Even Eisenhower’s AJ Abrams could see the irony in his situation.

Abrams, a 6-foot, 180-pound-pound senior, played high school football for the first time in the fall for the Cardinals and didn’t miss any time due to an injury.

But in the first quarter of the Nov. 20 season opener for basketball, he collided with a Marist player and suffered a right ankle injury. He needed help coming off the floor.

“The first game I’m injured during the basketball season?” Abrams said. “Man, that …”

It definitely didn’t look or feel good. At first, Abrams was told the ankle was broken. The South Suburban Red’s reigning player of the year looked like he was done for the season.

But in a twist of fate, he might be returning to action this week.

“I’ve seen three different doctors,” Abrams said. “When it first happened, I went to urgent care at the hospital, and they said it was broke. They sent me to another doctor to get another X-ray. They told me that the break was old.

“I broke it a long time ago and just didn’t know. I was basically playing on a broken ankle.”

Abrams said he’s not sure when the ankle was originally broken.

And the third opinion?

“They said it was an old break, too,” Abrams said. “But all I did (against Marist) was sprain my ligament.”

So, the good news is he could be back on the court soon.

It has been a wild school year for Abrams, who had an all-state season in football with 45 receptions for 1,333 yards and 18 touchdowns.

Last season in basketball, he averaged 21 points, 8.0 rebounds, 2.5 steals and 2.4 assists.

He’s not sure what direction he’s going for college, but he knows he wants to get back on the court.

“I’m excited,” he said. “This is my senior year. I feel like I have a lot of stuff to accomplish.”

Throwing down the gauntlet: Thornton’s nonconference schedule is not for the faint of heart.

The Wildcats opened the season by winning the Rockford Boylan Thanksgiving Tournament. They beat Class 2A power Peoria Richwoods 67-65 in the process.

Thornton knocked off Class 4A power Kenwood 51-45 in Saturday’s Chicago Elite Classic, with Chase Abraham scoring 20 points one day after the Wildcats lost 65-54 to Bloom.

But there is more — a lot more.

“It’s a Murderer’s Row,” Thornton coach Tai Streets said, referring to the 1927 New York Yankees. “The goal is that this will make us better. Hopefully, long term it will help us.”

The Wildcats will play Normal Community on Dec. 16 at the Southern Illinois Shootout Series in Springfield, then later this month are in a stacked Big Dipper Classic.

They face Richmond Heights, a defending state champ from Ohio, on Jan. 5 in a game televised by ESPN2 at the ESPN High School Basketball Showcase in LaPorte, Indiana, and defending Class 3A champion Metamora the next night at the Highland Shootout.

After that, Thornton plays area Class 4A contender Homewood-Flossmoor on Jan. 28 in the Chelby Frazier Memorial Shootout at Thornwood. The Wildcats visit Cardinal Ritter on Feb. 3 in St. Louis.

Holiday road trip: Tinley Park played at the Quincy Thanksgiving Tournament and literally played on Thanksgiving.

While most tournaments are not open for business on that holiday, Quincy makes it a tradition to play every year, so the Thanksgiving meal had to wait for the Titans.

“They fed us after the game,” Tinley Park coach DJ Brown said. “Actually, they fed us after every game. It was a phenomenal atmosphere. They had over 4,000 people come out to their home games.

“Their pregame is like none other.”

The Titans went 0-3, however, with losses to the host Blue Devils, Phillips and Springfield Lanphier.

“It’s a special, special place to play or attend,” Brown said. “Results aside, it was a great experience.”

Jeff Vorva is a freelance with the Daily Southtown