Fenwick’s Jacob Keller (1) and Mike Smith (21) talk during a free throw. | Sun-Times file photo
The Sun-Times is counting down the 50 high school basketball programs with the most wins during the decade.
When high school basketball fans think back to the 1980s, programs like Quincy, Providence St. Mel, East St. Louis Lincoln and the arrival of city powers King and Simeon are easy to think back on.
The 1990s brought us memorable basketball giants in Peoria Manual and Thornton, a few steamrolling Proviso East teams and the continued dominance of King.
The first 10 years of the 2000s included Glenbrook North, Peoria High and the beginning of a Simeon juggernaut.
Now, with the calendar inching closer to wrapping up an unforgettable 2020, the end of this month closes out another decade. And it’s another high school basketball time period to look back on.
Earlier this year we broke down the decade’s best teams and best players. Now, with every season of the past decade complete, it’s time to look at the Chicago area programs who won the most.
This list is comprised of the 50 winningest programs over the past 10 years, starting with the 2010-11 season and concluding with the 2019-20 season. Every team in every class throughout the Chicago area will be broken down in a variety of ways. But total wins, with winning percentage used as tie-breaker, determined the rankings.
We present No. 26 Fenwick today and will add one program a day going forward.
26. FENWICK: 209-88
Decade’s biggest storyline: The two-year run from 2016-17 to 2017-18 was off-the-charts good. There were a combined 58 wins, including a school record 30 wins in 2016-17. This surpassed even the Corey Maggette-led days of the late 1990s.
What made the moment in 2016-17 was a program best state tournament run that concluded with an overtime loss to Morgan Park in the Class 3A state championship game.
Underrated highlight: From the end of the 2014-15 season to the beginning of the 2018-19 season the Friars won 40 consecutive Chicago Catholic League games, including the regular season league slate and postseason tournaments.
Player of the Decade: Bryce Hopkins (2021)
Kirsten Stickney/For the Sun-TimesFenwick’s Bryce Hopkins (23) shoots a free throw during the game against Westinghouse.
All-Decade Team: Scottie Lindsey (2014), Mike Smith (2016), Jacob Keller (2017), Jamal Nixon (2017) and Bryce Hopkins (2021)
Other decade highlights:
-The Fenwick program made big news with the hiring of Rick Malnati as coach in 2013. Malnati, who was highly-successful at New Trier and considered one of the finest coaches in the state, elevated the program to new heights. Malnati went 122-33 in his five years leading the Friars.
-Rick Malnati’s assistant, Staunton Peck, took over the program in 2018.
-Four different players in the program –– Mike Smith, Jamal Nixon, DJ Steward and Bryce Hopkins –– were Chicago Catholic League Lawless Award winners.
-Prior to this unprecedented season, Hopkins was on pace to break superstar Corey Maggette’s all-time scoring record at Fenwick.
-Fenwick won three straight Catholic League titles (2016, 2017 and 2018) and five regional championships in the decade.
Architects have left their indelible mark on the city of Chicago for centuries but none more so than these five iconic visionaries. I mean, have you ever looked at our gorgeous skyline and thought, “I wonder who built that building?” Well, great news. We have a few answers for you! Below are some of the GOAT (greatest of all time) Chicago architects who, quite literally, left their mark on the Windy City.
Famous for his resiliency and classic designs, Mr. Burling was one of Chicago’s earliest settlers. Burling left a lasting impression with many structures erected between 1840s and 1890s. A lot of his early work was destroyed in the Chicago Fire of 1871 but that didn’t stop him. Some of his notable builds include St. James Cathedral, the DeKoven House, and Nickerson Mansion.
Add this to your random trivia knowledge: William Le Baron Jenney created the world’s first skyscraper. He was a pioneer and used metal-frame buildings in his work for the New York Home Insurance Company. The fire-resistant materials and stone columns helped make the 10-story structure fireproof. Because, ya know, fire was a big thing back then.
Speaking of really tall buildings…meet the Father of skyscrapers, Louis Sullivan. As a mentor of Frank Lloyd Wright and founding member of the Prairie School, Sullivan built a legacy through his work with Carson Pirie Scott Department Store in 1899 at the intersection of State and Madison. We are not worthy.
