Fremd runs away from Palatine

Fremd turned up the heat in the third quarter, and that made all the difference in its Mid-Suburban League West Division boys basketball game at cross-town rival Palatine on Saturday.

The Vikings went on a 17-2 tear to open the second half after closing the first half with a 5-0 run. All told, Fremd wiped out an 18-14 deficit and led 36-20 before the hosts scored the final 4 points of the quarter.

The 50-41 victory inched the surging Vikings (6-9, 3-2) closer to the .500 mark after an 0-7 start.

The Vikings forced 6 turnovers in the third quarter and were sparked by Zach Monaghan, who scored all of his 10 points in that quarter.

"We chart (defensive) stops on the bench, and we had 5 stops in a row to start the third quarter," said Fremd coach Bob Widlowski.

"That's what has plagued us all year," said Palatine coach Eric Millstone. "We talked (at halftime) about coming out strong in the third quarter. The way we came out was not the way we wanted to handle it."

Chris Klimek (14 points) scored Fremd's last 5 points of the first half to give the Vikings a 19-18 lead, after Tommy Galvan's 3-pointer had given Palatine (2-14, 0-5) its largest lead of the game, 18-14.

"We were fortunate to get the lead at halftime," Widlowski said. "We didn't play like we did in the third quarter. We came out (after halftime) and played much better defense."

Monaghan got Fremd revved up by making 3 free throws and later draining a pair of long 3-pointers, the last one giving Fremd a 32-20 lead with 3:29 left in the quarter.

Galvan scored 6 of his team-high 14 points in the fourth quarter, and Matt Rossi and Nat Pearson scored 4 each, as Palatine cut the lead to 40-34 with 4:35 left. Klimek and Will Reising asserted themselves under the basket, combining for 7 points down the stretch.

Dan Bruno scored 12 points for Fremd, and Rossi 10 for Palatine.