Sawvell, Mundelein post winning effort

It's a sign of the times.

Before Ryan Sawvell actually felt the excitement of Friday's Thanksgiving tournament game between his Mundelein Mustangs and Carmel, he read about it.

On Facebook.

It's how good ol' fashioned crosstown rivalries are hyped now in the social networking era.

Fan pages versus fan pages.

“There were a few groups on Facebook about this game, saying things like Mundelein (stinks) or Carmel (stinks) or like ‘We're going to beat you guys,' stuff like that,” said Sawvell, Mundelein's 6-foot-8 senior forward. “Our fans were getting into that stuff. That's how I heard about it. They were telling us about it.

“It was awesome, but I try to stay away from that stuff. I just play ball. That's what I'm supposed to do.”

Sawvell, who will be continuing his career next year at the University of Evansville, played ball so well against Carmel that his Facebook fans had plenty to cyber-cheer about.

He rolled up 23 points, 16 rebounds and 6 blocks as the host Mustangs out-lasted Carmel 61-56 in an electric, well-attended game that featured a two-point spread with 19 seconds remaining.

The win keeps Mundelein, which overcame 29 turnovers, perfect at 3-0. Carmel, meanwhile, falls to 2-1.

“It was an unbelievable atmosphere,” Sawvell said. “I loved it. With all the talk you heard around town, the stuff on Facebook, you knew it was going to be (an intense game).”

Carmel was down by as many as 14 points early in the fourth quarter, but then went on a couple of runs that cut that margin to 5 points with less than two minutes remaining. Doug Meyer hit some huge shots for the Corsairs during that stretch.

Then, with 28 seconds left, Meyer stole the ball on Carmel's full court press and made a driving layup that cut the deficit to just two points, 58-56.

The Corsairs then had to foul on the next possession to stop the clock. Mundelein hit just 1 of 2 free throws to push the margin to 3 points, but Carmel couldn't capitalize on the other end.

With 5.8 seconds left, Carmel guard Tim Hendricks just missed on a 3-pointer that could have tied the game. The Mustangs then iced the victory with a pair of free throws by guard Robert Knar, who was the only other Mundelein player to reach double-figures with 18 points.

Carmel also got double-figures from a second player. Forward Dan Feld had 13 points.

“Our defense was able to get a bunch of stops toward the end. We trapped them pretty hard and got some steals,” said Hendricks, who finished with a team-high 19 points, including 3 three-pointers. “We were able to fight back strong. And with that crowd, probably the biggest crowd that a Carmel team has seen in a long time, the adrenaline was just kicking.”

Sawvell was in the same boat.

His adrenaline had him wired.

Not only did he score points and block shots like crazy, he did so in grand fashion. One of his baskets was a putback that occurred while he wasn't even facing the basket. He grabbed the rebound on the block, turned to avoid a defender and then in a struggle to maintain possession of the ball, he heaved it behind his head. It went in.

Meanwhile, Sawvell's blocked shots were always emphatic, with him skying high into the air for emphasis. On one of his block attempts, he was accidentally kicked in the ribs on the way down.

But, as pumped as he was, he sat only briefly to catch his breath and then went right back in.

“I told Ryan, ‘Dude, you get to be hurt for like 10 seconds,'” Mundelein coach Dick Knar joked. “Well, we needed him in the game. He's been playing phenomenal with the blocked shots and the rebounding. He was big for us in a big game.

“I love it that when we play Carmel it's this kind of atmosphere. This is what I've always wanted in this game. I just wish they wouldn't have made it so interesting down the stretch like that.”