It’s been 11 years since Barrington’s boys basketball team was this high in the Mid-Suburban League standings this late in the season.
And while coach Mike Obsuszt isn’t going to start talking about a conference championship–especially in this year’s wild MSL West–Friday night’s 61-46 win at home over Hoffman Estates was a statement of sorts.
While the Broncos might be known for their strong post play, it was their guards that helped knock Hoffman Estates (11-8, 3-3) out of a four-way logjam at the top.
Michael Klear scored a game-high 19 points for Barrington (14-4, 4-2), while fellow guards Jason Richards (12 points) and Kyle Patterson (11, all in the fourth quarter) also were in double figures.
“We have some good guards and when Michael and Jason shoot that well, that’s going to make us difficult to beat,” Obsuszt said. “But it’s way too early to talk about [a league title]. Especially with Schaumburg next week and three tough games after that.”
The Broncos jumped out to big leads early, including 12-3 in the first and 28-16 with 2 minutes 43 seconds left in the first half, before Hoffman Estates made a game of it. The Hawks put together two strong early runs in the third period, and when Grant Kerr buried a three-pointer with 2:45 remaining, Hoffman Estates trailed 37-35. Barrington built a slight edge, closing the quarter on a 7-3 run to lead 44-38.
The Hawks closed to within 46-41 with 6:11 remaining when 6-foot-7-inch senior Scott Schmitz (nine points, six rebounds) hit 6-8 senior Charlie Knapik under the basket for an easy lay-in. The rest was up to the guards, as Patterson nailed a three and drove the lane for a scooping layup to key a 7-3 Barrington run and put the game away.
The Broncos hit all six of their free throws in the final 58 seconds to ice the contest, including four from Patterson. Sophomore Bryan Mead paced Hoffman with 18 points.
Phil English.
Gordon Tech 77, Loyola 70
Powered offensively by Joe Soroko and Michael Lang during the final 16 minutes, Gordon Tech erased a 42-29 halftime deficit to prevail in the Catholic League North and put an end to the host Ramblers’ eight-game winning streak.
Gordon Tech (14-3, 5-2) had trailed by as much as 32-12 before Rams coach Scott Bogumil sent in his second unit. Despite missing 7-of-16 free throws in the first half, Gordon Tech’s bench, led by Christopher Lee’s seven-point second quarter, trimmed Loyola’s halftime lead to 13.
“The second unit really brought us back,” said Bogumil, whose squad has now won five straight. “I had four subs out there in the first half. We had to fight and claw to get back into the game.”
Gordon Tech outscored Loyola 21-10 and outrebounded them 11-5 in the third quarter. A 3-of-15 Loyola shooting effort combined with three Soroko free throws with 38 seconds left in the period turned a once-comfortable Ramblers lead into a short-lived 52-50 edge heading into the final quarter.
Soroko (18 points) hit a three-pointer that put the Rams ahead 58-54 until Colin Falls restored the Ramblers’ lead temporarily at 60-59 on a three-point play of his own. Falls, who finished with a game-high 29 points, added a four-point play to bring Loyola (13-4, 5-3) within 65-64 with 2:25 left.
But a three-pointer by Lang, who scored all 13 of his points in the second half, gave Gordon Tech some breathing room at 68-64.
Jonathan Schoenberg.
Hinsdale Central 51, York 32
The Red Devils and center Steve Schweer blitzed the Dukes 15-2 in the opening quarter and never looked back on the way to a West Suburban Silver victory.
Schweer scored nine of his game-high 16 points in the opening quarter–including two three-pointers.
“Steve Schweer’s been working on his jump shot,” Hinsdale Central coach Bob Mueller said. “He hasn’t shot well all year … so it was great that he knocked some shots down early.”
York (10-8, 2-3) was limited to two first-quarter free throws and finally hit its first field goal with 7:27 remaining in the second quarter.
The Red Devils (11-4, 4-1) extended the lead to 24-9 by halftime. York crept back in the later stages of the third and early in the fourth to twice cut the lead to nine points, but Hinsdale Central pulled away down the stretch.
Matt Gleitsman added 13 points for the winners while Brad Heinz had nine points to pace York.
Jack McCarthy.
