Stars knock off Geneva
So excited to be back on the court, St. Charles North didn't mind playing any style of basketball - even one that Geneva has trademarked.
The North Stars couldn't get the Vikings out of their hard-nosed, half-court, grind-it-out play, but they did the next best thing - beating Geneva at its own game.
St. Charles North held Geneva to 30 percent shooting while putting three of its own players in double figures for a 45-37 victory Saturday night in St. Charles.
"They are so good at making you play their style," St. Charles North coach Tom Poulin said. "We tried to push a couple times, (but) we're confident we can play any style and pull out a win."
Josh Mikes and Nick Neari scored 11 points and Zach Hirsch added 10. Geneva's Jeremy D'Amico led all scorers with 21 and Rob Tauscher scored 10, but the rest of the Vikings combined for 4 points on 2-of-20 shooting.
Neari had the assignment of chasing D'Amico much of the night and he finished with 4 steals.
It took a team effort to hold the Vikings to 37 points, a season-low. Geneva scored 39 against DeKalb on Dec. 12.
"If we make it hard for teams to score, I'm really confident we can score," Poulin said. "We've got some pieces to the puzzle. We've got good leaders."
The North Stars (10-5) led for the entire game except a three-minute stretch early in the second quarter. David Johnson came off the bench to score 6 first-half points and help steady St. Charles North in the second quarter.
While Geneva (15-3) beat Rochelle Friday night, the North Stars had their game at East Aurora postponed.
"Seniors took leadership, gathered everyone up and played a little five on five," said center Mike Kastel, who had 5 rebounds and 3 steals. "It was just a little obstacle (to overcome)."
The North Stars extended their 23-19 halftime lead to 34-25 after three quarters. D'Amico scored Geneva's first 14 points of the second half, pulling the Vikings within 36-33 with 5:39 remaining.
Hirsch drilled a 3-pointer to put the North Stars back up 7, and Geneva never got close enough to have posession and a chance to tie.
"We didn't run the offense as well as we should have," D'Amico said. "We kind of stuck to outside shots instead of our game which is getting the ball inside and getting to the free-throw line."
The Vikings attempted just 7 free throws while the North Stars hit 12 of 18.
"There's not much I can say other than we got beat," Geneva coach Phil Ralston said. "Tonight St. Charles North was the better team, plain and simple."