Fremd pulls out double-OT triumph

A Mid-Suburban West victory Friday night would have been sweet indeed for a Palatine boys basketball team that hasn't had many big moments.

And playing in Fremd's gym, on senior night for the Vikings, it looked as if things might be headed that way for the Pirates.

They hit big shots at the end of regulation and forced Fremd into a miss on a last-second shot to force overtime.

In the first OT, Palatine led by 5 points before Fremd climbed back into it and forced another extra period. And finally, by hitting 9-of-14 free throws in the second OT, Fremd pulled out a 53-48 decision.

In the end, it was just doubly hard to swallow for Palatine (3-21, 1-9).

"It just comes down to execution," said Palatine coach Eric Millstone. "At key points of the game, we need to have more guys wanting to have the basketball, and doing the right things with it."

The Pirates' difficulty in doing so allowed Fremd to stay in the game and ultimately take control late in the second overtime. Only Fremd's struggles at the free throw line - it finished 22-of-41 - kept the game so close.

"I've seen a lot of exciting Fremd-Palatine games," said Fremd coach Bob Widlowski, "but that's got to be one of the most exciting.

"I thought we executed well at the end of regulation - we didn't win the game, but we ran our stuff well. We just missed the shot."

Key for the Vikings was Chris Klimek, who scored a game-high 19 points after battling illness all week. He scored 5 of Fremd's 6 points in the first overtime and made 3 more free throws in the second OT.

Matt Rossi gave Palatine a big lift, especially early. He had 7 rebounds, 6 points plus a block and a steal as the Pirates sprinted out to an 8-3 lead before Dan Bruno hit the Vikings' first bucket five minutes into the game. Rossi finished with a team-high 14 points before fouling out in the game's final moments.

"Matt gave us a nice game," said Millstone. "He's a senior leader and we expect that of him."

Zach Monaghan and Bruno both finished with 11 points for the Vikings (10-14, 5-5). Kevin Becker finished with 9 points and Mark Knoeppel had 8, including 5 of Palatine's 6 points in the first overtime.