Jayden Riley scores 31 to lead Yorkville Christian past Joliet Catholic at Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee

MILWAUKEE—Yorkville Christian has only been around for 12 years, but the Mustangs have made plenty of noise on the state basketball scene. They won the 1A state title in 2022 and sent star Jaden Schutt to Duke.

Coach Aaron Sovern has assembled challenging schedules every season, playing much bigger schools and established powerhouses.

On Wednesday afternoon, Yorkville Christian took on Joliet Catholic, one of the hottest teams in the area, at Fiserv Forum. The Milwaukee Bucks are hosting a handful of Illinois high school basketball games this season.

The Mustangs knocked off Joliet Catholic 73-58. Yorkville Christian senior Jayden Riley showed why he’s considered one of the state’s best players and in a nice move, both teams used the last couple minutes of the first quarter to make sure everyone on the team had a chance to play on the NBA floor.

“[Joliet Catholic coach Adam DeGroot] and I talked Sunday about making this a meaningful experience for all of our players,” Sovern said. “We wanted to get everybody in. We had it set up where the guys that don’t always get opportunities would play at the end of the first quarter. Give them a good run and go from there. I knew it would be a competitive game, so we might not have that opportunity otherwise. I was really excited to do that.”

The Hilltoppers (15-8) led by six points at halftime. Riley, an SIU-Edwardsville recruit, managed six points in the first two quarters.

“The first half was kind of sluggish,” Riley said. “It’s a different type of environment. The court is bigger and it’s an arena. It’s harder to shoot. I’m not going to complain. But that is why we started off slow.”

Riley shrugged that off quickly and poured in 25 points in the second half to finish with 31 points, nine rebounds and five assists.

“He just controls the game,” Sovern said. “He is unlike any player I have had as far as reading like two plays ahead. He can see things and he’s a great leader on the floor. You can put the ball in his hands and not worry about anything.”

Riley scored the first seven points of the third quarter for the Mustangs (14-9). Senior Jed Ogulei drained a three-pointer halfway through the quarter to put Yorkville Christian ahead for good at 38-36.

“Jed came in and kinda changed the whole game,” Riley said. “He scored and had a big steal and the momentum switched right there.”

Senior guard Tray Alford scored 18 points and grabbed seven rebounds for the Mustang. His fifth point was the 1,000th of his career.

“I didn’t remember what my numbers were coming in, but it is cool to do that on an NBA floor,” Alford said. “I just really wanted to win. But when I heard my mom in the crowd, I wondered what happened. It was definitely a great win that we needed.”

Senior guard Jayden Armstrong led Joliet Catholic with 24 points and eight rebounds and junior guard Donavyn Simmons added 20 points. The Hilltoppers opened eyes with a win at St. Ignatius last week.

“Joliet Catholic is an athletic powerhouse, but we have never been known for basketball,” DeGroot said. “We are taking steps in that direction. We still have a long way from where we want to be. But we are competing against the top teams in our conference. I love the progress we have made and the direction we are heading. Buy stock in the Hilltoppers now.”