Glenbard East makes sure this one isn't close
In its biggest boys basketball game this season Glenbard East gladly shook its habit of nip-and-tuck games.
Taking the lead in the Upstate Eight Conference Valley Division, the Rams earned a 57-41 senior night victory over West Chicago on Tuesday in Lombard.
"It feels great, but we've got to keep it going. We've got to keep it going all the way through," said Rams junior Mike Finley, who scored 11 of his game-high 18 points in the first half, then helped clinch it with 7 fourth-quarter rebounds.
On Jan. 18 Glenbard East (15-10, 6-1) beat the Wildcats 42-40. On Tuesday the Rams overcame a 6-0 deficit with 3-pointers by Terrence Lakes, Kenny Adams, Carlos Meyers and Zach Walsh to go up 18-11 and never trailed again.
"Same kind of game, we just didn't knock shots down," said Glenbard East coach Scott Miller, contrasting that first game at West Chicago (17-5, 5-2).
"I thought tonight, especially early on, we really shot the ball well. Got good looks, knocked them down," he said.
Blending zone and man-to-man defenses Glenbard East held West Chicago senior Mike Bibbs and junior brother Tai Bibbs to 8 points apiece and inside-outside scorer Quinn Ricci to 3. Point guard Peter Dolan led the Wildcats with 11 points.
"We like to call it 'Six Eyes,'" said Rams guard Jack Grigat, who guarded Tai Bibbs along with Davonte Smith and Adams, while Walsh had Mike Bibbs.
"We've got three guys helping in on (Tai Bibbs) because he's so fast and so athletic. We just locked in on team defense this week and it was probably the difference in the game," Grigat said.
Miller said a goal was to force Ricci and Mike Bibbs "a little farther from the basket than they wanted to be."
Making 5 of 7 first-quarter field goals - but with 6 turnovers - West Chicago went 8 of 35 the rest of the way.
"On defense we all took a part of it," Finley said.
Glenbard East started pulling away in the second quarter, 26-16 midway through. West Chicago got within 29-23 when Dolan assisted on baskets by Jourdan Habecker and Mike Bibbs. Glenbard East regained control on a Meyers 3 and Finley in the lane for a 34-23 halftime lead.
"And that just seemed to be the whole cycle for us up until the end there when they extended it a little bit," said West Chicago coach Bill Recchia.
In the third quarter West Chicago cut a 13-point deficit to 43-36 but mustered one free throw over the first four minutes of the fourth quarter to trail 49-37.
"It wasn't our best performance tonight, it's that simple," Recchia said. "Take nothing away from Glenbard East, they're a good ballclub. We knew they're a good ballclub, they played like a good ballclub, we didn't tonight."