Senior point guard Quentin Albert is one of several South Elgin players getting his first chance this season at serious varsity minutes. Albert has a bigger workload than many of his teammates, however. As the navigator of the offense for new coach Ryan Storm, he’s involved in far more than the average starter. “It’s everything,” Storm said of developing communication with Albert. “He and I have probably had more dialogue than maybe one other player over the past four or five months. “That position, for what we’re trying to do from an offensive perspective, is very, very important.” Albert set the tone early Tuesday night for the host Storm in a 61-15 Upstate Eight Conference win over Elgin. He had a steal and a pair of layups in a game-opening 10-0 run that got things going. Albert finished with a game-high 12 points on 6-for-6 shooting with five steals for South Elgin (3-7, 2-1). Drew Harms added 10 points, while Aman Chiluka and Massimo Nalbono each scored nine. Jeremiah Seward paced Elgin (1-10, 0-3) with seven points. Albert knows he’s filling a big role in his first season as a regular, but he’s ready for it. South Elgin’s Quentin Albert (1) and Elgin’s TJ Singson (0) battle for a rebound in the third quarter of an Upstate Eight Conference game in South Elgin on Tuesday, Dec. 16, 2024. (H. Rick Bamman / The Beacon-News) “I have a great relationship with my team, so I feel like the chemistry is there,” he said. “I’m taking on a new role this year. It’s been challenging, especially at the beginning of the season, trying to figure out where my role is and where my teammates’ roles are, where their strengths are. “It’s very important. I have to slow the game down and kind of get my guys going. I think (Tuesday) we did a very good job of that and you saw the end result.” Albert has some familiarity with Storm, who was his sophomore coach. That gives Storm the confidence to trust Albert with helping install the offensive philosophy he wants to implement, which involves a lot of reversals and getting the ball moving side to side. “It’s so much more of getting us organized and getting us into our actions,” Storm said. “He is the catalyst of doing that.” South Elgin’s Drew Harms (5) drives past Elgin’s Nic Avina (23) for a basket in the first quarter of an Upstate Eight Conference game in South Elgin on Tuesday, Dec. 16, 2024. (H. Rick Bamman / The Beacon-News) Albert is thankful to already have a previous relationship with Storm heading into such a pivotal season. “It’s really nice to have a coach that I’m comfortable with,” Albert said. “Our team was pretty deep last year, so I was just going hard in practice every day. “Now, I kind of finally get my shot, and it’s really nice to get out there and play with my guys.” All of Albert’s baskets were layups Tuesday, including two off of his own steals. That helped set the tone and take Elgin out of the game early. “When you give the other team confidence, it just snowballs,” Elgin coach Kurt Kerrigan said. “It’s the same thing we preach to our guys. We’re a young group, so maybe the sense of urgency just isn’t there. We have to find it. South Elgin’s Quentin Albert (1) looks to pass as Elgin’s Ryan Varghese (2) defends in the first quarter of an Upstate Eight Conference game in South Elgin on Tuesday, Dec. 16, 2024. (H. Rick Bamman / The Beacon-News) “It’s a long road for us, but I never quit. That’s how I was raised, so we’re going to keep fighting every day and whoever is on the court will earn it. I have to shake things up a little bit.” South Elgin is still without returning starters Ishmael George and Caden Scholl due to injury, although Storm expects them back soon. In the meantime, a runaway win like Tuesday’s effort after a rough start to the season may just be what the team needed to get things together. “It’s really a confidence booster,” Albert said. “Coming into a big game Friday against Bartlett, they’re our rivals. That game is very important to us, and this kind of boosts our confidence.” Paul Johnson is a freelance reporter for The Beacon-News.