In other games:
Amundsen 64, Lake View 61 (OT): Dionte Ross scored five points in the extra session to help Amundsen pull away from Lake View in the Public Blue North. Ross finished with 12 points while Terry Weathers led the Vikings (8-10, 3-2) with 15. Prince Muhammad’s 15 points paced the Wildcats (7-7, 1-3).
Bartlett 60, Elgin 41: Pat Tuggle scored 16 points and grabbed 12 rebounds for Bartlett as the Hawks (14-4, 5-2) went on a 13-2 run to open the third quarter in the Upstate Eight win.
Benet 50, Holy Cross 48 (OT): Chris Murphy hit a three-pointer with two seconds left in regulation to tie it at 43-43, then scored the first four points in overtime to give Benet the lead for good in the East Suburban Catholic. Murphy finished with 13 points and Tyler Rehm led the Redwings (5-11, 4-4) with 16 points. Jack Walsh led all scorers with 22 points for Holy Cross (15-3, 6-2).
Brother Rice 67, De La Salle 59: Rick Harrigan netted 28 points as the Crusaders (15-3, 7-0) earned the Catholic League win.
Conant 49, Palatine 40: Conant used a 10-0 run to start the fourth quarter to win in the Mid-Suburban West. The Cougars (9-8, 3-3) were led by Joe Rizzo’s 16 points.
Downers Grove North 68, Oak Park 56: Stephan Bolt scored 24 points and Antonio Poole added 17 for the Trojans (9-8, 3-2) in the West Suburban Silver.
Dunbar 82, Gage Park 53: Dunbar (9-4, 4-0) rolled in the Public Red Central behind Aaron Spears’ 32 points.
DuSable 79, Robeson 64: Kevin Gray collected 24 points and 12 rebounds for the Panthers (8-9, 3-1) in the Public Red Central.
Evanston 73, Maine South 67: Gordon Watt put in 16 points off the bench and Stacey Moragne added 15 points as Evanston (10-5, 4-1) prevailed in the Central Suburban South.
Fenton 60, Batavia 52: Giacomo Losacco scored 31 points on 15-of-16 shooting from the free-throw line and four three-pointers to lift Fenton (11-9, 4-4) in the Suburban Prairie Red. Nick Baragas had 18 points for Batavia (13-4, 7-1).
Fenwick 71, Mt. Carmel 64: Vince Humphrey had 27 points and Ashtyn Bell added 13 points to lead the Friars (13-3, 7-1) to the Catholic League win. The Caravan had a seven-point halftime lead, before Fenwick went on a 13-0 run to open the third quarter. Nate Minnoy had 16 points to lead Mt. Carmel.
Glenbard North 58, Wheaton Warrenville South 54: Greg Klos’ 22 points led the Panthers in the DuPage Valley (12-4, 4-3). With 2:51 to play in the third quarter, Glenbard North erased a 13-point deficit by going on a 22-2 run to take a 49-42 lead with 4:56 left in the game. Alex Freer and Wesley De Vries each scored 14 points for the Tigers (9-8, 4-3).
Hubbard 89, King 74: The Greyhounds hit four three-pointers in the first quarter and cruised from there in the Public Red Central. Othyus Jeffers led Hubbard (11-8, 3-2) with 22 points and 10 rebounds and Reginald Bates chipped in 17 with points. Jerry Madison’s 26 points led King (11-8, 1-3).
Libertyville 85, Mundelein 54: Ben Engstrom’s 23 points and Pete Silvestri’s 18 propelled the Wildcats (15-3, 5-1) to the North Suburban Lake win.
Lisle 61, Wilmington 44: The Lions (15-1, 8-0) rolled in the Interstate Eight behind T.J. Parker’s 24 points.
Marian Catholic 65, St. Patrick 63: Cedrick Middleton had 21 points, five rebounds, four assists and hit the game-winning three-pointer with 5 seconds left as the Spartans (10-7, 5-3) came from behind in the East Suburban Catholic.
St. Patrick (9-6, 5-3) led by 10 after the first quarter, but trailed by 11 entering the fourth quarter. The Shamrocks went on a 14-2 run that started with 3:09 left and ended when Michael Sakosky (15 points) hit a three-pointer with 28 seconds left.
Neuqua Valley 67, DeKalb 55: Josh Wesley had 22 points and Keelan Amelianovich added 20 points to lead the Wildcats (14-2, 6-0) in the Upstate Eight.
