Sotos, Conant subdue Saxons

This was more than just a Mid-Suburban West game on a Saturday night.

This was two bitter rivals scrapping for every loose ball, battling for every rebound, fighting for every call from the officials.

This was bragging rights on the line for schools less than four miles apart.

Simply put, this was Schaumburg against Conant.

And when the final buzzer sounded and the Cougars' hands were raised the 53-49 victors, a player who didn't even get to experience Conant's 67-62 win at Schaumburg last year -- he was sitting on the bench -- got the thrill of leading his team to victory and celebrating with teammates and friends on the Saxons' home floor.

"We said before the game, the seniors, 'This will probably be the last time we play in this gym,' " said Conant's Tommy Sotos after nailing three 3-pointers and scoring a game-high 24 points at Schaumburg. "This rivalry is so big -- I don't know if people know that."

Surely they do. The fans that packed the Schaumburg gymnasium witnessed two teams go back and forth for 32 minutes, with neither team leading by more than 5 points until Conant senior Jeff Keegan split a pair of free throws with 9.6 seconds left.

Leading 48-47 with 1:17 remaining, Conant (12-4, 4-1) converted 5 of its final 8 free throw attempts, while Schaumburg (10-6, 2-3) committed two of its 12 turnovers and threw up an air ball.

"We just didn't execute down the stretch," said Schaumburg coach Bob Williams. "It was a great game. We just didn't finish quarters."

Sotos did. The 6-foot-3 guard, known for scoring in bunches, halted a 10-2 spurt by the Saxons in the second quarter with a 3 from the left corner, then drained a 3 from the right wing at the halftime buzzer to give Conant a 27-25 lead.

"They were all over (Sotos) early, but our guys hung in there, and as the game wore on, we were able to find him," said Conant coach Tom McCormick, whose team plays 8 of its next 9 games at home.

In his first game against Conant, Burlington Central transfer Cully Payne managed a team-high 15 points for Schaumburg on 6-of-14 shooting. Not bad when you consider he spent two hours receiving an IV at St. Alexius prior to arriving at the gym an hour before tip.

"They definitely defended real well, switching up and stepping up on everything I drove on," said Payne, who combined with Brandon Bolger (14 points) to score 19 of the Saxons' 24 second-half points.

Junior Tony Rizzo and senior Bill Charvat were assigned to Payne, with Keegan and Tim Gilhooly (4 points) also getting some time against at the DePaul recruit.

"We were just trying to stay in front of him," said Rizzo, who scored 5 of his 7 points in the first quarter. "But there were stretches, though, when he just got the ball and went right by us. There's nothing you can really do about that."

And there's nothing the Saxons can do about it until Feb. 15 when they travel to Perry Gymnasium for the much-anticipated rematch.

"They're not going to let this one die," Sotos said. "With a team like this and a coach like this, they're going to come out playing harder than they did tonight."