Wauconda shows Hart(nett)

Unlike when it played Wauconda in late November, Richmond-Burton had its regulars on the floor.

And this time, the Rockets didn't figure to get beat again by a half-court buzzer-beater.

Richmond-Burton advanced to the semifinals of the Class 3A Vernon Hills boys basketball regional, but the Rockets got quite the scare. They overcame a fourth-quarter deficit to edge a young Wauconda squad 46-43 Monday night.

"We just made enough plays down the stretch to win," said coach Chris Nolen, whose 18-9 Rockets will face top-seeded North Chicago at 6 p.m. Wednesday at Vernon Hills. "Like I told the guys after the game, this time of the year I'm not too worried about fundamentals and things like that - just winning. We just got to survive and advance."

Wauconda (3-25) nearly pulled off the upset thanks to 6-foot-4 junior Eric Hartnett, who posted game highs of 19 points and 13 rebounds. His classmate Matt Stonis sank a trio of 3-pointers and finished with 14 points.

"Stonis and Eric are hard workers," said point guard Gibson Gaite, who was Wauconda's only senior starter. "They work hard every day and have gotten better, as you can see. They have a very bright future."

Wauconda knocked off Richmond-Burton on its home floor Nov. 28 thanks to Gaite's half-court shot at the buzzer. The Rockets were without several players who helped the football team advance to the Class 4A state semifinals. Kyle Wismer, Ken Riordan, Harrison Daniels and Chad Okane all played against Wauconda this time and were among just the seven Nolen played.

While Matt Clary led R-B with 16 points, Daniels added 11 coming off the bench and Riordan chipped in 8 and 3 steals.

"I think my kids got caught up in reading the newspaper a little bit and seeing that Wauconda didn't have very many wins and that we could just show up to beat them," Nolen said. "This time of year, as we all know, anything can happen. I don't think we were ready to play basketball tonight, but I think you have to give Wauconda credit for that too."

Trailing 18-13 at halftime, Wauconda played a near-perfect third quarter, hitting its first 9 shots - including 4 by Hartnett - and led 35-34 heading into the fourth.

Hartnett made his only 2 shots in the fourth quarter, as well, finishing 8 of 11 from the floor. Eleven of his rebounds were on the defensive end.

"This is the type of game that we look to get out of Eric every night," Bulldogs coach Rich Wolf said. "He controlled the defensive boards, he was a force inside, and he was more aggressive. We've been trying to get him to do this on a consistent basis."

Wauconda was up 41-38 midway through the fourth but then collapsed, turning the ball over on 5 straight possessions, which led to 7 points by the Rockets.

"Our Achilles' heel all season long has been the turnover," Wolf said. "The last game we played, at Warren, we turned the ball over only 16 times, and that was our season low. We said if we can replicate that and take care of the basketball, we'll be in good shape."

But Wauconda committed 10 turnovers in the fourth and 24 for the game.

"The problem for us the whole year has just been mental lapses," Gaite said. "We just didn't come together when it mattered."