Bloom Boys Basketball Going 'Home' to Face Crete-Monee

No matter how much snow falls in the south suburbs, whiteout conditions will be in place when Bloom Township High School’s boys basketball team faces Crete-Monee on Friday night.

For nine of the Trojans’ 14 players, the excitement of playing in front of a sellout crowd decked out in special “Whiteout” T-shirts to mark the occasion will rank second only to the opportunity of playing their first true “home” game at Bloom Trail High School, 22331 Cottage Grove Ave., Chicago Heights.

The Trojans (14-2) will be playing their first varsity boys basketball game at Bloom Trail since 1995. Tip-off is at 6:30 p.m. Tickets cost $2. T-shirts will be on sale for $5.

“It came about because the athletic director and the principal at Bloom Trail, Mr. Schimmel (Joseph Schimmel) got together and they said it would be nice,” Bloom Township coach Jasper Williams said. “None of the kids ever have played there, so it’s going to be a home-away-from-home.

“But it will be nice that those kids get back and play in front of the student-body there, the kids they go to school with and have grown up with. So, it will be fun for them.”

Bloom Township normally plays its varsity boys basketball home games at M’Cann Gym on 10th Avenue in The Heights.

“It’s going to mean a lot,” Bloom Township junior forward Johnny Griffin said. “I’m ready to play. I’m anxious. I’m going to really feel at home. I’m used to those courts. I have gym class there.”

Griffin is one of the nine players on Bloom’s 14-man roster who attends Bloom Trail. The others: Michael Overall, Dejahown Freeman, Zerell Jackson, William Williams, Henry Hicks, Monty Fason, Malcolm Hurt and Darryl Carr.

Bloom defeated Crete-Monee 52-45 when the two met in the McDipper Tournament title game. Donald Moore scored 14 points. He also had four assists and three steals and nabbed tourney MVP honors.

“It’s going to be a tough game,” said Hicks, the senior guard who scored a season-high 17 points in the Trojans’ 55-35 victory over Joliet Central on Tuesday. “We’re going to go out there and play hard and hopefully come out with a ‘W’ and playing at Bloom Trail is going to be exciting.”