC team available after the playoff has been filled.

That would put Tennessee in the Orange Bowl or the Cotton Bowl, depending on what the Rose Bowl does.

If Ohio State doesn’t make it into the playoff, the Buckeyes could go to the Rose Bowl for the second straight season. But with Penn State moving up to No. 8 this week, that opens up the possibility the Rose Bowl could select Penn State, leaving Ohio State to go to the Orange Bowl as the highest-ranked available Big Ten or SEC team.

If Ohio State ends up in the Rose Bowl, Penn State is a good bet for the Cotton.

The Buckeyes in the Orange Bowl against the winner of the Atlantic Coast Conference title game between Clemson and North Carolina bumps Tennessee to the Cotton against the highest-ranked champion from a Group of Five conference.

The latest rankings pretty much guaranteed that will be the winner of the American Athletic Conference championship between Tulane, ranked 18th, and No. 22 UCF.

No other team from a non-Power Five conference is ranked.

Kansas State is locked into the Sugar Bowl no matter the result of its game against TCU as either the Big 12 champion or runner-up in place of the Big 12 champ making the playoff.

Washington at No. 12 behind Utah puts the Huskies in great shape to make the Rose Bowl as the Pac-12’s representative if USC beats Utah and the Trojans make the playoff.

If Utah wins a second straight Pac-12 title, the Rose Bowl would again have some leeway to take another highly ranked team (Washington) instead of having a return trip to Pasadena, California, by the Utes.

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You never want to overreact from a week’s worth of Thanksgiving tournament basketball. Nonetheless, after waiting over eight months for the action to return — and a busy slate of games played in the opening week — there is always plenty to dissect.

There was a showdown featuring two top five teams, Kenwood and Young, to open the week, a flurry of high-profile games in Washington, Ill., and plenty of 4-0 starts to the season to grab your attention.

Here are a bevy of thoughts from the week in this Thanksgiving leftovers column.

o Oak Lawn’s quick start to the season was an ascending one. Following somewhat expected lopsided wins over Bremen and Lincoln-Way West to open the Oak Lawn/Reavis Thanksgiving Tournament, the Spartans took down a spunky St. Laurence team 65-60.

Then it was the first big test of the weekend: Mount Carmel. And coach Jason Rhodes’ team passed with flying colors, knocking off the ranked Caravan 76-68.

While Oak Lawn returned just one starter from a year ago — and a part-time one at that — it was an integral piece in senior Ayham Salah, who averaged 9.5 points and shot 40 percent from three last season. In the first four games this season, the 6-0 guard put up 17.5 points, 6.3 rebounds and 3.5 assists.

But the addition of Marist transfer Xavier Sulaiman has proved to be the spark for what will be a potent offensive attack.

The 6-2 guard has been on the radar since he was a freshman. But Sulaiman, who has always had a penchant for scoring the basketball, may be taking his game to a new level as a senior in a new basketball home. He was named tournament MVP following a week in which he averaged 24 points in four wins.

Corey Lee, a strong, quick 5-11 junior point guard, provides more offense with 12.5 points and 4.3 assists a game while doubling as the team’s best on-the-ball defender.

There is no time to relax. Oak Lawn will face another ranked team Friday when it hosts unbeaten Hillcrest.

o With a 3-1 record over Thanksgiving, including a win over Lake Forest and Asa Thomas, Loyola showed the potential to be better than a year ago. When you consider the Ramblers will welcome three players back from a state championship football team who figure to play meaningful minutes, that becomes even more of a reality.

But the improvement starts for this team with what will be one of the better backcourts in the Catholic League: senior point guard Alex Engro and junior combo guard Miles Boland.

o There is no doubt the ranked team with the biggest early tests the first week of the season was Joliet West.

Coach Jeremy Kreiger beefed up the schedule significantly, which included an opening week in Washington where it faced Cardinal Ritter out of Missouri, highly-ranked St. Rita, Lanier in Georgia and Metamora, last year’s Class 3A state runner-up with the majority of its team back. The Tigers headed home with a 3-1 record.

o Glenbard West lost Tuesday to DeKalb. That’s newsworthy when you consider the following …

The loss 56-54 overtime loss to DeKalb was just the second defeat to an in-state opponent in 998 days. That’s pretty remarkable.

