Conant manages to avoid class struggle

Mixing classes doesn't always match up to success.

Conant didn't have to worry about that much last year since seniors took almost all of the significant playing time. But it's a different story this season with four of its top 10 players from the junior class.

Senior swingman Tom Sotos said avoiding class clashes has been a key to a start where the Cougars' only loss in their first 5 games was to Thornton in overtime.

''One of the things (four-year starter and two-time all-area pick) Matt Collins stressed to us after we lost to (Rockford) Boylan, was he said to make sure you become friends with the juniors,'' Sotos said of the Class AA supersectional loss. ''The seniors and juniors are really good friends. Now when we're on the floor playing together things are really starting to mesh.''

It's a group that has to work well together because of the lack of experience and lack of a take-over type of guy such as Geoff McCammon, last year's all-area captain now at Loyola.

But a guy such as 6-foot-3 senior Tom Mahr showed he can make big plays at big times with a pair of rebound baskets in Saturday's 62-54 win over Prospect.

''He's a tough kid who doesn't get discouraged when something doesn't work,'' said Conant coach Tom McCormack. ''He's pretty good at persevering with it and staying with it when something doesn't go right.

''He's got tremendous heart and he's a tremendous battler. Kids like that make plays in big situations.''

And Conant's newcomers continue to learn to try and cut down on the mental mistakes that allowed Prospect three times to cut into 12-point deficits.

''Those kinds of things will kill us later in the season,'' Sotos said of untimely turnovers and defensive lapses. ''They (Prospect) are a good team and when you get those opportunities, you want to expand that (lead) to 20 or 30 points.

''Those mental mistakes can come back to bite you in the butt later in the season. But we toughed it out. As a team we really stressed we wanted to get tough.''

The Cougars will need to be Saturday with a nonconference trip to perennial power St. Joseph.

Finishing instead of finished: Palatine matched its win total of last season in games decided by 7 points or less last weekend when it beat Fremd 46-39 and Hersey 42-40.

And in both cases the Pirates came back in the fourth quarter.

''Hopefully we're learning how to finish games,'' Palatine coach Ed Molitor said of his team's 2-12 record last year by 7 points or less.

From allowing only 2 points in the final 4:14 to hitting 10-of-12 free throws, the Pirates did everything right to overcome a 5-point deficit a year after blowing a 10-point fourth quarter lead at Fremd.

''The ball wasn't dropping for us ... but defensively we created a couple of turnovers and that helped us loosen up,'' Molitor said. ''The physical effort on both sides was outstanding and Fremd was very, very patient.

''I thought we sustained our patience and we were finally able to get some things going in the fourth quarter.''

Especially senior Matt Wieber, who scored all 4 of his points in the final quarter while drawing a critical charging foul and grabbing 2 big offensive rebounds.

And it all reaffirmed Wieber's decision to return for his senior year after opting to work.

''The first game at Hoffman (Estates) I thought, 'What am I doing,'' Wieber said of going to watch last year as a fan. ''Senior year, Fremd, it all adds to it.''

Knights fighting back: Rallying three times from double digits last Saturday at Conant may indicate a trend for Prospect.

Especially since the Knights beat Wheeling at the buzzer a night earlier on Jason Leblebijian's 3-pointer, rallied from a 5-point deficit with a minute left to beat St. Charles East and nearly came all the way back from a 13-point deficit to St. Joseph to miss a tying 3 at the horn in the opener.

''It's something I can't credit them enough with -- this team has always believed in every game,'' said Prospect coach John Camardella. ''But it's something we've got to figure out. How we're going to handle the second and third quarters and put a run together so we don't always find ourselves fighting back at the end.''

Conant coach Tom McCormack liked what he saw from the Knights and their trio that will give opponents matchup problems with long-range threat Jeff Heiden and the versatile 6-foot-6 duo of Alex Toth and Kevin Reed.

''They just wouldn't go away,'' McCormack said. ''John is doing a real nice job with that team. It was a nice win for our guys against a real solid team.''

No excuse Vikings: Youth could be served up as a convenient cause for Fremd's 1-4 start that includes a 4-point loss to Warren and a 7-point loss at Palatine.

That's not on Fremd coach Bob Widlowski's agenda.

''I think these kids can execute and they can play right now,'' Widlowski said of a team where two sophomores and four juniors are starting or seeing extensive time. ''These kids can execute now and I've seen them do it.

''We've played in spurts where we've been very efficient and very together. I think we've got the kids who can do it right now.''

Widlowski was happy with junior Dan Bruno's play in an 11-point night against Palatine. And 6-5 junior Will Reising scored a career-high 13 points on 6-for-9 shooting and had 4 rebounds.

''He was aggressive and did some nice things defensively and offensively,'' Widlowski said.

Free play: Wheeling senior Chris McClellan wasted no time getting a new streak of made free throws started last Saturday at Fremd.

After missing his first attempt to end a run of 36 to begin the season, McClellan made his next 6 attempts.

According to IHSA records, McClellan's streak is 12th in state history. Former Glenbrook North star and Duke sophomore Jon Scheyer holds six of the top 17 spots with a best of 47 in a row.

Former DePaul guard Brad Niemann set the state record with 76 in a row for Glenbrook South bridging the 1985-86 and 1986-87 seasons. Former Rolling Meadows star and Northern Illinois guard Mike Lipnisky hit 71straight in 1989-90.

More Les at Notre Dame: Tom and Jim Les starred at Notre Dame in Niles before going on to successful college careers at Bradley University.

Both are back at their alma maters as coaches -- Tom in his first year in charge at Notre Dame and Jim in his sixth as Bradley's boss.

And Jim's son Tyler also plays for Notre Dame in Peoria. Tyler Les scored 30 points for his sophomore team Friday night.