Prospect finds right tempo

Once again, Prospect showed why it is unbeaten in Mid-Suburban East boys basketball play.

After Elk Grove's defense held down the Knights in the first half, Joe LaTulip and company were able to play a more up-tempo game in the second half and pull away to a 57-43 victory at Jean Walker Field House in Mount Prospect.

LaTulip, the Knights' point guard, attributed a second half where his team outscored the visiting Grenadiers by 13 points to being able to play the style Prospect (16-6, 9-0) wants to on offense.

"Out team is just a run-and-gun, transition team," said LaTulip, who scored 15 points. "The start of the third quarter is what really opened it up. We got a couple runouts which got us some easy looks. I just think we weren't executing in the first half."

It also helped that seniors Kevin Reed and Jason Leblebijian scored the majority of their points in the second half. Reed had 14 of his game-high 20 after intermission and Leblebijian had 7 of his 10 points in the third quarter.

"The second half was how we wanted to play starting in the first half," Prospect coach John Camardella said. "I don't think the effort we displayed in the second half was there in the first half."

Not only was Elk Grove's defense suffocating in the first half after the Knights jumped out to a 12-4 lead six minutes into the game, but Reed, LaTulip, Leblebijian and Nsenzi Salasini - all starters - each picked up two first-half fouls for Prospect.

"That plays a huge role," LaTulip said. "Because not only do we get in foul trouble, but it stops the game and slows the game down. And it takes away from the momentum."

Now Prospect will try to become the first team in to go unbeaten in East play next Friday against Wheeling. It went undefeated in the MSL South in 1996-97.

The game was closely contested until the final 21/2 minutes. The score was tied halfway through the third quarter, and Elk Grove (7-17, 2-7) trailed by just 6 points heading into the fourth.

"We need to find a balance between having good possessions and knowing when to be aggressive to score," Elk Grove coach Anthony Furman said. "I don't think we did enough to be aggressive offensively. Fourteen points is very deceiving in the outcome of the game."

Donny Duschinsky, Elk Grove's leading scorer on the night with 12 points, landed awkwardly with 1:45 to play and left the game with an injured right knee. Furman said Duschinsky just landed on someone's foot and that he thought Duschinsky would be OK.

Duschinsky was seen walking around after the game with an ice bag and a slight limp, but did not need assistance nor did he have crutches.