The Hilltoppers lost a regional game to Batavia on March 4, 2020. Since then the Hilltoppers have lost only to Downers Grove North during the abbreviated Covid-shortened season and to DeKalb on Tuesday.

Last season Glenbard West rolled to a state championship, finishing 37-1, losing only to California power Sierra Canyon in overtime during the regular season. The year before it was a 16-1 record, losing only to DGN.

Prior to the DeKalb loss on Tuesday, the Hilltoppers jumped out to a 3-0 start as they beat up on the other Glenbard schools over Thanksgiving week — all this after graduating five starters from the state title team.

The 2022 Player of the Year Braden Huff is off to Gonzaga. Bobby Durkin will head to Davidson after a year at IMG in Florida. Caden Pierce is starting at Princeton. But coach Jason Opoka’s team still beat Glenbard East, Glenbard North and Glenbard South by an average victory margin of 25 points.

The new name leading Glenbard West: Logan Brown. In the three wins the 6-6 senior averaged 15.7 points, 11 rebounds, three assists and two steals. The physical, Brown is a rebounding machine and is committed to play at Division III Haverford in Pennsylvania.

Benji Zander (11 ppg) and sophomore Dominic Seaney (10.7 ppg) joined Brown on the all-tournament team.

o It was expected when the season began, but the opening week just reaffirmed the Catholic League Blue is going to be an absolute grind for every team in it over the next three months.

St. Ignatius, which moved up from the Catholic White, is 4-0 with wins over Lake Forest and New Trier, a pair of preseason ranked teams. Brother Rice is 4-0 with a win over highly-ranked Curie. DePaul is 4-0. Loyola and Mount Carmel are both 3-1. And we haven’t even mentioned league favorite and the highest ranked team of the bunch, St. Rita.

o The big names are gone — Nick Martinelli is at Northwestern and Cooper Noard is at Cornell — but Rodell Davis, Jr., is back for Glenbrook South. The senior guard is making the most of an expanded opportunity this year. Prior to Tuesday’s loss to Rolling Meadows, Davis led the Titans to a 4-0 start and was named MVP of the Ed Molitor Thanksgiving Classic at Palatine.

o And how about that Central Suburban League South? Glenbrook North, Glenbrook South, Evanston and New Trier were a combined 15-1 coming out of Thanksgiving week with the lone loss coming to ranked St. Ignatius.

o St. Ignatius really is a different team than a year ago. But after getting a look at the 2022-23 version, there is no question the Wolfpack can end up back in Champaign again, which is where I picked them to be a week ago in my Fearless Forecast column.

That belief is because Richard Barron, an instrumental part of last year’s success and a George Mason recruit, has a take-over ability and mindset as a senior. Barron can be a 6-5, strong-bodied bully and a sharpshooting wing all rolled into one.

o This will likely be repeated over the course of the season because he continues to be an under-appreciated, stat-sheet-stuffing senior star, but Oswego East’s Mekhi Lowery is only getting better. He looks more confident and assertive.

Following a 33-win season a year ago, the 6-6 Lowery is now the engine of a highly-ranked Wolves team that has started the season 5-0, which includes a pair of convincing, double-digit wins over West Aurora.

Towson, which won the Colonial and 25 games a year ago, has itself a recruiting steal in the versatile Lowery.

o You have to kind of like and appreciate the fact coach Don Houston’s Hillcrest team went out and won one of the tougher Thanksgiving tournaments in the state — after losing two key players, 6-9 Matt Moore (to Joliet West) and Isaiah Green (to Kenwood).

o Benet rolled to a title at St. Charles East, even with Niko Abusara playing in just one game due to an ankle injury. But it was the play of another senior who led the way.

Brady Kunka averaged nearly a double-double — and did so in limited minutes due to blowout wins — en route to being named tournament MVP. Kunka was one of the centerpieces of last year’s 25-win team that ran the table in the East Suburban Cathoilc Conference, so he’s not completely unknown. But he’s certainly an unheralded player in the senior class who simply helps teams win.

o With a first-look at Riverside-Brookfield this past week, a loss to ranked Curie, it’s clear the Bulldogs will take a step back from what they were a year ago. Nonetheless, it’s a team that should only get better and is blessed with a game-wrecker in Arius Alijosius.

