Mundelein ousts Stevenson
They go back to their junior high days.
Johnny Ricchio played basketball for Freemont.
Before slam-dunking on varsity rims, Ryan Sawvell wore Carl Sandburg colors.
During the fourth quarter of Tuesday night’s well-contested Class 4A Mundelein regional semifinal between the host Mustangs and Ricchio’s Stevenson Patriots, the two players chatted at the foul line.
Sawvell was getting ready to shoot a free throw.
“I said, ‘Make it fun. Make it fun,’ ” Ricchio said. “He was like, ‘Fun is winning.’ ”
“Just trying to send a message,” Sawvell said. “It would have been nice if I made the free throw.”
The missed freebie didn’t prove costly.
An eventful night for Sawvell saw the Mundelein all-state candidate go from angry to ecstatic, as he helped Mundelein build a double-digit lead in the second half before the Mustangs held on for a 66-57 win.
Robert Knar scored 17 points, Leavon Head netted all 16 of his in the second half, and Sawvell (15 points) and Sean O’Brien (11) also hit double figures, as Mundelein improved to 27-4 and advanced to Friday’s 7:30 p.m. regional final against the winner of today’s game between Prospect and Waukegan.
After sitting the final 9:41 of the first half with 2 fouls, Sawvell erupted after halftime.
“He was fresh,” O’Brien said. “I knew he was ready to go. I knew he was going to have a big second half.”
To start, the second half, Sawvell blocked a shot, dunked at the other end and got whistled for a technical foul for hanging on the rim.
Just 24 seconds had ticked off the clock.
“I think that was the first (technical) of my high school career, so I’m not too happy about that,” Sawvell said. “I thought there was someone underneath me. I didn’t want to let go of the rim and fall on him. But the ref didn’t see it that way. I didn’t want to argue with him even more and get thrown out of the game. So I just shut my mouth and said OK.”
Sawvell then blocked back-to-back shots. He followed with a steal and three-point play.
Mundelein had all the momentum.
“He’s a good, emotional player,” Stevenson coach Pat Ambrose said.
With Sawvell sitting the entire second quarter, O’Brien sank three 3-pointers and scored all of his points, and Mundelein outscored Stevenson (15-13) by a 21-13 margin to lead 29-25.
“Without that effort (by O’Brien), I don’t know if we would have had the lead at the half,” Sawvell said. “And Charlie Gandolfi played unbelievable defense on their best player (Mike Fleming). Without that effort, we definitely wouldn’t have won the game.”
Knar beat the buzzer with a pull-up 3-pointer from 27 feet out to give the Mustangs the lead at halftime. That, after Fleming’s drive had Stevenson ahead 23-19 with 2:36 left.
“That dagger at the end of the half really hurt us,” Ambrose said. “In that situation, you got to get a six- or eight-point lead so you go, ‘The plan is working.’ ”
Ricchio gave Stevenson a jolt in the final half minute of the third quarter, first finishing a layup after an outlet pass from Troy Radtke. Ricchio then picked Knar and sped the other way for another layup to bring the Patriots within 47-39 entering the fourth.
When Ricchio flew by Sawvell on the baseline and scored on a reverse layup with 6:34 to go, Stevenson was within 47-44.
Ricchio scored 7 of his 11 points in the fourth, after playing only about a minute in the first half.
“I missed my first layup but then I started making my rest,” Ricchio said. “I started getting into the flow and in a zone a little bit.”
Sawvell and Knar kept Stevenson at bay in the fourth, as did Head by sinking 6 of 7 foul shots down the stretch.
Besides Ricchio, Stevenson had three other double-digit scorers. Ryan Chapman led the way with 12. Fleming also had 11, and Colby Cashaw posted 10 points and 9 rebounds.
Sawvell’s night also included 7 rebounds, 6 blocked shots and a 3-pointer.
“I was getting antsy (sitting on the bench),” Sawvell said. “I was just trying to use all the energy I had left from the first half.”