Figure this: Warren's durable stats crew gets its props

After years of lending a hand, three volunteers for the Warren boys basketball team will soon be given a very well deserved hand.

On Saturday, prior to the Blue Devils' big nonconference tilt against visiting Glenbrook North, Kevin Myers, Doug Lindsay and David May will be honored for their combined 62 years of service to the program. The three are non-paid statisticians who work both home and away games.

Each could probably count on one hand the number of games he has missed over the years.

"I can't place a value on what those guys do," said Warren coach Chuck Ramsey, who calculated that Myers has kept stats for the team since 1982, Lindsay since 1991 and May since 1995. "They've been taking stats for a long time, so I'm so confident with what they give me at halftime and after games. It's a real help because I'm getting stats and information right away, so I'm able to analyze things quickly."

There's a lot to analyze.

The stats taken by Myers, a former player at Warren, Lindsay and May, a former Warren manager, aren't just your garden-variety stats, although they take those down too, including steals, offensive and defensive rebounds, blocked shots and assists.

They also track turnovers for each team, and then break those turnovers into categories such as bad passes, violations or fumbles.

They keep a shot chart, and they also count how many times the ball gets passed down in to the post.

And if that weren't enough, they report back to Ramsey how many of the 14 goals the team has for each game were achieved.

"I could never pay them what they're worth," Ramsey said. "I think for them, they payoff is that they just like being a part of it. They like the whole deal, being part of the team.

"Our kids are very appreciative of them and they know what those guys contribute to our program."

In return, Myers, Lindsay and May get to sit on the bench and wear Warren gear during games.

Now, they'll also get their names on a plaque that hangs on a wall in the gym and recognizes other volunteers in the athletic program. Predecessor Ron Krapf, who kept stats for the boys team for years before dying in 2004, is also on the board.

"Schools really count on volunteers," Ramsey said. "These guys have helped us so much and it's been great that they've been together so long.

"I don't have to worry every year about teaching someone new how to take stats, and these guys are so reliable. They show up. They know what to do and they're really good guys to be around. They're good friends."

Big weekend: Besides honoring some friends of the program on Saturday, Warren's weekend will feature some other big moments.

The Glenbrook North game that will immediately follow features two of the better players in the northern suburbs. Alex Dragicevich will play at Notre Dame next year while Austin Weber is as well connected as they come. His Dad Dave is the coach at Glenbrook North and his uncle is Illinois men's coach Bruce Weber.

"That's a very good team," Warren coach Chuck Ramsey said of the Spartans, who enter the weekend with an 18-3 record. "It's going to be a real test for us to see how we play them and how we come back from an emotional game the night before."

Tonight, Warren takes on Lake Forest in a key North Suburban Conference Lake Division battle.

Not so long ago, the Blue Devils had no reason to think they'd be playing in a key division game late in the season. They started out the season 3-10.

But a string of five straight wins over the last three weeks, four in the Lake Division, has made Warren relevant again.

"As hard as it is to believe, we have a chance to at least tie for the division," Ramsey said.

With four division losses, Warren is tied with Zion-Benton for third place. Stevenson with three losses is just ahead and Lake Forest with two losses sits atop the standings.

Warren's last two division games are against Lake Forest and Stevenson and Ramsey says that if his team takes care of business and if Lake Forest loses to Libertyville on the road, fans could celebrate a share of the Lake Division title.

"I'd rather be in Lake Forest's position than ours, of course," Ramsey said. "But we've got a little bit of hope here. We have a chance."

Title run: There's a banner hanging in Dundee-Crown's gym that Grayslake Central coach Brian Moe wouldn't mind having hang in his gym. Or at least something very similar.

Last year, on their way to an appearance downstate, the Chargers steamrolled through the Fox Valley Valley Division without a loss. That accomplishment is commemorated by a special banner for all to see.

"We'd love to have something like that in our gym," Moe said. "It would be a nice accomplishment to go through an undefeated season in conference."

The Rams, who are 16-6 and have won 10 games in a row, are on the brink. They are currently spotless in Fox Valley Fox play.

Their biggest hurdle comes tonight in a showdown against Johnsburg on the road. Johnsburg was a perfect 14-0 last month until the Rams dealt them their first and only loss of the season.

If the Rams can defeat Johnsburg again and take care of business, as expected, in their final two division games against Woodstock and Woodstock North, an undefeated division season and a title would be theirs.

It would be the second division title for the Rams in three years.

"I know it sounds so cliché, but we're really trying to focus on nothing but what we're doing at the time," Moe said.

