Unbeaten Storm holds off Larkin upset bid

Larkin never gave up, but South Elgin didn't give in.

A furious Larkin rally turned what looked like a laugher in the third quarter into a 1-possession game late in the fourth, but host South Elgin was still able to smile after holding on for a 65-62 boys basketball victory in Upstate Eight Conference play Thursday.

"We won the game, but they understand that it shouldn't have been there because we had a chance to put them away and we just didn't," South Elgin coach Chaz Taft said. The Storm (7-0, 2-0) took its biggest lead of the game against the Royals (3-4, 1-1) at 45-25 when Jordan Dobler sank a 3-pointer with 4:13 left in the third quarter.

Larkin coach Larry Hight summoned players off the bench to add some energy, and his reserves delivered. Junior Brian Cooks sank 2 free throws, junior Alex Wahl 6 points) played good defense and junior guard Ramadon Adili netted three 3-pointers before the quarter ended. Adili's fourth 3-pointer of the evening trimmed the deficit to 53-41 heading to the final period and gave the Royals momentum.

"The bench came up real strong at the end," Larkin coach Larry Hight said. "We didn't lose anything and we gained some stuff, plus we got to get some breathers (for the starters)."

South Elgin still led 59-45 with six minutes left when the Royals made their move - a 12-1 run fueled by a string of steals while playing tight man-to-man defense.

Brandon Cooks hit a basket and a free throw and Jeff Saurbaugh scored 7 straight points to pull the Royals within 60-55 with 3:22 left.

"Everyone stepped up and played big and everyone hit big shots," Saurbaugh said. "We played good, physical defense and got the offense going."

Wahl then came up with his third steal, South Elgin's fifth turnover of the fourth quarter, and he scored on the other end by following up a Terell John miss to pull Larkin within 60-57 with 2:14 remaining.

"It was a big game, so we just couldn't go out like that," said John, who led the Royals with 16 points. "We had to come back. We have too much heart for that."

However, Larkin was forced to foul with 1:05 to play. The Storm hit 5-of-6 free throws down the stretch and Jeffrey Lewis came up with 2 critical defensive rebounds to keep South Elgin undefeated.

"It shouldn't have been that close," said Lewis, who finished with 14 points and 7 rebounds. "We made a couple of mistakes late, myself included, but we just acted like a veteran ballclub, dug down deep and pulled it out."

The comeback allowed Larkin to see the sliver lining in its second straight loss.

"We gave it everything we've got, and to come within 3 points this early in the season against that kind of a team, I'm real proud of the guys," Hight said. "I know they're disappointed in losing, but we could have washed that up and it could have been a 30-point loss. But we didn't die tonight."

Senior point guard Alex Sanchez scored 14 points to tie Lewis for the team-high, and Dobler added 11 points for the Storm.

Adili finished with 14 points and Saurbaugh and Brandon Cooks each had 12 points for Larkin.