Plainfield East Makes History with its First Regional Game

The Hot Read: No. 16 scored the last nine points of the game to beat No. 17 Geneva 49-44 in a Class 3A Naperville North boys basketball regional quarterfinal game Monday in Naperville.

Patch’s MVP: Plainfield East’s Brian Bennett scored the final seven points of the game on his way to a team-high 11 points. The 6-foot-8 senior also pulled down a big rebound after a Geneva miss in the final minute.

Plainfield East leaders: Bennett had 11 points and five rebounds, Myles Walter added nine points and Austin Robinson chipped in seven points and six rebounds for the Bengals. Juwan Straughter had a team-high five assists.

History: In its third varsity season, Plainfield East won its first state-tournament game and captured its 15th victory of the season, which is a school record.

Fit to be tied: There were five ties in the fourth quarter, the final one at 42-all.

Injured list: Plainfield East was without leading scorer, 6-1 junior guard Deontre Brown, who broke his right hand during the third quarter of the season finale Thursday against Oswego East. He leads the team in scoring (412 points) and steals (45)

Quotable I: “It’s good for these guys to make history with our first regional victory and getting our 15th win,” Plainfield East coach Branden Adkins said. “Getting to 15 wins, you feel like you’ve accomplished something. It’s good for the seniors, the whole team and the program.”

Records: Plainfield East ran its record to 15-12, while Geneva finished the season 11-17.

A look ahead: Plainfield East squares off against the Aurora East sectional’s No. 1 seed Benet Academy (26-0) at 6 p.m. Wednesday in the first of two regional semifinals that evening at Naperville North. The Redwings are the No. 1 rated team in the state.

Quotable II: “We’ve got nothing to lose,” Bennett said. “That’s how we have to look at it. Nothing but good things can come out of it if we play great and play for 32 minutes.”