Lately, that's been a whole lot of winning, and Moe says there's a simple reason for his team's success.

"Our kids just want to win so bad," Moe said. "One of our players from last year came back recently and was watching practice and he said to me, 'You guys are so much better than we were last year.'

"Actually, player for player, I don't know if we're all that more talented. But I do think that this group really enjoys playing for each other. We really don't have any superstars. Everyone just takes what comes to him. There's a lot of good chemistry there and that means a lot."

Third wheel: Making a substantial run in the postseason depends on a lot things, not the least of which is luck.

But Grayslake Central coach Brian Moe also believes that his team will need a third scorer in double figures to take the focus off of leading scorers Josh Rappaport and Andrew Sipes.

"Having a third person who can score consistently becomes really important down the road," Moe said.

Matt Murphy could be that person.

He's averaging 6.7 points per game, but has been lighting up the scoreboard in recent games.

He scored 19 points last week against Grayslake North and had 10 points against Glenbrook South the night before.

Also, he's tallied 19 three-pointers on the year, but six of them have come in two of the last three games.

"Matt is shooting the ball really well," Moe said. "He's really stepping up for us when we need it."

Numbers game: Grayslake North likes its chances.

The Knights don't face a team with a record above .500 over their seven remaining games. That means at 8-11, it is mathematically possible for Grayslake North to hit one of its biggest goals of the season.

The Knights really want to get 15 wins, which would be a big accomplishment for the four-year-old program.

"We could do it if we won out," Grayslake North coach Todd Grunloh said. "That's going to take some work but not only are we playing teams that are below .500 the rest of the way, we're playing our best basketball right now.

"We've played the best we have all year in the last week."

Grayslake North has won four of its last seven games, and gave both Grayslake Central and Johnsburg, the two top teams in the Fox Valley Fox Division, a run for their money.

"We got two losses in a row right there, but that might have been the best basketball we've played," Grunloh said. "The margin in both of those games didn't hit double-digits until late in the second half. In fact, it wasn't until the last minute against Johnsburg."

Grunloh credits the mindset of his players, who are no longer accepting of their "new kid on the block" status.

"We're not going into games anymore, even our toughest games, just trying to keep it close," Grunloh said. "These kids are taking the attitude that they're not going to back down from anyone."

Complete package: The offense is obvious.

Junior Teddy Ludwick has given Grayslake North a lift this season with his shooting. He's averaging 14 points per game and leads the team with 40 three-pointers, more than double the next player in line.

And over the last few games, Ludwick has been particularly lethal, tallying 20-plus points each time out.

"Teddy is really explosive," Grayslake North coach Todd Grunloh said. "He's a great shooter and a great score and he just kind of has that knack for putting the ball in the basket, even from six to seven feet outside the three-point line.

"We've always known he could shoot the ball and that he had great offensive skills."

The big question for Grunloh when he promoted Ludwick to the varsity as a sophomore last year was whether or not he had any defense to go along with that offense.

"We used to joke with Teddy that it seemed like he was always saving himself for offense," Grunloh said. "But he doesn't take plays off any more. He's really committed himself to the defensive end this year to become a more complete player. He's been a big key for us on both ends of the floor this season."

Sweet dreams: Considering that his team is riding a two-game winning streak after having lost four straight games, Antioch coach Mike Skinner is sleeping much better these days.

Well, when he can actually find time to get some sleep, that is.

Skinner is a brand new dad.

His daughter, Brynn, was born on Jan. 15 and is just four weeks old.

"She's going to play basketball," Skinner said proudly.

Skinner missed his team's loss to Vernon Hills the night before Brynn was born because his wife Tadia went into labor.

Lost lead: Victory slipped through the cracks for Grant last weekend at Antioch.

The Bulldogs had multiple double-digit leads through the first half and were up by as many as seven points late in the third quarter.

But closing out games has been a sore spot for this young team all season.

"We have such a hard time when we get on runs and have momentum on our side," Grant coach Wayne Bosworth said. "We're so young and we get so excited that we just come flying down the court and we shoot ourselves right out of it. We'll shoot it up too quick, or we'll try to make a quick pass and we'll throw it into the third row of the bleachers.

"We're just not able to play with that momentum and excitement and that just shows how inexperienced we are."

Shane Richardson, a junior who scored a game-high 19 points against Antioch, is Grant's only returning letterman.

"Even our seniors really didn't play last year," Bosworth said. "We're just still fighting that lack of experience right now."