Called ‘Mies’ by architecture nerds, mid-century modernism was shaped by much of Mies work. Mies made a name for himself with his open-spaced and future-forward 1929 Barcelona Pavilion design and the Villa Tugendhat. When he arrived in Chicago in 1939, he was appointed the head of the architecture department at the Illinois Institute of Technology for several years. Mies’ designs include IBM Plaza on North Wabash, 860-880 Lake Shore Drive, and IIT’s S.R. Crown Hall.
And last but not least, the Godfather of mid-century modernism! Frank Lloyd Wright became a legend for his Prairie-style homes and modern designs. The Robie House, Moore-Dugal Residence, Faillingwater in Mill Run, PA and the Taliesin studio in Spring Green, WI—all courtesy of our God Papa.
At the direction of this president…. Under the leadership of this president…
Those are the words we’ve heard over and over and over whenever lame-duck Vice-President Mike Pence speaks. Even when they were in different locations, Pence never failed to pay homage suck-up to Donald Trump. It was even worse when they were in the same room. Pence would fawn over Trump. He gazed at him as if he was a teen-aged boy pining after a young girl to whom he was hoping to lose his virginity. But in both cases, the lust was never returned. It was all a tease.
Over the last four years, Mike Pence’s loyalty to Trump was never under question. It was never less than 100%, at least in public. No matter what Trump did, Pence was there to back him up. That was Trump’s reward for pulling Mike Pence out of obscurity. Trump saved Pence’s political career and Mike was overly thankful. Mike Pence became Donald Trump’s number one toady.
But even a toady has his limits. When Trump tried to force Pence to use his role as president of the Senate to change the results of the election, it went too far. Pence wasn’t willing to go against the constitution and subvert democracy, even if it would have kept himself in office. It crossed the thin line of Pence’s morality.
A day after the riot at the Capitol building and the confirmation of Joe Biden winning the presidency, Mike Pence is receiving kudos for how he handled the situation. It’s amazing that you can now receive credit for doing your job. It’s amazing you can now receive credit for not breaking the law. It’s amazing you can now receive credit for doing the right thing.
A day after the insurrection, Mike Pence is again making news. It was announced that he’s considering attending the upcoming inauguration of Joe Biden. That’s quite the gesture! Woo fucking hoo!!
There are now twelve days left in the current administration. Trump and his supporters never really liked Pence. They just tolerated him as long as he was useful. They were never taking him with them on their next endeavor. Mike Pence is going to need to find the next thing to do in his life. So Mike Pence knows he needs to change his image. Thus began the self-rehabilitation of Mike Pence.
It’s near impossible for a tiger to change its stripes. Two days of faux good deeds can’t change four years of despicable behavior. Don’t be surprised to see more acts of decency from Mike Pence over the next ten days. Don’t be fooled. Don’t forget the words of fealty to Donald Trump. Don’t forget those looks of lust he gave his leader.
They say that when someone shows you who they really are you should believe them. Mike Pence made us believe him in 2016. Two acts of decency shouldn’t change that.
My so called friends think it’s time to edit this section. After four years, they may be right, but don’t tell them that. I’ll deny it until they die!
I can’t believe I’ve been writing this blog for four years.
It started as a health/wellness thing and over the years has morphed to include so many things that I don’t know how to describe it anymore.
I really thought this was going to be the final year of the blog but then Donald Trump came along. It looks like we’re good for four more years..God help us all!
Oh yeah…the biographical stuff. I’m not 60 anymore. The rest you can read about in the blog.
Nothing is more precious than the relationship between parent and child, and it’s a hell of a thing when they’re separated by death—especially when the child is the one to go. Justin Townes Earle, the firstborn son of singer-songwriter Steve Earle, was a well-established Americana artist in his own right when he passed away from an accidental drug overdose last summer at age 38.…Read More
A large group of pro-Trump protesters raise signs and flags on the grounds of the Capitol Building on January 6, 2021 in Washington, DC. | Jon Cherry/Getty
The professional fallout came quickly for a few Chicagoans who attended the “Stop the Steal” rally in the nation’s capital that later devolved into chaos and violence.
