By definition, Portage’s Emilioh Cameron and Mikey Rivera are uncle and nephew. But their relationship has a different dynamic. “It’s more like brother-brother,” Cameron said. Rivera agreed. “He’s like a big brother for me, for sure,” Rivera said. “It’s nice. I was the only child f or a long time, and having him in the next room is like having a best friend.” Cameron, a 6-foot-3 junior forward, grew up in Kansas City, Missouri, and began high school at William Chrisman. Before his sophomore year, he moved to Portage to live with Rivera, a 5-9 sophomore guard, and his family. Cameron’s sister is Rivera’s mother. “His people saw my situation, where I was, and saw I was in a bad area, in the trenches, however you want to say it,” Cameron said. “They saw I loved basketball, so they were like, ‘We want him to have a better life, a better opportunity in life.’ It doesn’t have to be basketball. It can be with other stuff, too, but without the extra drama. “I gave it some thought. They asked me my eighth grade year, but my mom wanted me to spend my freshman year with my sister, so I did that, then I moved down here. It’s been a big transition. I’m still trying to adapt even though it’s been two years. But it’s been good.” Cameron and Rivera attended Brother Rice in Chicago during the last school year and played on the junior varsity team. But they have been key players this season for revamped Portage (10-0), which continues to flourish after winning its first sectional title since 2001 and first Duneland Athletic Conference title since 1988 with a talented class that graduated in June. “If they’re not here, we’re looking a lot different,” Portage coach Bryon Clouse said. “That’s very obvious. We really only have a six-person rotation, and those two are huge. We’re very fortunate they decided to come back. They’re definitely helping us do what we’ve done so far.” Cameron is averaging 5.0 points and 3.3 rebounds as a starter, and Rivera is averaging 5.4 points, 2.3 rebounds, and team highs of 3.9 assists and 3.2 steals as the first player off the bench. “Mikey’s a quick little guard,” Clouse said. “He’s really taken to the defensive full-court pressure. We automatically put him on the guy who’s dribbling it up. We’re running a lot of trapping and stuff, but he really enjoys using his quickness and getting in somebody’s face and making it hard for them to do stuff. When we’re in the half-court, he can shoot the three. “He’s ultraquick. His size does pose some problems when he gets too close to the basket. We’re working on him just exploding to the basket. There’s been a couple of breakouts or breakaways where he’s kind of waiting and looking over his shoulder rather than just explode and go. He doesn’t always understand how quick he is. He sees a 6-foot-2 guy trailing him, he’s like, ‘Oh, crap.’ I’m like, ‘Yeah, he can’t keep up with you. Just go. Explode.’” Rivera is also another ball handler, which is important given that brothers Karter Kobe, a junior guard, and Bryce Kobe, a sophomore guard, lead the team in scoring. “He’s great at sharing the ball, getting assists,” Clouse said of Rivera. “He just really helps us with all of the guard play. He takes the ball out of Karter’s hands a little bit so Karter can be more of a scorer. When Mikey’s on the bench, Karter primarily handles it, but when Mikey comes in, Karter moves to more of a scoring position. He just helps everybody. “Again, we’re really fortunate because if he wasn’t here, I don’t know which guy we’d be looking at next.” On the opposite end of Portage’s size spectrum, Cameron has provided an element of height for a small roster. “Milo’s a post presence that we need,” Clouse said. “We don’t really have a post presence, but someone has to guard the other team’s 6-5, 6-8 guy, so he’s done that. He’s able to guard that defensively. Then offensively, he’s able to step out and shoot the three. “On one side, we have a 6-6 or whatever guy we have to guard, which we’ve been doubling down and trying to help him out. But on the flip side, that guy has to come out of the paint to guard him. He just fits our system, guys who can run up and down the floor and go trap and be in shape.” Rivera appreciates those contributions from Cameron. “He can shoot the ball really well,” Rivera said. “He rebounds well. He plays hard defense, takes charges. He does all the gritty stuff, always on the ground, diving for loose balls.” Cameron also likes Rivera’s game. “He’s a playmaker, for sure,” Cameron said. “He knows how to get by somebody and make an extra pass. He can shoot the ball whenever he wants. He gets his shot off really fast so nobody can block it. He’s little, so he has an advantage on defense with steals. “If we didn’t have him, we’d probably be in a lot of trouble.” Cameron said the Indians’ success has been “kind of surprising” but that the team has grown since the summer. Rivera noted most of this core has been playing AAU ball together since third grade. “Mikey’s been a Portage kid minus the one year, and they’ve known each other forever, and that helps us too,” Clouse said. “They all know each other’s game. The togetherness, the unity, is really good with this group. “I know what people were saying, how we graduated everybody. … These guys waited their turn, and they’re getting what they deserve, getting the limelight, and I’m really happy for them because we all know I’m a Portage guy and it upsets me when people don’t want to be at Portage like I want to be at Portage. These boys who have stayed or come back to be at Portage, to be winning and getting the victories and having people talking about them, I’m really happy for them because it’s really cool. It’s just really cool that they stuck with me and stuck with Portage.” ...read more read less