Barrington knocks off Jacobs

Jacobs scored first on Barrington in Tuesday's final game of pool play of the Jacobs Holiday Classic Boys Basketball Tournament.

That was the only positive vibe the host Golden Eagles could take out of the game.

Barrington (6-6) responded with 13 straight points and cruised to an easy 57-43 win over the Eagles.

"The kids really came out and did a nice job of executing offensively and defensively," said Barrington coach Bryan Tucker. "Our press was effective and it was nice to get an early cushion on the road."

Barrington finished 3-0 in its pool and will play in today's 7:30 p.m. semifinal against Zion-Benton (9-4) and Ohio State recruit Lenzelle Smith. Three-time defending tournament champion Jacobs (2-7) saw its 19-game tourney winning streatk snapped.

After Mike Peterson gave Jacobs the lead, the Broncos unleashed an aggressive full-court trapping press which forced 5 turnovers and led to 5 baskets.

Ben Bartz scored 6 points and John Schneider and Greg Gerrard had a basket apiece. Gerrard also nailed a 3-pointer and the Broncos led 13-2 with 4:11 left in the first quarter.

Barrington never relinquished the lead and it was an uphill climb for the Golden Eagles all night.

Barrington's biggest lead was 45-29 after three quarters.

Jacobs refused to quit and scored the first 9 points of the final quarter to slice the Broncos lead to 45-38 with 5:22 left in the game.

Nathan Wistehuff, Connor Conzelman and Nick Hofman Each had baskets as the Golden Eagles got within striking distance.

But, Jacobs couldn't get any closer.

Barrington won the game at the free-throw line in the final three minutes on 10-for-14 shooting.

Bryan Wegner made 5-of-6 free throws and Bartz and James Stack connected on 2-of-3.

"Barrington was the better team tonight," said Jacobs coach Jim Hinkle. "They were much more physical than us. We have played Fremd and Grayslake Central, who are physical teams and are similar to Barrington.

"We held our own against Fremd and Grayslake Central. Tonight, we couldn't match Barrington's physical play. We made a run in the fourth quarter, but they made their free throws at the end of the game."

Wegner led Barrington with 17 points, including 7-of-8 from the free throw line, and Gerrard scored 12 with a pair of 3-pointers.

Matt Schmidt led Jacobs, which was hindered by 25 turnovers, with 9 points and Peterson scored 8.