Elgin: A rich, deep basketball tradition
(John J. Kim/Sun-Times)
Conference: Upstate Eight
Colors: Maroon and cream
Nickname: Maroons
Enrollment: 2,344
State titles: Boys basketball, 1924 and 1925
Behind the name: From the Scottish hymn ''Song of Elgin''
1. Elgin was the first Illinois school to win back-to-back state titles, in 1924 and 1925, under coaches Mark Wilson and Cliff Adams. Doug Mills, who later was basketball coach and athletic director at Illinois, Herbert Hill and Andrew Solyom played on both squads. Mills was the tournament's leading scorer in 1925 with 22 points in two games.
2. In one of the most bizarre incidents in state basketball tournament history, West Rockford scored six points in one second -- basket, foul after the shot, two free throws, foul on the in-bounds pass, two free throws -- to overcome a six-point deficit with 2:19 to play and beat Elgin 61-59 for the 1955 state championship on a tip-in with 14 seconds left.
3. In a duel between the state's top teams, No. 1 Stevenson, with Tauja Catchings and Katie Coleman, beat No. 2 Elgin 50-35 for the Class AA title in 1996. Coach Lee Turek's Maroons, led by 6-3 Leslie Schock and 5-9 Melissa Parker, two All-Staters, finished 31-2. They defeated Naperville North, perennial power Marshall and Morris to reach the title game.
4. Legendary Bill Chesbrough (573-346 in 35 years) said his 1973 squad was the best he ever coached. The team, led by Tim Jones, Jeff Wilkins, Terry Drake, Jay Geldmacher and Tom Koch, was No. 4 in the state at the end of the regular season and beat Proviso East in the supersectional but lost to West Aurora 54-49 in double overtime in the quarterfinals.
5. Coach John Krafft's 1944 basketball team, led by Jack Burmaster, Howard Kugath, Jim Rager, Karl Plath and Sam Sauceda, finished 21-4 and beat Pekin, Anna-Jonesboro and South Shore before losing to Taylorville's 45-0 powerhouse for the state title by a 56-33 margin. Burmaster, who later coached at Evanston, was named to the all-tournament team.
I grew up in Elgin when high school sports was the focal point of the community. I couldn't get a ticket to a basketball game at Elgin until I played there.
It was like the movie ''Hoosiers.'' Basketball was huge, and Bill Chesbrough was a legend while he was still coaching, which doesn't happen very often. He was ahead of his time defensively and was very innovative. I was the first sophomore to be brought up to the varsity.
I was aware of the tradition at Elgin. When I was a kid, we would listen to games on the radio because we couldn't get tickets. My heroes were Glen Lose, George Clark and Flynn Robinson. I still remember when Marshall beat Elgin in the supersectional at McGaw Hall in 1958 and 1960 and went on to win the state championship.
I learned a lot from Chesbrough in terms of preparation and organization, a routine that followed over into life. He was a stickler for details. He kept notes in a spiral notebook. To this day, I keep a notebook.
He pushed you to your limits. I was so appreciative he gave me latitude as a player and team captain to be bold. If I could sense something, I could call timeout. That allowed me to be bold as I went forward into life. Once you feel you have the confidence of someone who is your mentor or coach, you are bolder as you go through life making decisions. It helped me as I progressed through the NBA.
When I was a junior, we had a one-point lead with seven seconds to play against Larkin. I went for a steal, committed a foul, the guy made two free throws and we lost. It was a stupid foul. Chesbrough said: ''The great players will end up winning more games than they lose. Don't worry about this. You've won many more games here than you ever lost.''
It stuck with me. As I go through life, you will have highs and lows. But if you do things right, you'll have more highs than lows.
* Max Adler: Benefactor of Adler Planetarium.
* Nina Burleigh: Journalist, best-selling author.
* Jack Burmaster: Pro basketball, Evanston coach.
* Paul Flory: 1974 Nobel Prize winner, chemistry.
* Sean Harrington: Director of basketball operations, Illinois.
* Richard Hoover: Tony Award production designer.
* Kristine Iverson: Former Assistant Secretary of Labor.
* James Kirkland: Former state representative.
* Brian Oldfield: Olympic shot-putter.
* Jane Peterson: American impressionist painter.
* William Rauschenberger: Former mayor of Elgin.
* Flynn Robinson: NBA player.
* James Roche: Former president of General Motors.
* Ed Schock: Mayor of Elgin.
* Tom Shales: Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist.
* Charles Swanson: Former president of Encyclopedia Britannica.
* George Van De Voorde: Former mayor of Elgin.
* Jeff Wilkins: Pro basketball player.