The professional fallout came quickly Thursday for a few Chicagoans who attended the “Stop the Steal” rally in the nation’s capital that later devolved into chaos and violence.
A city real estate agent was publicly fired after she posted to social media about attending the event. After workers at a tattoo shop posted about attending the rally, the shop was savaged on social media and was hit with graffiti accusing the store of employing “Nazis.” A Vietnamese restaurant, whose owners reportedly also attended the rally, was overwhelmed with negative online reviews.
Around the country, the mob of Trump supporters who pushed through police barricades and broke into the Capitol Building have been met with widespread condemnation.
The Chicago real estate group @properties posted to its Facebook page Thursday that agent Libby McCarten Andrews was fired after posts where she allegedly acknowledged being in D.C. for the event.
“@properties does not condone violence, destruction or illegal activities,” the company said its statement.
Over the past several hours, @properties has received a tremendous amount of outreach regarding the actions of one of…
The company said it received “a tremendous amount of outreach” after Andrews posted a photo of herself standing with Trump supporters on the steps of the Capitol with the caption, “History! It’s not done yet!”
Later, Andrews posted a photo of a glass of champagne on an upscale patio near a fire pit and said, “After storming the capital a good glass of champagne is needed!”
Andrews told Crain’s Chicago Business that she didn’t go inside the Capitol or take part in ransacking it.
She could not be reached for comment.
In other online posts, a widely shared image of several men — identified as employees and owners of Wicker Park tattoo shop Insight Studios — attending the Stop the Steal rally led social media users to condemn them and say they would no longer patronize the business.
A message on the studio’s Yelp page Thursday showed the business had 4 1⁄2 stars, but a disclaimer read the page was being monitored by “Yelp’s support team for content related to media reports.”
On Thursday, the door to the tattoo parlor was locked, and a person inside ignored knocks at the door by a reporter. The owners did not return calls and messages seeking comment.
Someone scrawled “Nazis work here!” and “Nazi owned + operated” in marker on a metal window barricade over the storefront.
A former client who was outside the shop — who asked not to be named — said he was distraught but not surprised after seeing photos online of employees at the rally.
“I have two tattoos on my body from one of these people. It’s upsetting,” he said. “The last time I was here, the owner said he’d like to move to California but wouldn’t because, he said, ‘They would take my guns away there.’ After that, I didn’t come back.”
Robert Chiarito for Sun-TimesSomeone scrawled messages in marker Thursday reading “Nazis work here!” and “Nazi owned + operated” on the locked storefront of a Wicker Park tattoo shop Insight Studios after social media posters identified several employees and owners as attendees of President Donald Trump’s Stop the Steal rally in Washington D.C. the day before.
Photos also circulated online reportedly showing owners of Uptown Vietnamese restaurant Tank Noodle on a plane as they traveled to Washington and later attending the rally.
An employee said they had to unplug their phones due to an onslaught of calls but declined to comment further.
Messages left with family members who attended the rally were not returned.
Other Illinois residents who attended the rallies Wednesday now question whether it was worth it.
Eric Carlson, a former Army Ranger who lives in Lemont and runs a non-profit that provides service dogs to veterans, called the effort “counterproductive.”
“We were at the Washington Monument but by the time we got to the Capitol the stairs were already covered with people,” he said. “We had no idea that people were actually inside and that some had broken windows out.”
Carlson said he believed the actions of the rioters — which he estimated made up 1% of the people there — hurt their cause.
“I shook my head and said, ‘You just shot the whole reason for being here in the foot.’ They were absolutely counterproductive. That was not the way it was supposed to go.”
Another attendee, Brent, a 53-year-old engineer from Lockport, asked that his last name not be used out of fear his business could be targeted. He said he also removed Facebook posts out of fear of retribution.
He drove to Washington, D.C., with three friends on Tuesday “to appeal to Congress, not to cause havoc.” He said that protesters’ “goal was to enter the chambers of Congress and advise the people that were voting on these electoral votes to do their due diligence and investigate before casting their final vote.”
Ultimately, however, he did not get inside the building.
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