As the Cook County Vikings boys basketball team heads into the final stretch of the season, head coach Keaton Riley can already feel how hard it will be to let this one go.
“It’s going to be absolutely heartbreaking when the season ends, I’ll tell you that,” Riley said. “It’s been a blast this year.”
The Vikings are in the midst of a breakthrough season. They currently sit at #6 out of 18 teams in their section, competing toe to toe with some of the league’s strongest programs, including a big win over South Ridge that showed Cook County can play with the upper echelon.
Riley and his players are now chasing a top five section seed and the possibility of a home playoff game.
“It would be huge to have a home game in the section playoffs,” Riley said. “So, taking care of the winnable games and competing in the games that we know are going to be battles for us, that’s what we’re focusing on the last month here.”
What Riley originally expected to be a rebuilding year has turned into something far more meaningful. Last season, the Vikings graduated eight seniors, leaving only two returning juniors to anchor the varsity roster. This year’s team includes two seniors, Parker Backstrom and Nick Spry, along with six juniors and a deep group of underclassmen developing at the junior varsity level.
Rather than scrambling, the program leaned on years of development. That investment is now showing up not just on varsity, but across the entire program.
“These guys that are varsity players now have had a lot of time to develop junior varsity and lower levels and really came to the varsity level ready for competition,” Riley said. “It’s nice to see the tangible success from everybody in the program, even kids that just started playing basketball. Even our junior varsity right now has won six straight games.”
Leadership has been a defining feature of this team. Seniors Backstrom and Spry, along with junior McCoy Fairbanks, who has played varsity since his freshman year, serve as captains and set the tone every day.
“Their leadership through their actions and showing up every day, never an issue off the court, great sportsmanship, great teamwork,” Riley said. “I mean, some of the best leaders that I’ve been around in this program for sure. Can’t say enough nice things about those boys.”
Riley is clear that this season did not materialize overnight. It is the result of a long-term vision and years of persistence through leaner seasons.
“It was always the vision a couple years ago to be competitive, and it’s nice to see that we’re there now,” he said. “I think there were some dark days in our past where there was concern. But really kudos to these kids.”
At the heart of the Vikings’ identity is belief, both individually and collectively.
“It really starts with the belief in yourself and it continues with the belief in others,” Riley said. “Without either of those things, you’re just kind of a team without any purpose or direction.”
He later added that it has also helped to be “unapologetically us, which is play hard, play fast, and play our game, and play it with confidence.”
A major factor behind this season’s success has been the team’s commitment in the offseason. Riley has emphasized multi-sport participation and year-round development.
“Almost all the kids in the program are two to three sport athletes, which is something that we emphasize from day one,” he said. “I see almost all of them over the summer, during summer league or skills practices. From year one, we’ve implemented summer workouts, a three-on-three league, a summer league, and it’s just exploded from there.”
That work has given the team a sense that nothing has been handed to them.
“You know, it just feels like all this has been earned and hasn’t been given to us. And I think that really gives us a big chip on our shoulder,” said Riley.
The head coach also spoke highly of his coaching staff, particularly assistant coach Ross Orenstein, who stepped into coaching for the first time last season.
“Last year he kind of thrust upon himself a new opportunity to coach. He’s never coached before,” Riley said. “And every day he’s come to practice since then, he’s improved.”
The staff also includes former players Andrew Halberg and Lily Grouper Schultz, a former 1,000-point scorer in the girls program.
“I think it’s kind of a perfect blend between experience and inexperience and relationship building with our coaches,” Riley said.
Cook County’s climb in the section standings has been steady. Last year the Vikings were seeded around #11 or #12. This year they have moved firmly into the upper tier.
“Right now, we’re #6,” Riley said. “There’s like two at the top that are way at the top, and then there’s a group of four, which includes us. Those are the ones that we want to focus on winning come March.”
Riley was quick to highlight the role of the community in creating a home-court atmosphere that has clearly mattered.
“It’s almost like every game the crowd has gotten a little bit bigger and bigger and louder and louder,” he said. “And that is such a huge effect in the games that we’ve won at home. It truly does take a community to help build a program. I think we’re in as good of a spot as I’ve seen up here.”
Riley, who has coached in the program for 5 years, with 4 as head coach, consistently brings the credit back to his players.
“The more we win, the less I feel like I actually truly do play an impact on it,” he said. “It’s a big kudos to these players and the offseasons that they have.”
For Cook County basketball, this season represents years of patience finally paying off and a promise of a bright future for the program.
