Boys basketball notes: Chase Konieczny becoming 'the guy' at South Bend Saint Joseph
SOUTH BEND — This summer South Bend Saint Joseph basketball coach Eric Gaff noticed a difference in sophomore Chase Konieczny: He wasn't just a scoring player, but a dominant one.
"Defensively he was the best on the floor," Gaff. "Offensively he was the best on the floor. You usually don't see that until kids are seniors, but you are seeing those flashes of a kid that refuses to lose on the floor."
Last year as a freshman, Konieczny showed flashes of being one of the top underclassmen in the Northern Indiana Conference. In year No. 2, he's taken his game to another level.
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Konieczny, the younger brother of Notre Dame's J.R. Konieczny, leads Saint Joe in scoring at 19.8 points per game. That is up from 15.3 points per game during his freshman season.
"Everyone knows my name by now," Konieczny said. "I usually get faceguarded every game. But getting my teammates more involved and setting them up will get me more open shots for myself."
It hasn't seemed to matter what defenses are thrown Konieczny's way. In all but one game this season he has scored in double-digits. He's also had three games of 30-plus points, including last week's overtime win over South Bend Clay, where Konieczny finished with 33.
"I was getting to the rim more," he said of his performance. "My shot wasn't really falling in the second half, so I was trying to get to the rim and free-throw line more."
When Konieczny is at his best, however, is when his shot is falling. This season he is making more than 50% of his shots from the floor and 37% from behind the arc.
"When he is shooting the ball (like that) I don't think there is a better shooter in Indiana," Gaff said. "You are shocked when he misses it, that is how good his shot looks."
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Gaff said Konieczny has adjusted to being the scoring "guy" this year, rather than just one of the guys. For Saint Joe (9-10, 6-2 NIC) that hasn't always translated to winning. Saint Joe has lost four its past six games and nine of its past 13 heading into Friday's Catholic school rivalry against 3A No. 2 Mishawaka Marian.
Konieczny, and his teammates, know a win like that could be season-changing.
"We," he said. "Just need to keep that momentum up going into Marian."
Top performers this week
South Bend Saint Joseph's Chase Konieczny scored 33 points in an overtime win over South Bend Clay. New Prairie's Gavin Gonzalez had 15 points in a win over Wheeler.
South Bend Adams' Brittain Vann scored 25 points in a win over Jimtown. Vann also had 27 points in a win over Victory Christian Academy. Penn's Joey Garwood scored 27 points in a win over John Glenn. Elkhart's Damarion Anderson scored 26 points in a win over New Prairie. Jimtown's Justin Price had 15 points in a win over Elkhart Christian Academy.
Conference standings as of Dec. 5
Northern Indiana Conference: Penn (17-1, 8-0 NIC), Mishawaka Marian (17-2, 6-1 NIC), South Bend Washington (14-3, 6-2 NIC), South Bend Saint Joseph (9-10, 6-2 NIC), South Bend Riley (9-9, 5-3 NIC), Elkhart (6-12, 5-3 NIC), John Glenn (10-8, 4-5 NIC), South Bend Adams (7-8, 3-5 NIC), South Bend Clay (8-8, 3-6 NIC), New Prairie (7-10, 2-6 NIC), Bremen (1-15, 0-7 NIC), Jimtown (3-15, 0-8 NIC)
Northern Lakes Conference: NorthWood (15-2, 6-0 NLC), Mishawaka (14-4, 4-2 NLC), Warsaw (11-8, 4-2 NLC), Concord (9-8, 3-3 NLC), Goshen (8-8, 2-4 NLC), Northridge (9-9, 2-4 NLC), Plymouth (7-10, 2-4 NLC), Wawasee (6-12, 1-5 NLC)
This article originally appeared on South Bend Tribune: Notebook: Chase Konieczny becoming "the guy" at Saint Joe
