The tentative road map for Larkin’s David McFadden was to start this season on the sophomore level and then gradually introduce him to the faster pace of the varsity game.
Knowing the sophomore guard would be one of the Royals’ primary ball handlers when he reached the varsity was the reasoning behind that decision, according to coach Deryn Carter.
“It was kind of part of the plan,” Carter said. “We wanted him to play on the sophomore level to start just to handle the ball because we thought he needed to gain a little more confidence.
“Playing there helped him — allowed him to do some of the things he did Monday.”
Fast forward two months, and McFadden is a surefire starter for the Royals.
He set the tone Monday night, scoring Larkin’s first eight points in a 22-0 run that resulted in a relatively easy 77-30 win over Streamwood in the Class 4A Conant Regional quarterfinals.
McFadden filled the stat sheet for Larkin (8-22) with 10 points, six rebounds, three assists, two steals and two blocked shots. DeAngelo Mister led the Royals with 16 points off the bench.
Logan Leaver added 12 points off the bench for Larkin, all coming on 3-pointers, and A.J. Jones added 10. Sincir Hunter scored eight points for Streamwood (2-30).
McFadden appreciated the patience Carter and Larkin’s coaching staff used in his development.
“Down there, I got my handling up,” McFadden said. “Everything was easier down there. That helped me get prepared for varsity. I played with them over the summer, so we had chemistry.
“Coming up was pretty exciting when I first got called up.”
After Streamwood started off the game with a 3-pointer, McFadden made four straight layups, the first two of which came on shots off rebounds. Leaver later hit three 3-pointers in the spurt.
“It was just getting the rebounds and going straight back up with it,” McFadden said. “I realized I could score easily doing that. After that, it got the team fired up, got us going.
“It was important for me to step up because we have guys out.”
In a season where wins haven’t always been easy to come by, Carter has enjoyed seeing the development of a future cornerstone like McFadden. It has been a bright spot for the Royals.
“For him to now be a starter, I think he’s getting confident in his own body, confident in his own skills,” Carter said. “He does a little bit of everything really well and he works really hard.
“We’re excited for his future.”
Streamwood coach Quentin Ruff closed out his second season at the helm. While the results didn’t go as well as he had hoped, he knows changing the culture of a program takes time.
“We’ve just been battling, trying to get these guys to understand what it takes to be a good person in life,” Ruff said. “Teaching these guys how to be young men, teaching them how to be respectful, successful, how to work. That’s what we’re doing.”
Carter knows the Royals have a big challenge ahead of them at 6 p.m. Wednesday against second-seeded Palatine (23-8) in the regional semifinals.
“We have a monumental task,” Carter said. “It’s not anything that’s impossible, but it will take our best effort. Hopefully, (Monday) prepares us a little bit.”
McFadden enters the next game with the confidence that he has established for himself learning and then playing on the varsity level.
“Having a game like this is a good game,” McFadden said. “I knew I was going to do something good. It could be the last game for the seniors. I tried my hardest.”
Paul Johnson is a freelance reporter for The Beacon-News.
