THIS STORY WILL POST ON SUNDAY IN THE POST-TRIBUNE A CHICAGO SUN-TIMES.COM I NEED FOR ALL OF MY CHICAGO FAMILY TO GO OUT AND BUY A PAPER Hutton: Malcolm Reed a championship-saver for Michigan City Marquette Marquettes Malcom Reed receives his championship medal Bankers Life Fieldhousel March 29 2014. | Jim Karczewski\Sun-Times Media Marquette grabs Class A title in OT thriller INDIANAPOLIS — Ryan Fazekas was sitting with the remnants of the state finals net wrapped around his neck. Fazekas was special. He set a state record for the most three-pointers in a game with seven. He had a key block in the final seconds that led to the crucial run-out layup that clinched the first state title for Michigan City Marquette. He had three steals and three assists to go with his 34 points. It was an exhilarating, roller coaster of a ride victory for the Blazers. They twice lost double-digit leads, then trailed by 10 with 6:08 left before they frantically reclaimed their victory. Fazekas wore the decoration well. He wouldn’t be wearing it at all if it weren’t for Malcolm Reed. Reed, a stocky 6-foot-2 junior, had just finished the most important 10 minutes of his basketball career. His stat line was mildly impressive: seven points, one block and one steal. Timing is everything in life, and for sure, Reed’s teammates won’t forget the Malcolm moments from this game. The first one came when he hit a jumper with 4:31 left, off a feed from Fazekas. Marquette was desperate for offense, desperate to keep the game close at that point. Barr-Reeve had figured out Fazekas. They needed someone else to score. Reed’s basket kept them within five points. Donovan Garletts was happy. He had put Reed in to make plays like that. The next Malcolm moment came with 3:42 left. The Blazers were trailing by five. Garletts had been yelling at his team the whole second half to pound it inside. Sometimes, kids are stubborn. They don’t listen. Reed, who does not have the green light to fire up three-pointers, shot one anyway from the top of the key. It was a low line drive that looked awful coming out of his hands. Terrible, ill-advised, bad shot. Garletts was stalking the sidelines, with his head in hands after the release. He was going to pull out what was left of his hair after the shot bricked. He was going to take Reed out. He was one heartbeat away from needing mouth-to-mouth resuscitation. He was ... he was … Swish! Forget all that. It was a beautiful shot. Artful. Only Reed could pull that off. It was just what Garletts wanted. “I was just feeling it,” Reed said with a sheepish grin. Garletts said Reed asks in practice if he can pull up and shoot fast-break three-pointers. “I about went nuts,” Garletts said. “Then he made it. Sometimes, I just have to stay out of the way.” The last Malcolm moment came when he wrapped his wide body around a Barr-Reeve defender and hit a little baby turnaround with 3:17 left in overtime. That gave the Blazers a 64-62 lead. They never trailed after that shot. It was vintage Reed. Garletts pulled him about a minute later. He had done his job. Reed was completely underwhelmed by the attention. Garletts brought him into the media room, along with Fazekas, even though there were other more obvious options. When asked how it felt to win a state title, Reed deadpanned: “I’m going to go the locker room and cry.” Reed is that extra special, unplanned ingredient teams need to win a state title. His teammates love him because they know he was capable of doing what he did against Barr-Reeve. They know he could be difference. They see it in practice all the time. It doesn’t always work out like it did for Reed. Sometimes, you get in the game and trip all over yourself. Sometimes, the weight of the moment is overwhelming. Sometimes, it really is hard to perform with the whole state watching. That’s why everyone who cares should take a bow for Malcolm today. He embraced the moment and made it memorable. He was a big reason Fazekas was able to proudly wear the net.
Posted on: Sun, 30 Mar 2014 05:33:24 +0000
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