Belleville Althoff finds foul trouble, loses bid for second state basketball title

Foul trouble and a late run by Chicago’s Walter H. Dyett High School for the Arts denied the Althoff Catholic basketball team its second state championship on Saturday.

The Dyett Eagles closed with a 9-0 run to stop the Crusaders’s bid for the IHSA Class 2A championship at State Farm Center in Champaign on the University of Illinois campus. The final score was 52-41.

It was the first state championship in program history for Dyett, which finished the season at 27-7. The win prevented Althoff from capturing a rare double championship season in football and boys basketball.

“This is a big lift for the (school) community, Dyett coach Jamaal Gill said. “The experience and dedication that shows in these guys, we know what it means to us. We had a game plan and these guys came out and executed it.”

Althoff Catholic started strong, jumping out to a 10-3 lead behind a Bryden Gryzmala 3-point shot and Zach Winkeler driving basket.

A pair of Dierre Hill, Jr. free throws extended the Crusaders’ lead to 15-6 at the end of the first quarter.

Althoff pushed the lead to 23-12 on a Winkeler 3-pointer with 3:51 left in the first half.

But Dyett came roaring back in the final three minutes of the half with a 13-2 run capped by Jayden McKinnon’s 3-point basket and short jumper to force a 25-25 tie at the break.

McKinnon said that the late halftime run for Dyett was badly needed.

“My mindset was we can’t go into the half like this,” McKinnon said. “So, whatever I can do to get us back on the road and keep us in the game, I was gonna do.”

Dyett’s late surge before halftime put the Crusaders in an uncomfortable position.

“You try to get in that locker room and they got hot,” Althoff coach Greg Leib said. “They got some run outs and had some guys make good decisions and that’s basketball.”

A Winkeler 3-pointer and a Kyle Johnson’s buzzer beating baseline jumper pushed Althoff ahead 32-31 heading into the fourth quarter.

But foul trouble for Hill, Jr., Patton Leib, and Zach Winkeler severely hampered Althoff’s scoring ability in the fourth quarter. All three players fouled out in the final two minutes of the game.

“Having three starters out, it really affected our ability to score and having Dierre out takes a different perspective of our team and we have to work a lot harder and play pretty perfect to get buckets and that showed tonight,” Leib said.

After Winkeler’s pulled Althoff within 41-38 with 2:19 left, a pair of McKinnon free-throws kickstarted an 11-3 run that locked up the championship for Dyett.

McKinnon led Dyett with a game-high 17 points. Winkeler paced Althoff with 14 points, Hill finished with 12 points before fouling out and Grzymala added 11 points.

Falling short in the championship game was far from the result Althoff expected, but Leib was more than satisfied with his senior-led club’s run to the title game this winter.

“The appreciation I have for these guys of buying in, sticking with it, continuing to work and get better and we always say we’re brothers for life,” he said. “Hopefully 30 years from now, if I’m still kicking, I can see these guys and their kids and see where they’re at in life and know we’re still brothers for life.”

Althoff Catholic finished the season at 31-6.

This story was originally published March 15, 2025 at 7:00 PM.