Free throws win it for Grayslake North

In a nail-biting game - against the crosstown rival, with 0.2 seconds on the clock, with his team down 1 - James Connolly thought only of a simple game.

The Grayslake North junior plays a fun contest in practice with assistant coach Tim Hough. They shoot free throws. Swish it, and it counts for 2 points. Make it but hit the rim, it's worth 1 point. Miss it, and it's minus-1.

"I just thought of that," Connolly said. "I just went to the mechanics, and everything went well."

Needing to make 1 free throw, rim or no rim, to force overtime, Connolly swished both of his free throws. Talk about big points. Connolly's clutch foul tosses lifted Grayslake North to a come-from-behind, 51-50 win over visiting Grayslake Central in a Northern Lake County Conference thriller Thursday night.

Grayslake North (9-2, 4-1) trailed by 13 points with less than five minutes left in the third quarter.

"They did a nice job," Grayslake Central coach Kosta Kougias said of the Knights. "They turned up the defense a little bit more in the third quarter and fourth quarter, and got us a little rattled. Credit to them. In the end, they did what they had to do."

In the end, Grayslake Central (6-8, 2-2) appeared in good shape to pull off the upset after Sidney Goodman (team-high 14 points) drained his second 3-pointer of the fourth quarter. His first 3, from well beyond the arc on the wing and with 3:23 left, tied the score at 47-47. His second (fourth overall), from up top with 2:07 to go, put the Rams in front 50-49.

"Those were huge," Knights coach Todd Grunloh said. "Those weren't easy shots."

"He and Jamal are good friends," Kougias said of Goodman and fellow point guard Jamal Thomas of Grayslake North. "They talk all the time. I think both of them showed you what some point guards can do."

Despite Goodman's shooting, the Rams couldn't put the game away, missing the front end of a one-and-one three times in the final 23 seconds. That gave Grayslake North a chance for heroics, even though Thomas (game-high 21 points, 5 assists) had just fouled out.

After the Rams missed a free throw with 6.9 seconds on the clock, Knights freshman Ryan Connolly (7 points) grabbed the rebound and, with no Thomas on the floor, gave the ball to his older brother as time ticked down.

"My brother got the rebound and I just knew there was not a lot of time on the clock," James Connolly said. "I knew I had to push it. I was hoping to get a foul, and I did."

Connolly's 2 foul shots gave him 14 points. They also provided the Knights an unlikely win considering they never had a lead until Thomas scored in the post with five minutes left in the fourth.

Alec Novak's 3-pointer with 5:03 to go in the third had stretched Grayslake Central's lead to 42-29.

"I give (Central) tons and tons of credit," said Grunloh, whose Knights closed the third with an 11-0 run that James Connolly punctuated with a steal and layup in the closing seconds. "Man, did they run a disciplined half-court offense. They set screens, kicked out, didn't force 3s. They just shot them and made them."

Novak and Justin Shepley each sank three 3-pointers and finished with 11 points for the Rams.

Grayslake North, which has had a bad habit of starting games slows, hadn't played since beating Glenbrook North on Dec. 20. The Knights got a big lift off the bench from Jack Van Reck (5 points, fourth-quarter 3).

"We didn't play well enough for 32 minutes to win," Grunloh said. "I give (Central) a ton of credit, but our kids worked their butts off."