Notre Dame 55, Nazareth 48: Will Schober’s 20 points and John Bowler’s 16 points helped the Dons (14-2, 8-0) prevail in the East Suburban Catholic.
Prosser 87, Lane Tech 77: Perrick Robinson scored 13 of his 24 points in the fourth quarter while Mike Nelson and T.J. Collins each finished with 22 points to rally Prosser (7-8, 2-2) in the Public Red North.
Rich East 61, Kankakee 59: Kevin House had 26 points and hit three three-pointers in the fourth quarter as the Rockets (10-8, 4-1) rallied for the SICA South win. Dontario Brooks had 19 points for Kankakee (11-6, 3-2).
Riverside-Brookfield 80, Ridgewood 59: Tim Brasic had 19 points and Shatone Powers added 15 to lead the Bulldogs (14-2, 8-0) to the Suburban Prairie White win.
Rockford Lutheran 68, Walther Lutheran 65 (2OT): Scott Hood hit a half-court three-pointer at the buzzer in the second overtime to give Rockford Lutheran (10-10, 3-3) the Private School League North win. Hood finished with 25 points on seven three-pointers, while Nick Conteduca led Walther (11-6, 5-1) with 18 points.
Von Steuben 75, Taft 52: Angel Santiago’s 22 points and Luke Rogers’ 16 points sparked the Panthers (8-6, 4-0) in the Public Red North. Chris Cobbs put in 22 points for Taft (14-5, 2-3).
Warren 50, Stevenson 48: Ryan Treiber hit two free throws with 2 seconds remaining as Warren held on in the North Suburban Lake. Ashton Hughes tallied 15 points, seven rebounds and six assists to lead Warren (10-6, 4-2). Rueben Trotter’s 19 points paced Stevenson (12-6, 3-3).
Girls basketball
Sweet 16 tournament: No. 1 Fenwick (20-1) knocked off Washington 62-53 as Kristin Heidloff scored 15 points.
New Trier 55, Niles West 28: Shana Franklin’s 21 points paced the No. 4 Trevians (20-1, 8-0) in the Central Suburban South.
Hinsdale Central 61, Lyons Township 27: Morgan Kasperek and Maggie Acuna scored 15 points apiece to lead the No. 5 Red Devils (19-1, 7-0) to the West Suburban Silver win.
Niles North 64, Glenbrook North 43: Jennifer Bryner scored 18 points to lead the No. 13 Vikings (19-3, 7-0) to the Central Suburban North win.
Mother McAuley 69, Queen of Peace 45: Jena Zientek’s 12 points and seven rebounds led the No. 15 Mighty Macs (14-5, 4-2) in the GCAC Red.
Barrington 49, Hoffman Estates 48: Lindsay Richards assisted Danielle Tinkoff’s game-winning bank shot with 22 seconds remaining to give the edge to the No. 17 Fillies (14-5, 5-1) in the Mid-Suburban West. Tinkoff and Richards finished with 16 and 12 points, respectively. Mandy Menella’s 18 points led Hoffman Estates (12-8, 2-3).
York 48, Oak Park 33: Gina Hugelier scored 14 points, Maureen Troller had 11 points and Mary Pyne and Krystal Hugelier added 10 points each to lead the No. 18 Dukes (15-4, 6-2) to the West Suburban Silver win.
Buffalo Grove 68, Rolling Meadows 61: Ashley Sandstead had 18 points and Jennifer Guth chipped in with 17 points to lead the Bison (14-7, 5-1) to the Mid-Suburban East win. Jennifer Brown led the Mustangs (17-6, 3-3) with 16 points.
Evanston 56, Maine South 47: Claire Getzoff had 16 points and Ariel Rogers had 15 points and 15 rebounds to lead the Wildkits (12-10) in the Central Suburban South.
Geneva 58, Glenbard South 37: The Vikings (18-2) used 14 points from both Caroline Byrnes and Brittany Burger for the Suburban Prairie Red win.
Trinity 41, Immaculate Heart of Mary 40: Katie Jarger converted a three-point play with eight seconds left in the game and Katie Williams scored 10 points as the Blazers (18-4, 6-0) survived in the GCAC White.
