You can’t blame coach Clinton Lewis for thinking his Von Steuben team was doomed with 30 seconds to go Friday against Curie.
After all, Von Steuben had allowed a 10-point fourth-quarter lead to dwindle to one against the sixth-ranked Condors. Curie’s Donnie Morgan appeared to seal Von Steuben’s fate when he completed a four-point play with 30 seconds left to bring Curie within one. Morgan was fouled as he connected on a three-pointer, and he sank the free throw.
“I thought it was the beginning of the end,” Lewis said. “The kids didn’t panic, however.”
Instead, Von Steuben (4-3) stayed poised behind Corey Sawyer (12 points), who sank three of four free throws in the final half-minute to give the Panthers a 55-51 victory over host Curie (4-1). Garrett Soto had 14 points and six steals and Kenyetta Parker added 11 points for the victors.
Morgan had 15 points and Jeremy Harrington 12 for Curie, which committed a turnover in the closing seconds and missed three-pointers in its last two possessions.
“This is a big win for us,” Lewis said. “When they beat King, we knew they were a good team.”
Elgin 55, DeKalb 40: Sean Harrington (21 points) scored 10 points–including a pair of three-pointers–in the first quarter as No. 4 Elgin (7-0, 2-0) jumped to a 20-9 lead and cruised past host DeKalb in the Upstate Eight. Vince Robinson led the Barbs (3-3, 1-1) with 21 points.
Gordon Tech 73, Bishop McNamara 67: Winless Bishop McNamara’s hot shooting nearly doomed No. 8 Gordon Tech (6-1, 3-0), but the Rams hung on behind 17 points apiece from Jitim Young and Jerry Sanders.
Justin Dole, who led McNamara (0-7, 0-3) with 16 points, pulled the Fightin’ Irish within three on a jump shot with 2 minutes left, but that’s as close as McNamara got despite shooting 61 percent. Devante Blanks added 15 points and seven assists for Gordon.
Thornridge 58, Homewood-Flossmoor 43: Chancellor Collins had 25 points to lead the 12th-ranked Falcons (5-2, 1-0) in the SICA East.
Notre Dame 45, St. Joseph 42: Notre Dame (5-1, 2-0) hit five of six free throws–including three of four by guard Bill Besenhofer–in the final 1:44 of overtime to claim the East Suburban Catholic victory over No. 13 St. Joseph (3-2, 1-1).
It easily could have gone the other way.
St. Joseph missed six straight shots from the line in the last 2:20 of regulation. The host Dons, meanwhile, put together an 8-2 fourth-quarter run capped by center Mark Milkovic, whose basket tied the game at 37-37 and forced the overtime.
Kevin Clancy had 16 points, including four three-pointers, to lead Notre Dame, while Besenhofer had 10. Rob Walls paced St. Joseph with 13 and Marlon London had nine.
New Trier 68, Niles West 54: The 14th-ranked Trevians (6-0, 1-0) led from start to finish in their Central Suburban South opener. Todd Markman had 20 points while Matt Lottich added 19 to spark New Trier. Brian Mierkewicz’s 16 points led three players in double figures for Niles West (4-4, 0-1).
“We played very aggressive basketball tonight with our half-court press and did a good job getting Niles West’s guards into double-team trouble,” New Trier coach Rick Malnati said.
Richards 72, Bolingbrook 56: Demetris McDaniel scored 29 points and David Bridgewater added 12 as No. 16 Richards used an 8-0 run 2 minutes into the third to open a one-point game and claim the SICA North opener. The Bulldogs (5-1, 1-0) pressed Bolingbrook (2-4, 0-1) in the second half and led by as much as 18.
Hillcrest 84, Harper 64: Ryan Blankson scored 21 points and grabbed 11 rebounds and Kerwin Fleming added 15 points as No. 17 Hillcrest rolled past Harper (4-7). Hillcrest (8-0) breezed to a 25-9 lead at the end of one quarter after an early 16-0 run. Blankson contributed seven points to key the surge. Miles Heard led Harper with 15 points, while Jerome Smith chipped in with 14 points and 15 rebounds.
Stagg 45, Lockport 35: Joe Scott’s jump hook with 1:25 left sent visiting Stagg to the upset of No. 18 Lockport in a SICA West opener.
Lockport’s Tim Koche gave the Porters a 33-31 lead with a three-point play with 2:36 left. Stagg (5-2, 1-0) then went on a 10-2 run that opened with a jump shot by Tom Hushka (seven points). Scott finished with 15 points, including seven in the final quarter, to lead Stagg, which also upset Lockport in a regional final last March. Vincent Hamilton had 18 for the Porters (5-1, 0-1).
“This team grew up a lot tonight,” Stagg coach Al Biancalana said. “When Koche hit that three-point play, we could have cashed it in.”
Leo 58, Hales Franciscan 35: Jamar Tompkins and sophomore Andre Brown each scored 11 points to lead No. 20 Leo (5-1, 2-0) past Hales in a Catholic League crossover.
