Young beats Kenwood to win third consecutive city championship

Destiny Jackson closes her eyes when she steps to the free-throw line in practice. With her eyes shut, the Young guard imagines the big moment.

Her Dolphins trailed at halftime of the city championship game Saturday, but there wasn’t time to dwell on that. Jackson continued to attack the basket and seek out contact. She couldn’t falter because she heard the doubts cast on her team.

As the horn sounded, Jackson could relax. The Dolphins had captured another championship.

“This one has a little bit more value to it because it’s the first time we won without [former Young guard] Skylar [Jones],” said Jackson, who had 27 points, five rebounds and five assists in Young’s 68-60 victory against rival Kenwood at UIC’s Credit Union 1 Arena. “I know a lot of people said, ‘Y’all can’t win without Skylar, and I don’t think y’all can do it this year,’ and then we came out and did it. So another city championship ... hold up the threes.”

The “threes” Jackson referred to — as she raised three fingers — mark Young’s third consecutive city championship, the first three-peat since the Dolphins accomplished the feat in 2011-14.

Young reloaded with an inexperienced group that had no seniors. The Dolphins didn’t make many youthful mistakes in the second half, adapting on the fly at halftime when the Broncos went to a zone.

“Our players took the gaps when they were there,” Dolphins coach Krissy Harper said. “Lysa [Jones], big-time. She came to play today and helped so much. Our guards controlled the game, which led us to win.”

Jones had one of the game’s biggest baskets when she converted an and-one at the start of the fourth quarter to extend the lead to nine.

As the Broncos pressured Jackson, others would have to contribute. Junior guards Alana Shields and Kiaya Johnson were up to the task.

Johnson scored 13 points and guarded the Broncos’ sharp-shooting guard Danielle Brooks.

“Her hitting those shots is nothing new for us and not new for her — that’s why she kind of flexed after she made them, and rightfully so,” Harper said.

Jackson took this game personally. From the skepticism surrounding her team to those questioning whether other players were on her level, this game was the stage to provide a closing statement.

“I just take it personally every time I play her,” Jackson said of her matchup with Broncos star guard Ariella Henigan. “But I feel like no one can guard me, and I’m going to play like that every time, and that requires me going at her head.”

Jackson didn’t shoot the ball well — 7-for-23 from the field — but she willed her team to win with relentless play and poise. The ball was in her hands, and she made every correct read down the stretch. A veteran of the championship stage, she was a calming force as her teammates got their feet wet.

Now, they’re all minted in championship glory as the Dolphins captured their most improbable title. 

“This was something on our Day 1 of conditioning,” Harper said. “We said we were going to three-peat no matter who it was.”