The 6-1 senior guard who is headed to Division II Winona State in Minnesota is, very simply, one of the elite three-point shooters in the state. In the loss, Alijosius buried eight three-pointers en route to a 30-point game. He gets his shot off quickly off the catch and has unlimited range. He’s capable of turning around a game in a hurry.

o Benet and Marian Catholic were the favorites in the East Suburban Catholic Conference as the season tipped off, while a young but talented St. Patrick headed up the next wave of teams in the league. But Marist was an eye-opener last week, beating Andrew, Shepard and Richards while pummeling Perspectives-Leadership.

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You never want to overreact from a week’s worth of Thanksgiving tournament basketball. Nonetheless, after waiting over eight months for the action to return — and a busy slate of games played in the opening week — there is always plenty to dissect.

There was a showdown featuring two top five teams, Kenwood and Young, to open the week, a flurry of high-profile games in Washington, Ill., and plenty of 4-0 starts to the season to grab your attention.

Here are a bevy of thoughts from the week in this Thanksgiving leftovers column.

o Oak Lawn’s quick start to the season was an ascending one. Following somewhat expected lopsided wins over Bremen and Lincoln-Way West to open the Oak Lawn/Reavis Thanksgiving Tournament, the Spartans took down a spunky St. Laurence team 65-60.

Then it was the first big test of the weekend: Mount Carmel. And coach Jason Rhodes’ team passed with flying colors, knocking off the ranked Caravan 76-68.

While Oak Lawn returned just one starter from a year ago — and a part-time one at that — it was an integral piece in senior Ayham Salah, who averaged 9.5 points and shot 40 percent from three last season. In the first four games this season, the 6-0 guard put up 17.5 points, 6.3 rebounds and 3.5 assists.

But the addition of Marist transfer Xavier Sulaiman has proved to be the spark for what will be a potent offensive attack.

The 6-2 guard has been on the radar since he was a freshman. But Sulaiman, who has always had a penchant for scoring the basketball, may be taking his game to a new level as a senior in a new basketball home. He was named tournament MVP following a week in which he averaged 24 points in four wins.

Corey Lee, a strong, quick 5-11 junior point guard, provides more offense with 12.5 points and 4.3 assists a game while doubling as the team’s best on-the-ball defender.

There is no time to relax. Oak Lawn will face another ranked team Friday when it hosts unbeaten Hillcrest.

o With a 3-1 record over Thanksgiving, including a win over Lake Forest and Asa Thomas, Loyola showed the potential to be better than a year ago. When you consider the Ramblers will welcome three players back from a state championship football team who figure to play meaningful minutes, that becomes even more of a reality.

But the improvement starts for this team with what will be one of the better backcourts in the Catholic League: senior point guard Alex Engro and junior combo guard Miles Boland.

o There is no doubt the ranked team with the biggest early tests the first week of the season was Joliet West.

Coach Jeremy Kreiger beefed up the schedule significantly, which included an opening week in Washington where it faced Cardinal Ritter out of Missouri, highly-ranked St. Rita, Lanier in Georgia and Metamora, last year’s Class 3A state runner-up with the majority of its team back. The Tigers headed home with a 3-1 record.

o Glenbard West lost Tuesday to DeKalb. That’s newsworthy when you consider the following …

The loss 56-54 overtime loss to DeKalb was just the second defeat to an in-state opponent in 998 days. That’s pretty remarkable.

The Hilltoppers lost a regional game to Batavia on March 4, 2020. Since then the Hilltoppers have lost only to Downers Grove North during the abbreviated Covid-shortened season and to DeKalb on Tuesday.

Last season Glenbard West rolled to a state championship, finishing 37-1, losing only to California power Sierra Canyon in overtime during the regular season. The year before it was a 16-1 record, losing only to DGN.

Prior to the DeKalb loss on Tuesday, the Hilltoppers jumped out to a 3-0 start as they beat up on the other Glenbard schools over Thanksgiving week — all this after graduating five starters from the state title team.

