There was a palpable buzz about basketball in St. Charles after St. Charles East and St. Charles North each stormed to the championship game of the Saints’ prestigious Thanksgiving Tournament.

A few months later, a long season of ups and downs – not to mention, in East’s case, a critical injury – has stripped some of the luster from the teams’ seasons. But with the postseason beginning Monday, the Saints and North Stars know a banner week at the IHSA Class 4A South Elgin Regional could allow them to finish the season where they started – riding high.

Neither team will be able to run far, though, from the skeletons in its 2012-13 closet – not with Upstate Eight Conference River champion Larkin likely to await one of the teams in Friday’s regional final.