:quality(70)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/tronc/FZFZTFMV6NHMJCQOCNHBU3T2CY.jpg)
:quality(70)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/tronc/E7PUDUFWG5ET3HJNMOSQMUBB7I.jpg)
Lincoln-Way Central’s Ben McLaughlin is wearing No. 5 again, and the senior guard couldn’t be happier.
He said when he started playing basketball at an early age, he was given that number randomly and it stuck.
Until his sophomore year in high school.
“It stopped that year,” McLaughlin said. “Our No. 5 jersey was lost. I went with No. 11. Then junior year, a senior took No. 5 and I was No. 0.”
But he’s back at No. 5 this season — possibly his last season of playing competitive basketball — and he’s trying to make it count.
McLaughlin made three 3-pointers in the first quarter en route to a 15-point performance to help the Knights beat Ag Science 61-28 in a rare Wednesday morning nonconference game in New Lenox.
Sophomore forward Luke Tingley added 11 points and three steals for Lincoln-Way Central (6-9), while 6-foot-1 junior guard Kevin Barrett had five blocked shots and a pair of steals to lead the defense, which pitched a shutout in the fourth quarter.
Senior guard Chris Taylor led Ag Science (7-8) with 15 points.
:quality(70)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/tronc/BWDLBVHCYRDCTATRBINQNJ6UU4.jpg)
McLaughlin knows the number he wears is not going to help or hurt his skills, but since he wore No. 5 so long, it was nice to get it back after the two-year break.
“I’ve always had it, so it does make a difference to me to wear it,” McLaughlin said. “It’s just my identity on the court, I guess.”
Lincoln-Way Central is still trying to figure out its identity.
A week before Wednesday’s game, the Knights suffered a 53-25 loss to Class 2A defending state champion DePaul Prep in a first-round game with a 35-second shot clock at the Hinsdale Central Holiday Classic.
Lincoln-Way Central coach Evan Wyllie said DePaul is good enough to win the Class 4A state title.
McLaughlin said the Knights didn’t have time to fret about that loss, going 2-1 in the next three games in Hinsdale and then adding Wednesday’s win to the collection.
“DePaul has one of the best defenses in the state, so it’s always tough to get something going against them,” McLaughlin said. “But if we run our offense and execute and move the ball around and get good shots, we can score pretty much any time we want.”
:quality(70)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/tronc/HJ7HWTYXOREELIKOVFD2XCDDD4.jpg)
The 6-2 McLaughlin showed Wednesday he can hit from beyond the 3-point line and mix it up inside as well.
Wyllie believes when McLaughlin is on fire, the Knights will do well.
“When he hits early, that helps his offense and it also helps his defense,” Wyllie said. “He’s someone we need to score to put ourselves in a position to win.
“When he gets hot, he’s hot.”
And the Knights are getting hot. After a 2-7 start, they are 4-2 in their last six games.
Daily Southtown
“We’re getting comfortable playing with each other,” McLaughlin said. “We had a lot of seniors last year. This year, we are getting the chemistry back. We are starting to click.
“It’s definitely showing out on the court.”
:quality(70)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/tronc/CNLNZEI2CVAJDPVNPSPGQNPQK4.jpg)
McLaughlin, who has played AAU with the Junior Knights and Mercury Elite, doesn’t think he will play basketball in college, ending a long relationship with the sport.
He’s played travel since third grade. His father, James, totaled 201 wins as the head coach at Homewood-Flossmoor from 2005 to 2014, including a pair of 27-win seasons.
“I’ve been around basketball since I could walk,” Ben said. “My dad coached me for a long, long time. He always worked with me on defense and rebounding.
“Even though he played as a big man, he knew a lot about shooting and shooting drills. But he definitely helped me with defense a lot.”
Jeff Vorva is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.