The 2022 Player of the Year Braden Huff is off to Gonzaga. Bobby Durkin will head to Davidson after a year at IMG in Florida. Caden Pierce is starting at Princeton. But coach Jason Opoka’s team still beat Glenbard East, Glenbard North and Glenbard South by an average victory margin of 25 points.

The new name leading Glenbard West: Logan Brown. In the three wins the 6-6 senior averaged 15.7 points, 11 rebounds, three assists and two steals. The physical, Brown is a rebounding machine and is committed to play at Division III Haverford in Pennsylvania.

Benji Zander (11 ppg) and sophomore Dominic Seaney (10.7 ppg) joined Brown on the all-tournament team.

o It was expected when the season began, but the opening week just reaffirmed the Catholic League Blue is going to be an absolute grind for every team in it over the next three months.

St. Ignatius, which moved up from the Catholic White, is 4-0 with wins over Lake Forest and New Trier, a pair of preseason ranked teams. Brother Rice is 4-0 with a win over highly-ranked Curie. DePaul is 4-0. Loyola and Mount Carmel are both 3-1. And we haven’t even mentioned league favorite and the highest ranked team of the bunch, St. Rita.

o The big names are gone — Nick Martinelli is at Northwestern and Cooper Noard is at Cornell — but Rodell Davis, Jr., is back for Glenbrook South. The senior guard is making the most of an expanded opportunity this year. Prior to Tuesday’s loss to Rolling Meadows, Davis led the Titans to a 4-0 start and was named MVP of the Ed Molitor Thanksgiving Classic at Palatine.

o And how about that Central Suburban League South? Glenbrook North, Glenbrook South, Evanston and New Trier were a combined 15-1 coming out of Thanksgiving week with the lone loss coming to ranked St. Ignatius.

o St. Ignatius really is a different team than a year ago. But after getting a look at the 2022-23 version, there is no question the Wolfpack can end up back in Champaign again, which is where I picked them to be a week ago in my Fearless Forecast column.

That belief is because Richard Barron, an instrumental part of last year’s success and a George Mason recruit, has a take-over ability and mindset as a senior. Barron can be a 6-5, strong-bodied bully and a sharpshooting wing all rolled into one.

o This will likely be repeated over the course of the season because he continues to be an under-appreciated, stat-sheet-stuffing senior star, but Oswego East’s Mekhi Lowery is only getting better. He looks more confident and assertive.

Following a 33-win season a year ago, the 6-6 Lowery is now the engine of a highly-ranked Wolves team that has started the season 5-0, which includes a pair of convincing, double-digit wins over West Aurora.

Towson, which won the Colonial and 25 games a year ago, has itself a recruiting steal in the versatile Lowery.

o You have to kind of like and appreciate the fact coach Don Houston’s Hillcrest team went out and won one of the tougher Thanksgiving tournaments in the state — after losing two key players, 6-9 Matt Moore (to Joliet West) and Isaiah Green (to Kenwood).

o Benet rolled to a title at St. Charles East, even with Niko Abusara playing in just one game due to an ankle injury. But it was the play of another senior who led the way.

Brady Kunka averaged nearly a double-double — and did so in limited minutes due to blowout wins — en route to being named tournament MVP. Kunka was one of the centerpieces of last year’s 25-win team that ran the table in the East Suburban Cathoilc Conference, so he’s not completely unknown. But he’s certainly an unheralded player in the senior class who simply helps teams win.

o With a first-look at Riverside-Brookfield this past week, a loss to ranked Curie, it’s clear the Bulldogs will take a step back from what they were a year ago. Nonetheless, it’s a team that should only get better and is blessed with a game-wrecker in Arius Alijosius.

The 6-1 senior guard who is headed to Division II Winona State in Minnesota is, very simply, one of the elite three-point shooters in the state. In the loss, Alijosius buried eight three-pointers en route to a 30-point game. He gets his shot off quickly off the catch and has unlimited range. He’s capable of turning around a game in a hurry.

o Benet and Marian Catholic were the favorites in the East Suburban Catholic Conference as the season tipped off, while a young but talented St. Patrick headed up the next wave of teams in the league. But Marist was an eye-opener last week, beating Andrew, Shepard and Richards while pummeling Perspectives-Leadership.

