No panic in victorious Prospect
There was never any panic in Prospect's 59-56 come-from-behind win over Libertyville at the 32nd Wheeling Hardcourt Classic on Wednesday night.
The semifinal victory vaulted the 10-1 Knights in the championship game for the first time in 12 years at Wheeling. The Knights, whose last holiday championship came at Pontiac in 1965, play Deerfield for the title Saturday at 8:45 p.m.
"Even when we were down 17-6 early and not shooting well in the first quarter (4 of 18), we knew that there was still 24 minutes to get things together," said the Knights' Joe LaTulip.
Sophomore Mike LaTulip and Jack Redding led the Knights' comeback over the 7-4 Wildcats in the final 1:27.
Mike LaTulip connected on both ends of a 1-and-1 to pull Prospect within 56-55.
With Libertyville in a delay game during the final :36, Ryan Barth (13 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists) missed the front end of a bonus situation.
Joe LaTulip (22 points, 4 rebounds) grabbed the rebound. Redding was fouled going to the basket and made the first of 2 shots to tie the game at 56-56 with :24 left.
The Wildcats missed a shot, and another foul put Redding back at the line - where he put Prospect ahead for good at 57-56 with 12 seconds remaining.
Barth (13 points) missed a baseline shot, with Mike LaTulip getting the rebound. He was fouled and made the final 2 free throws with one second left to ice the game.
"I saw the shot from the baseline," Mike LaTulip said. "I was in position to get the rebound and I grabbed it."
The Wildcats trailed 5-2, but went on a 15-1 run to lead 17-6 with 1:37 left in the first quarter.
With a 32-21 lead and three minutes left in the half, Joe LaTulip helped Prospect finish a 9-0 run with three straight 3-point baskets and trailed 32-30 at the half.
Joe LaTulip scored his last basket, a 3-pointer with 40 seconds left in the third quarter to give the Knights a 46-44 lead.
"Redding played a great game tonight," said Knights coach John Camardella. "He chased (Libertyville's) John Colao all game. We put Jack on the other team's best shooter and we still expect him to have the legs on offense."
Redding scored 14 points, grabbed 7 rebounds and had 4 steals. Colao had 11 points, all in the first half. Billy Meyer was limited to 10 points.
"We're excited about getting to the tournament championship," Redding said. "We just find little ways to win games and get things done. Someone always picks us up."
"This was just a dogfight," said Wildcat coach Scott Bogumil. "We just didn't execute down the stretch. We took some quick shots. Our plan was for our defenses to force them outside, but eventually they found some gaps."