When Grantas Sakenis returned to the lineup, Andrew was thrilled to see his 6-foot-10 presence.
The Thunderbolts had been looking forward to watching him score from the inside, dominate on the boards and even block a few shots here and there. Passing wasn’t something on that list.
So, in his third game back from a left leg injury suffered at the Jack Tosh Holiday Tournament in late December, Sakenis gave teammate Athan Berchos and Co. something else to talk about.
A season-high seven assists.
“That’s big,” Berchos said about the senior center. “Grantas is a big part of our team, and when we can feed him, he’s going to put it up. And he can look out and find us for assists.”
Sakenis also had 13 points and seven rebounds Wednesday night, lifting Andrew to a 63-56 victory over Lincoln-Way East in a SouthWest Suburban Conference crossover game in Frankfort.
Berchos helped the Thunderbolts (16-11) snap a four-game losing streak with 18 points. James Gallagher added 14 points and Kaleb Simms chipped in with 10.
Brent Taylor scored 15 points for Lincoln-Way East (15-11), which has lost six straight games. BJ Powell and Jacob Alexander contributed 14 points apiece.
Sakenis is happy to be back on the court after having a few anxious days thinking he would be out for the remainder of the season. It turned out to be a little over a month to get back on the court.
That said, he was glum watching from the bench.
“I was wearing a boot for a month and it was tough,” Sakenis said. “I started practicing hard to get back into shape. It felt great to get back and it felt great to win. I’m getting sick of losing.”
Quincy and Wisconsin-Whitewater are looking at Sakenis, who is rounding back back into form.
“When you have a kid with his size and his basketball IQ and footwork, he definitely is a focal point that a lot of teams scout,” Andrew coach Justin Stirn said. “It does make things a little easier on the perimeter when he’s in the game as far as knocking down shots.”
“We started the year off really well when we had him,” Berchos said of the Thunderbolts, who were 13-1 at one point. “Then we lost him and our record dropped. Now, he’s back. It’s great because our record is getting better and our chemistry is getting better.”
Andrew may have been losing of late, but the Thunderbolts still have a shot to tie for a championship in the wild SWSC Red race.
Heading into Friday night, Stagg is leading with a 4-2 record, followed by Andrew at 4-3. Next in the hunt are both Bradley-Bourbonnais and Lincoln-Way West at 3-3.
The Thunderbolts, who are playing Minooka in a nonconference game, will have a big interest in Friday’s matchup between Lincoln-Way West and Stagg. Andrew finishes the conference season Tuesday at Lincoln-Way West.
On Jan. 23, Andrew beat the Warriors 48-45 without Sakenis.
“The positive is when we played well early, we put ourselves in a position to be in a good spot,” Stirn said. “We went 4-0 the first time through and haven’t been playing as well the second time.
“But with Grantas being back, it makes the last week of the season very interesting. Now that we have him back, we have to reacclimate again. And there is a bit of a learning curve to that.”
He hopes the Thunderbolts learn quickly as the postseason looms.
“This is definitely what we want,” Stirn said. “We want to be at full strength for the regionals.”
“We need the same mentality every game,” Berchos said. “We have to go in to win, play our hardest every game and all play together.”
Jeff Vorva is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.