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Skylar Jones has had Dec. 4 circled on the calendar for a while now.

On Sunday, Jones and her Young teammates will return to UIC’s Credit Union 1 Arena, where they beat Kenwood in last season’s Public League final. This time, they’ll be headlining the final day of the Chicago Elite Classic.

Though the CEC has showcased girls teams in the past, this is the first time the event has devoted an entire day to them.

Jones is thrilled by the development.

“I’m so excited that the girls get their own day to showcase all the talent around the Midwest,” she said.

Here’s a look at the matchups:

Simeon vs. Oak Forest, noon

Simeon is a traditional Public League power that won its first state title in 2020, beating downstate Morton in Class 3A just before the pandemic lockdown. The Wolverines were young last season and finished 14-10, but look to rebound this year. Janae Kent, whose parents and brother all have played Division I basketball, leads Oak Forest. A 6-1 wing, she’s the consensus No. 73 senior nationally and is committed to LSU.

Phillips vs. Homewood-Flossmoor, 1:30 p.m.

Phillips, an upper-echelon Public League team, is in Class 2A but routinely stacks its schedule with Class 4A powers including reigning state champ Stevenson. The Wildcats get more of the same here with H-F, whose top player is 6-1 forward Alyssa Latham. She’s ranked 72nd nationally among seniors and is committed to Syracuse.

Butler vs. Lincoln-Way Central, 3 p.m.

No Noble Network team in any sport has a higher profile than Butler, a 2A school that plays one of the state’s most challenging schedules. The Lynx’s Camille Jackson, now playing at Illinois, was the first Power Five recruit in Noble history. The next one will be dynamic point guard Xamiya Walton, the No. 55 junior nationally. IUPUI recruit Azyah Newson-Cole and Gracen Gehrke are players to watch for Lincoln-Way Central.

Kenwood vs. Vashon, 4:30 p.m.

Kenwood has two players committed to play in Division I — Jazelle Young (Loyola) and Natasha Barnes (Missouri State) — and several others who could wind up doing so. Ariella Henigan and Diann Jackson are both among the state’s top sophomores, and senior Jazlynn Givens is back after missing much of last season with a torn ACL. St. Louis power Vashon is back in the CEC after losing to Simeon last year.

Young vs. Stevenson, 6 p.m.

The event’s marquee game pits two returning members of last season’s Class 4A Elite Eight. Barrington finished second, losing to Stevenson in the final. Purdue recruit Sophie Swanson and Gwen Adler, who is headed to Seton Hall for volleyball, lead the Fillies. Young has several key returners from the team that fell to Benet in the supersectional, including Jones, a top-100 senior nationally who is heading to Missouri; sophomore Destiny Jackson; and senior Olivia Vick.

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Skylar Jones has had Dec. 4 circled on the calendar for a while now.

On Sunday, Jones and her Young teammates will return to UIC’s Credit Union 1 Arena, where they beat Kenwood in last season’s Public League final. This time, they’ll be headlining the final day of the Chicago Elite Classic.

Though the CEC has showcased girls teams in the past, this is the first time the event has devoted an entire day to them.

Jones is thrilled by the development.

“I’m so excited that the girls get their own day to showcase all the talent around the Midwest,” she said.

Here’s a look at the matchups:

Simeon vs. Oak Forest, noon

Simeon is a traditional Public League power that won its first state title in 2020, beating downstate Morton in Class 3A just before the pandemic lockdown. The Wolverines were young last season and finished 14-10, but look to rebound this year. Janae Kent, whose parents and brother all have played Division I basketball, leads Oak Forest. A 6-1 wing, she’s the consensus No. 73 senior nationally and is committed to LSU.

Phillips vs. Homewood-Flossmoor, 1:30 p.m.

Phillips, an upper-echelon Public League team, is in Class 2A but routinely stacks its schedule with Class 4A powers including reigning state champ Stevenson. The Wildcats get more of the same here with H-F, whose top player is 6-1 forward Alyssa Latham. She’s ranked 72nd nationally among seniors and is committed to Syracuse.

Butler vs. Lincoln-Way Central, 3 p.m.

