Stefanowski takes charge as Grant stops Round Lake

Standing tall, Travis Stefanowski didn't get fazed when he took the brunt of a couple of charges on Friday night.

Stefanowski, who played right tackle on the offensive line for Grant's football team, let his experience take over while stopping a couple of Panthers driving to the basket late third quarter.

"Those were big and a it gave us big momentum swing back to us," said Stefanowski, who stands 6-foot-3. "Those guys have a look in their eyes and you know they're not going to pass it.

"They just want to take the ball to the basket. You just stand and wait for it. I'm a big guy and I can take it. I do whatever it takes getting the job done."

Grant's team also took care of business, breaking away from the host Panthers for a 58-48 victory in a North Suburban Prairie boys basketball game in Round Lake.

The game had seven lead changes and five ties until Grant (4-3, 2-1) took control late in that third quarter and took a 34-31 lead over Round Lake (2-7, 2-2).

The Bulldogs' Tom Bronken (5 points) hit a short-jumper and converted a 3-point play starting the final quarter. That led Grant on a 7-0 run, extending its lead to 41-31 with just under five minutes left.

"I thought it changed the tempo of the game," Bronken said. "We came out of the third quarter a little sketchy because we were up by 3. It was good time to get to the basket."

Round Lake tried to chip away at the Grant lead in the final minutes and got within 5 points at 53-48 on a layup by Juddon Carter (10 points).

The Bulldogs held off the late surge, scoring the final 5 points.

"We haven't had an easy game at Round Lake that I can remember," Grant coach Wayne Bosworth said. "There's never been a blowout either way.

"We scored points in the final quarter, which made the difference. Our defense was the worst compared to the last few weeks."

Shane Richardson led the Bulldogs with 18 points and Jeremy Wiker added 13.

Grant played the game without starting forward Jerry Gaylor, who was recovering from a sprained ankle suffered in last weeks game against Vernon Hills.

The Panthers' Jake Paulsen provided a spark in the second quarter. With his team trailing 15-9, Paulsen scored 6 of his team-high 12 points in a 14-5 run and Round Lake led 23-20 at halftime.

"Grant was very physical, well-coached and they run their stuff very well," Round Lake coach Howard Kravets said. "We didn't match them being stronger and tougher. We lost the war in the paint and need to improve on that. We just missed a lot of shots and need to correct a lot of things."