Carson Brownfield’s actions speak loudly for No. 2 Homewood-Flossmoor. So do his words.
The 6-3 senior helped keep the Vikings afloat early in their game Saturday against No. 7 DePaul Prep as they adjusted to the Rams’ methodical pace.
And it wasn’t just his scoring and rebounding (12 points, seven boards). It also was his vocal leadership in H-F’s come-from-behind, 57-46 victory at the Steve Pappas Shootout.
‘‘If he starts getting us up and hyped, we’re going to be right behind him,’’ fellow senior Gianni Cobb said.
It’s a role Brownfield embraces, especially in a tough environment — such as playing an unbeaten team in its own gym.
‘‘I’m just the glue guy,’’ he said. ‘‘If my energy is down, everybody’s energy is down. My energy is up, everybody picks it up. Doing stuff like that just to keep my team engaged, that’s been my role for a minute.’’
The Vikings (14-1) needed to be engaged, and they needed contributions from a number of players to get past the Rams (16-1), who led by as many as 11 points in the first half.
That’s when they were most effective at containing Bryce Heard, the top junior in the state. He didn’t take a shot in the first quarter and didn’t score in the first half before finishing with eight points and five rebounds.
But the beauty of the Vikings is they’re not dependent on any one player for offense.
‘‘Everybody [doesn’t] have to go for 25,’’ Cobb said. ‘‘Sometimes I’m gonna have 25, sometimes Bryce is going for 25. We’ve got a lot of weapons.’’
On Saturday, H-F had six players score at least seven points. Cobb led the way with 13, followed by Brownfield with 12, Dominic Pangallo with nine (all on three-pointers), Heard and Donald Hagemaster with eight and Jayden Tyler with seven.
‘‘I think our depth is our biggest strength,’’ H-F coach Jamere Dismukes said, ‘‘being able to come off the bench with three, four guys who can really play and really produce. . . . Our strength is in our numbers, and we talk about that every day.’’
DePaul led 30-21 after Jaylan McElroy’s steal and jam at 6:18 of the third quarter. But the Vikings then went on a 20-3 spurt spanning the third and fourth quarters to go up 41-33 with 6:39 left.
True to form, five Vikings scored during the run and three — Pangallo (two), Heard and Cobb — combined for four three-pointers. The Rams didn’t get closer than six the rest of the way.
‘‘We knew they were going to come out playing a slow pace,’’ Cobb said. ‘‘We just kept playing together and made open shots.’’
‘‘We just had to . . . dial down and do what we do: lock in on defense, the little stuff, running our game plan,’’ Brownfield said.
McElroy led DePaul with a double-double of 17 points and 12 rebounds. Rashaun Porter had eight points and 10 rebounds and PJ Chambers 10 points.
The Rams were without one starter in Rob Walls (concussion) and lost another in Jonas Johnson (apparent ankle injury) in the first quarter.
‘‘I thought we hung tough in the first half,’’ DePaul coach Tom Kleinschmidt said. ‘‘And then their depth hurt us in the second half. Fatigue, excellent players, good coaching on their staff. We were pretty thin in the second half, [but] that’s not why we lost.’’
