CaribouJim
03-30-2015, 09:08 AM
Cousins Quest...Put Their City on the Map by Rich Mayor - Chicago Tribune Reporter
http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/highschool/ct-spt-0330-prep-boys-mcdonalds-diamond-arike-20150329-story.html
Two cousins, born three weeks apart, grew up three blocks from each other in Milwaukee.
The duo, one boy and one girl, came from a family full of athletes. When the budding basketball players weren't practicing, they were hanging out. Always at each others' houses, always playing sports. Any sport. Football, soccer, basketball. Rain or shine. Indoor or out.
On Jan. 28 those two cousins, Diamond Stone and Arike Ogunbowale, were named McDonald's All-Americans. On Wednesday at the United Center, two of Wisconsin's brightest young stars will represent their city and, more importantly, their family.
"There are always a lot of questions (about the family), but it's a good position to be in," Ogunbowale said Tuesday at the John Hancock Center. "It's exciting to be able to talk about each other at such a high level, because we're such good friends and players."
Close as they are, the cousins' college recruitments took different paths. Ogunbowale chose Notre Dame before her senior season began. She wanted to avoid the fuss that goes along with being uncommitted.
Ogunbowale also wanted to fully commit to winning her first state championship for Divine Savior Holy Angels. An open recruitment would serve only to distract from the main goal.
DSHA won the state title in blowout fashion — Ogunbowale scored 27 points – but it was far from her best performance. The three-time Gatorade Player of the Year in Wisconsin exploded in the semifinals for a state tournament-record 55 points in a 86-76 overtime victory.
Stone's Whitefish Bay Dominican also won the state championship, except his was the school's fourth title in four years. The then-uncommitted senior had 23 points and 15 rebounds in the final, unfazed by the distractions his cousin successfully warded off.
"He was supposed to commit like two weeks after me," Ogunbowale said, laughing. "It just kept getting postponed."
Stone finally chose Maryland on Friday.
In elementary school, Stone began working with DeShawn Curtis, a local trainer. Many sessions took place on weekends and early mornings. Sometimes young Stone didn't want to go, wanted to be "a normal kid" and spend time with friends or family. Each time his father, Bob, told Diamond he was going. So he went.
When Diamond Stone reached high school, the work ethic was second-nature and coincided with a massive growth spurt, one that now has him listed at 6-foot-10 and 250 pounds.
"I just wanted to get better," Stone said. "I'd see other kids around me, you know, doing stuff I couldn't do because I wasn't capable of doing it. I wanted to be able to do those things."
The two cousins, now, can do those things. And most things.
But they occasionally encountered resistance from out-of-state opponents. As far as producing elite athletes, Wisconsin isn't nationally renowned.
The first time Ogunbowale went to USA Basketball tryouts, entering her sophomore year, she said multiple girls approached her and asked, "You're from Milwaukee? Oh... Where's Milwaukee?"
Ogunbowale knew her city was slightly sheltered, but was surprised by the lack of recognition for the country's 31st most populous city, the largest in her state.
Stone points to UCLA freshman and Milwaukee native Kevon Looney — expected by many to be a first-round pick if he enters the 2015 NBA Draft — as an example of local success. The cousins plan to be next.
"We hear it, sure," Stone said. "People say, 'Milwaukee has no basketball players, it's just a bunch of cheese everywhere.' But it's definitely not like that. Arike and I want to be part of this. We want to help put Milwaukee on the map."
http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/highschool/ct-spt-0330-prep-boys-mcdonalds-diamond-arike-20150329-story.html
Two cousins, born three weeks apart, grew up three blocks from each other in Milwaukee.
The duo, one boy and one girl, came from a family full of athletes. When the budding basketball players weren't practicing, they were hanging out. Always at each others' houses, always playing sports. Any sport. Football, soccer, basketball. Rain or shine. Indoor or out.
On Jan. 28 those two cousins, Diamond Stone and Arike Ogunbowale, were named McDonald's All-Americans. On Wednesday at the United Center, two of Wisconsin's brightest young stars will represent their city and, more importantly, their family.
"There are always a lot of questions (about the family), but it's a good position to be in," Ogunbowale said Tuesday at the John Hancock Center. "It's exciting to be able to talk about each other at such a high level, because we're such good friends and players."
Close as they are, the cousins' college recruitments took different paths. Ogunbowale chose Notre Dame before her senior season began. She wanted to avoid the fuss that goes along with being uncommitted.
Ogunbowale also wanted to fully commit to winning her first state championship for Divine Savior Holy Angels. An open recruitment would serve only to distract from the main goal.
DSHA won the state title in blowout fashion — Ogunbowale scored 27 points – but it was far from her best performance. The three-time Gatorade Player of the Year in Wisconsin exploded in the semifinals for a state tournament-record 55 points in a 86-76 overtime victory.
Stone's Whitefish Bay Dominican also won the state championship, except his was the school's fourth title in four years. The then-uncommitted senior had 23 points and 15 rebounds in the final, unfazed by the distractions his cousin successfully warded off.
"He was supposed to commit like two weeks after me," Ogunbowale said, laughing. "It just kept getting postponed."
Stone finally chose Maryland on Friday.
In elementary school, Stone began working with DeShawn Curtis, a local trainer. Many sessions took place on weekends and early mornings. Sometimes young Stone didn't want to go, wanted to be "a normal kid" and spend time with friends or family. Each time his father, Bob, told Diamond he was going. So he went.
When Diamond Stone reached high school, the work ethic was second-nature and coincided with a massive growth spurt, one that now has him listed at 6-foot-10 and 250 pounds.
"I just wanted to get better," Stone said. "I'd see other kids around me, you know, doing stuff I couldn't do because I wasn't capable of doing it. I wanted to be able to do those things."
The two cousins, now, can do those things. And most things.
But they occasionally encountered resistance from out-of-state opponents. As far as producing elite athletes, Wisconsin isn't nationally renowned.
The first time Ogunbowale went to USA Basketball tryouts, entering her sophomore year, she said multiple girls approached her and asked, "You're from Milwaukee? Oh... Where's Milwaukee?"
Ogunbowale knew her city was slightly sheltered, but was surprised by the lack of recognition for the country's 31st most populous city, the largest in her state.
Stone points to UCLA freshman and Milwaukee native Kevon Looney — expected by many to be a first-round pick if he enters the 2015 NBA Draft — as an example of local success. The cousins plan to be next.
"We hear it, sure," Stone said. "People say, 'Milwaukee has no basketball players, it's just a bunch of cheese everywhere.' But it's definitely not like that. Arike and I want to be part of this. We want to help put Milwaukee on the map."