Glenbard West on right path

Glenbard West’s young boys basketball team knows it can’t take anything for granted this season.

The Hilltoppers definitely won’t be caught looking past their own holiday tournament.

They opened play at the 12th annual Glenbard West Holiday Classic with an impressive 58-35 Green Pool victory over Fenton in the last of four games Monday.

Glenbard West (3-6), after breaking a three-game losing streak, continues its quest for a berth in the tournament title game when the tournament picks up play again on Thursday, when the Hilltoppers will play Montini.

“That was a step in the right direction,” said Hilltoppers senior guard Corey Davis. “This is a big week for us. We’re here to win the tournament and just get some confidence going. I told the boys myself that if we don’t win the tournament it’s going to be a disappointment so we’ve got a lot of motivation to win it.”

Fenton (0-9) played well early in search of its first victory, taking its final lead of 6-4 midway through the first quarter on Greg Wagner’s bucket. Wagner, who scored 20 points, was a bright spot for the Bison, but it didn’t take long for Glenbard West to adjust to Fenton’s deliberate style and dictate a quicker pace.

A 16-0 run by the Hilltoppers spanning the first and second quarters put the outcome to rest as they took advantage of a flurry of Fenton turnovers. Behind 8-of-12 second-quarter shooting Glenbard West led 38-13 at the half before eventually building its largest lead of 52-22 on Will Reedy’s bucket to start the fourth quarter.

Reedy and Brian Cochrane, who hit 3 of the team’s seven 3-pointers, each scored 14 points off the bench to lead Glenbard West. Davis added 12 points among nine scorers for the Hilltoppers.

Anthony Lopez scored 6 points off the bench for Fenton, which continues tournament play on Thursday against Leyden, a 64-56 winner over Montini on Monday.

“It took us a little bit to get going, but eventually we got control of the tempo,” said Glenbard West coach Tim Hoder. “Once we got going the kids played pretty well.

“This is a real important time for a team,” he said. “Teams don’t really maintain at this time of year. Either you get it together or teams kind of fall apart. This is a good time for us to get it together.”

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