No Noble Network team in any sport has a higher profile than Butler, a 2A school that plays one of the state’s most challenging schedules. The Lynx’s Camille Jackson, now playing at Illinois, was the first Power Five recruit in Noble history. The next one will be dynamic point guard Xamiya Walton, the No. 55 junior nationally. IUPUI recruit Azyah Newson-Cole and Gracen Gehrke are players to watch for Lincoln-Way Central.

Kenwood vs. Vashon, 4:30 p.m.

Kenwood has two players committed to play in Division I — Jazelle Young (Loyola) and Natasha Barnes (Missouri State) — and several others who could wind up doing so. Ariella Henigan and Diann Jackson are both among the state’s top sophomores, and senior Jazlynn Givens is back after missing much of last season with a torn ACL. St. Louis power Vashon is back in the CEC after losing to Simeon last year.

Young vs. Stevenson, 6 p.m.

The event’s marquee game pits two returning members of last season’s Class 4A Elite Eight. Barrington finished second, losing to Stevenson in the final. Purdue recruit Sophie Swanson and Gwen Adler, who is headed to Seton Hall for volleyball, lead the Fillies. Young has several key returners from the team that fell to Benet in the supersectional, including Jones, a top-100 senior nationally who is heading to Missouri; sophomore Destiny Jackson; and senior Olivia Vick.

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The Southwest Prairie doesn’t jump to anyone’s mind when the topic of best basketball conferences comes up.

And it shouldn’t, but it is impossible to ignore that the conference is on the rise. Joliet West and the Fears brothers are already making waves, Oswego East has been producing good teams and steady flow of D1 players for years, West Aurora and Romeoville have exciting young teams and Yorkville’s 6-9 Jason Jakstys is an intriguing prospect.

“The conference has been getting better for several years,” Oswego East’s Mekhi Lowery said. “I think it is probably at an all-time high right now.”

The Wolves picked up their first conference win tonight by knocking off West Aurora.

Bold statements in November are wacky, but here’s one: Oswego East might have a higher ceiling this year than it did last season.

The Wolves were 33-2 last season, so feel free to think I’ve lost my mind. It’s unlikely Oswego East will enter the playoffs with that gaudy of a record (that’s unlikely for any team), but coach Ryan Velasquez has a deep and talented squad that looked more well-rounded to me than last year’s group.

That team set a high bar, losing a one-point game to Bolingbrook in the sectional final. This year the Wolves will have chances to open eyes at Hinsdale Central over the holidays and in games against Bolingbrook, Curie, Joliet West and Hillcrest.

Understandably, Velasquez wasn’t about to make bold statements of his own in November.

“I want to see how we respond to adversity,” Velasquez said. “We aren’t going to go undefeated so how will we bounce back when we lose a game. I like this group but I want to see how resilient we are.”

Tuesday’s top games

Marian Catholic 64, Carmel 49: Quentin Jones exploded for 25 points and James Bullock added 14. James Dwyer led the Corsairs with 13 points.

Brother Rice 81, Morgan Park 47: Ahmad Henderson led with 18 and junior Cale Cosme added 11 off the bench.

Naperville Central 96, Glenbard East 88: What a DVC shootout. Simon Krugliakovas scored 40 points. I’ll admit I have never heard of him. But I’m intrigued.

Joliet West 93, Plainfield Central 56: Sophomore Jeremiah Fears scored a career-high 32 points and Jeremy Fears Jr. finished with 20 points and seven assists. I hear it was a sellout for the Tigers.

Romeoville 69, Plainfield South 59: Meyoh Swansey scored 21 and Troy Cicero added 11 points, seven assists and four rebounds.

Yorkville 66, Plainfield North 51: The Foxes have six transfers and are now a perfect 4-0. Dayvion Johnson, a Yorkville Christian transfer, scored 20.

Bolingbrook 77, St. Charles North 52: Mehki Cooper is a handful. The senior guard had 30 points and six rebounds.

DeKalb 56, Glenbard West 54 OT: The Hilltoppers lose to an Illinois team for the first time in a long while. Sean Reynolds hit the game-winning three and scored 28 points. Davon Grant added 10.

