Usual suspects vie for NSC crown

It's a new year, and another North Suburban Conference girls basketball title game, but the teams remain the same.

For the fourth consecutive year, Warren will represent the Lake Division while Grant does the same for the Prairie. At 7 p.m. today, Grant will try to deny visiting Warren its fourth consecutive championship.

"They keep getting the best of us so it would be fun to beat them," Grant coach Tom Oeffling said. "It's always a great game and there should be a lot of people there."

Warren coach John Stanczykiewicz said he seems some similarities between the two teams.

"Like us, they don't tend to make a lot of mistakes," he said. "They're pretty consistent in what they do."

Both Warren (24-2, 12-0) and Grant (24-3, 12-0) are performing at a high level.

Warren prevented Mundelein from scoring 20 points Saturday in either half on the way to an impressive 61-33 victory. When the two teams played at Mundelein on Dec. 17, Warren won 58-49 in a game that was closer than the score indicated.

"Mundelein is always tough to play on the road," Stanczykiewicz said. "This time, we had a little more rest and our kids did a great job running the floor and executing."

Stanczykiewicz said the Blue Devils really hit their stride in the middle of January when they went 2-1 in the Willowbrook Shootout and MLK-Dream Classic.

"We've been playing really good basketball every since," he said. "That weekend challenged the girls and forced them to play at a high level. The girls have a great deal of confidence."

Stanczykiewicz said Grant presents a number of problems. Although the Bulldogs don't have anyone as tall as 6-foot-5 senior center Sarah Boothe, they do start three girls who are close to 6 feet.

"We haven't seen a lot of size like that this year; they have some big, strong kids inside," he said. "They're senior-dominated and because of that that there's a certain amount of confidence and familiarity."

Shutting down senior Jamie Swanson will be especially key.

"She's a heck of a player," he said. "She's as good as anyone we'll see from this area."

In turn, Oeffling knows Grant faces a formidable challenge.

"They only have 2 losses for a reason," he said.

Grant, like Warren, takes a lot of momentum into this game. The Bulldogs secured the Prairie Division title last week with a 65-56 victory over Round Lake. They stayed perfect in the Prairie on Saturday by playing great defense Saturday to defeat Vernon Hills 36-16.

"Right now we have (some girls) playing the best basketball they have all year," Oeffling said. "They're picking a good time to do it. When we play smart and stay out of foul trouble, we present some challenges for our opponents."