Hoffman Estates had the high ranking and unbeaten record entering Saturday’s Elgin tournament title game, but Dan Bolger and St. Patrick were hardly in awe.
“We came in and knew we shouldn’t back down,” said Bolger, a 6-foot-7-inch senior who scored seven points, all in the second half, as the Shamrocks dethroned the defending champion Hawks 51-47. “We knew they were just another team.”
The title was the first since 2000 for St. Patrick (10-1) and fourth overall.
The Shamrocks never trailed in the final quarter but had some nervous moments as fifth-ranked Hoffman Estates (10-1) hit a barrage of three-pointers in the late going.
Steve Zuniga’s long-distance shot with three seconds to play cut St. Patrick’s lead to 49-47, but Hoffman was forced to foul, and Shamrocks guard Jason Genova put the game away with two free throws with 1.6 seconds left.
St. Patrick players hope the win gives them recognition.
“It sets us apart,” said Bolger, who had a critical putback basket, a free throw and key rebound all within a span of 1 minute 30 seconds down the stretch. “We won our Thanksgiving tournament and now we won this tournament, something a lot of teams haven’t been able to do.”
St. Patrick kept an edge through much of the third quarter, but Hoffman’s Bryan Mead kept his team close as he worked inside against the taller Shamrocks.
Mead hit consecutive buckets and set up a third that tied the game 30-30 with 1:58 remaining. Matt Marino hit a buzzer-beating jumper for a 32-30 Shamrocks edge entering the fourth.
St. Patrick maintained the lead through the period, including a 47-39 advantage with 43 seconds to play. But Hoffman Estates sliced the lead over a 24 second span on Jesse Farder’s jumper, a three-pointer by Bryan Mead and Zuniga’s three in the waning seconds.
Mead led all scorers with 18 points. Marino topped St. Patrick with 14 points, Genova had nine and Kevin Kloak added eight. Jonny Reibel collected 12 more for Hoffman Estates.
Fremd (9-3) bounced back from Friday’s semifinal loss to Fremd to claim third place with a 68-54 victory over Glenbrook South (10-4).
