Jacobs slips by Crystal Lake South
Jacobs and Crystal Lake South entered Tuesday night's Fox Valley Conference Valley Division game with totally opposite agendas.
Jacobs, with a win, kept its hopes alive for at least a tie for the conference championship while South was just looking to break a 3-game losing skid and gain some momentum for next week's regional.
The Golden Eagles stayed in the hunt for a conference championship while the Gators' losing doldrums continued.
Staving off a valiant fourth quarter rally by Crystal Lake South, the Golden Eagles were able to hold on to a 60-55 FVC Valley win at Gator Alley.
"We had a great first half and they played a great second half," said Jacobs coach Jim Hinkle. "South made a great run at us but the kids kept their composure."
Hitting 5 of its first 6 shots, the Golden Eagles raced to a 10-0 lead courtesy of 3 putback baskets by Conrad Krutwig, a 15-footer from Tim Moran and a layup by Sean Meyer.
Jacobs (24-2, 8-1), which led 35-20 at halftime, held its biggest lead at 17, 42-25, after a putback by Krutwig with 3:22 left in the third quarter. Those would be the last points Jacobs would score in the quarter.
The Gators (12-14, 2-7) scored the final 9 points of the quarter on 3-pointers by Eric Wilde, Mike Frericks and Adam Olszewski and sliced the Jacobs lead to 42-34 after 24 minutes.
The Gators continued their torrid shooting in the fourth quarter and got to within 54-52 on a 3 by Mike McKenna with 55 seconds left.
But the Golden Eagles sealed the win with 6 free throws in the final 33 seconds. Mike Peterson made 4-of-4 and Mike Barch made both of his free throws as the Golden Eagles hung on to the win.
"We have to learn to play four quarters, not three and a half or two and a half quarters," said South coach Dan DeBruycker. "We played much better defense in the second half and started knocking down shots."
Krutwig, who fouled out with 2:46 left, scored 18 points with 15 rebounds. Meyer, starting his fourth straight game, scored 14.
"The shots were there and I was able to hit some early," said Meyer. "We got off to a good start and South played a great second half."
Wilde scored 14 for Crystal Lake South while Steven Rogers netted 11.