Barrington coach Mike Obsuszt knew what ingredients he needed to end defending Class AA champion Schaumburg’s 27-game winning streak Friday night.
Obsuszt unleashed the tandem of Michael Klear and Jason Richards, whose shooting and court savvy carried the Broncos to an 81-68 victory over No. 12 Schaumburg in the Mid-Suburban West contest.
Klear led the way with 28 points, while Richards added 22 for Barrington (6-1, 1-1).
After Schaumburg erased Barrington’s 13-point first-half lead, Klear and Richards took over, combining for the game’s next nine points to break a 46-46 third-quarter tie. Richards hit two three-pointers, and Klear had one of his own to give Barrington a 55-46 lead midway through the third quarter.
“They’re good shooters,” Obsuszt said. “More importantly they make good decisions with the ball.”
Schaumburg showed some fight in the fourth quarter, pulling to within 66-62, but Richards hit another three-pointer with six minutes to play to break the Saxons’ spirit.
Tony Young scored 26 points to lead Schaumburg (6-1, 1-1), whose most recent loss came to Thornridge 80-77 in last December’s Proviso West tournament. Barrington had given Schaumburg one of its biggest scares during the streak–the Saxons won 67-65 in overtime Feb. 16.
Up next for Schaumburg: Saturday at home vs. Naperville Central.
3. Bloom
Jeremy Bledsoe’s three-point play with 3.2 seconds remaining gave Thornridge (4-2, 1-0) a 48-45 victory over the Trojans (6-1, 0-1) in the SICA East game. See story, Back Page.
Up next: Friday at Homewood-Flossmoor.
4. Thornwood
Thornwood coach Kevin Hayhurst said he knows his Thunderbirds will be an exciting team to watch this season. They just weren’t Friday.
In a defensive battle–or offensive struggle, take your pick–Thornwood defeated Homewood-Flossmoor 44-36 in a SICA East opener at home.
The Thunderbirds (5-0, 1-0), who shot 29 percent from the field and 1-of-17 beyond the three-point arc, managed a wire-to-wire win behind a blend of solid defense, equally poor shooting from Homewood-Flossmoor (4-3) and converting 13-of-14 free throws in the fourth quarter, 22-of-25 overall.
“It was just a regular old SICA East game,” said Thornwood senior forward David Moss, who made all four of his free-throw attempts in the fourth quarter and finished with eight points and 10 rebounds. “It’s what you expect from a SICA East game–a nitty-gritty, down-and-dirty game.”
Melvin Buckley, who hit 8-for-8 free throws, paced Thornwood with 12 points, 10 coming in the second half.
Homewood-Flossmoor, which trailed 16-11 at halftime and scored four points in the first quarter, shot 23 percent for the game and made only 3-of-26 three-point attempts. The Vikings, led by Chris Lidell’s 13 points and Adam Dauksas’ 12, missed 16 of their 19 shots in the fourth quarter.
Up next: Friday at home vs. Thornton.
5. Joliet
Ja’Bari Saunders scored 19 points as the Steelmen (8-0, 2-0) defeated Lincoln-Way Central 63-39 in the SICA West. See story, Back Page.
Up next: Friday at home vs. Lincoln-Way East.
7. West Aurora
Dameon Mason scored 20 points as the Blackhawks (5-1, 1-1) held off Naperville Central 45-41 in the DuPage Valley. West Aurora hit 4-of-6 free throws in the final two minutes to break a 41-41 tie. Ryan Paradise had 20 points for Naperville Central (3-4, 1-1).
Up next: Friday at Glenbard East.
9. Crane
The Cougars (4-1) were squashed 102-60 by Oak Hill (Va.) Academy at the Benton (Ky.) Shootout.
Up next: Sunday vs. Morgan Park at Curie Shootout.
10. Shepard
Early in the first quarter of No. 10 Shepard’s SICA East opener Friday night at Thornton, Shepard guard Lorenzo Yelder was benched by coach Tony Chiuccariello, who wasn’t exactly gloating over Yelder’s shot selection.
“I wanted to sit him down and try to get him to play better and smarter,” Chiuccariello said.
Yelder did just that. He scored all nine of his points in the second half and came up with a steal and two free throws in the final seconds to bail out the Astros (6-0, 1-0) against Thornton 52-49.
Thornton (2-3, 0-1) took its biggest lead–42-30–with 1:48 left in the third quarter on a basket by Eugene Jackson. A three-pointer by Yelder followed, as did an 11-0 Shepard run.
The Astros, still trailing 49-45 with a little over two minutes left, got a putback by Yelder at 1:45 to go ahead for the first time since leading 13-12 at the end of the first quarter.
Thornton tried to run the clock down for the last shot, but Yelder’s steal and free throws with eight seconds left gave Shepard the victory.
For Shepard, Reggie George had 10 points and four blocked shots; teammate Mike Hall grabbed 16 rebounds to go with eight points. Evinn Herring led the Wildcats with 14 points.
Up next: Friday at home vs. Thornridge.
11. Westinghouse
Jamaal Brown scored 27 points as the Warriors (1-0) won at Gary (Ind.) Roosevelt 72-61. Westinghouse used a 10-0 run in the third quarter to break open a close game.
Jamarcus Ellis had 15 points, while Darius Glover contributed 11 points and 10 rebounds for the Warriors.
Up next: Saturday at home vs. Minneapolis Patrick Henry.
14. Waubonsie Valley
Derrick Clanton scored 32 points and made five three-pointers as the Warriors (7-0, 2-0) downed St. Charles East 72-59 in the Upstate Eight. Waubonsie Valley went on a 17-2 run in the first half as it held St. Charles East without a field goal for more than seven minutes. Brian Schmit led St. Charles East (1-4, 0-1) with 14 points.
Up next: Dec. 15 at Bartlett.
15. St. Rita
William Myles scored a game-high 21 points as the Mustangs won at De La Salle 58-49 in the Catholic League contest. See story, Back Page.
Up next: Tuesday at Loyola.
16. Brother Rice
Rick Harrigan scored 27 points and Ray Jendra added 21 points as the Crusaders (5-1, 2-0) beat Loyola 67-53 in the Catholic League. Brother Rice outscored Loyola 13-0 in the final 2:15. Colin Falls scored 27 for Loyola.
Up next: Tuesday at Marian Catholic.
18. Wheaton North
Dan Walser scored 13 points and keyed a 13-0 second-half run as the Falcons (6-0, 2-0) soared past Glenbard East 58-43 in the DuPage Valley contest. Leading 38-37 late in the third quarter, Matt Hackney took a charge and Walser hit a three-pointer on the next possession to start the run.
Brett Finney had 19 points, including five three-pointers, to lead Glenbard East (2-4, 0-2).
Up next: Friday at home vs. Glenbard North.
19. Leo
Chris Burras scored 30 points as the Lions (5-1, 2-0) defeated Hales Franciscan 66-54 in the Catholic League. Leo led 44-43 after three quarters before outscoring Hales 22-11 in the fourth. Jawan Stalling scored 22 points for Hales (2-4, 0-1).
Up next: Sunday vs. Manley at Curie Shootout.
20. New Trier
Ted Rosinski scored 17 points, including 13 in the fourth quarter, as the Trevians (6-1, 1-0) defeated Maine South 54-45 in the Central Suburban South opener for both teams. Rosinski hit a three-pointer to ignite a 16-8 New Trier run to finish the game. James Romey led New Trier with 18 points.
Bryan Smaha scored 11 points for Maine South (2-5, 0-1).
Up next: Friday at Waukegan.