Fenwick 53, Rich 52: I didn’t see any stats, but I did watch Damian Porter Jr. hit the game-winning three-pointer on Fenwick’s twitter. I’ll see the Friars twice this week. Thursday at De La Salle and Friday against Oak Park.

Kankakee 94, Vocational 33: The Kays open the season with a solid win. Larenz Walters scored 16 and Sam Yohnka, Damontae May and Naz Hill each added 14.

Kenwood 70, Bogan 63: Kind of an interesting final score. Dai Dai Ames had 19 points and five assists. Calvin Robins scored 14 and grabbed 10 rebounds.

Lemont 68, Sandburg 43: Lemont is on a roll. Rokas Castillo scored 25 and his brother Matas added 11. That’s 5-0 now.

Rolling Meadows 68, Glenbrook South 55: Cam Christie poured in 26 points and Tsvet Sotirov added 15. Nick Taylor led the Titans with 19.

Simeon 67, Thornwood 36: The top-ranked Wolverins win the season opener. Sam Lewis scored 18 in his first game with Simeon and Miles Rubin had 10 points, eight rebounds and five blocks.

Manley 73, Providence-St. Mel 62: Senior Jajuan Newby did it all with 21 points, 16 rebounds and a pair of blocks. Freshman Jaali Love added 16 points and nine boards.

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Long, athletic and promising sophomores and juniors are all over the area. That glittering potential doesn’t always produce a dominant, capable senior basketball player.

It did this time. Mekhi Lowery, Oswego East’s 6-7 forward, has matured into a multi-faceted weapon for the Wolves.

“I’ve definitely learned how to use my athleticism in other ways,” Lowery said. “Trying to crash the glass and get putbacks and stuff like that. And I’ve taken the role of leader, which feels good.”

Lowery and Patrick Robinson led Oswego East to a 33-2 record last season. Robinson graduated, but the Wolves reloaded with a couple of transfers: point guard Bryce Shoto from Plainfield Central and junior Jehvion Starwood from Yorkville Christian.

Starwood scored 14 points to lead No. 11 Oswego East to a 61-46 win against No. 19 West Aurora on Tuesday in Oswego.

The transfers appear to be fitting in. The Wolves moved the ball well, which helped them overcome 21 turnovers.

“Over the summer we really worked on the chemistry, just getting to know them personally and that helped build a relationship,” Oswego East’s Ryan Johnson said. “This group is versatile and I love how we distribute the ball.”

Lowery, a Towson recruit, finished with 12 points and 11 rebounds.

“He’s always had the work ethic but the leadership has been contagious to everybody,” Oswego East coach Ryan Velasquez said. “He’s being more aggressive this year and I love that. He brings so much to the table for us.

Johnson, a 6-7 senior, added six points, eight rebounds, three blocks and three assists. Senior Micah Gatewood scored 13 off the bench and Mason Blanco had 12 points.

“The returning guys from last year are very unselfish players,” Velasquez said. “We preach that from freshman year. The best way to play the game is everybody touched the ball, cut hard, play unselfish. Those new additions feel that and they love it too.”

The Wolves (5-0, 1-0 Southwest Prairie West) beat West Aurora in a Thanksgiving tournament championship game on Friday. Then they led 21-8 midway through the second quarter on Tuesday.

“We definitely lost some focus at that point,” Johnson said. “This season we’ve gone up a bunch of points and just let teams back into it. We have to stay focused and put teams away.”

The lead slowly evaporated through the quarter and then a three-pointer from West Aurora junior Josh Pickett put the Blackhawks ahead 31-30 with 4:08 left in the third quarter.

Oswego East ripped off an 11-0 run after Pickett’s shot and never let West Aurora (3-2, 0-1) back into the game.

Pickett, who emerged last season as a sophomore, took over the game for two different stretches. He finished with 23 points and seven rebounds.

Junior Calvin Savage added nine points and sophomore Terrence Smith had nine points and seven rebounds for the Blackhawks.

“[West Aurora] is a good team and they knew what they were going to see from us,” Velasquez said. “So we had to be mentally prepared for that and come out with energy, which we did. That’s a big thing on a Tuesday. It wasn’t perfect basketball but that’s what practice is for.”

Watch the final minute of West Aurora at Oswego East:

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