Viator turns back Senn

St. Viator made its initial foray into the Class 3A boys basketball playoffs a successful one.

Albeit with a bit more suspense than the Lions would have liked - at least for three quarters.

St. Viator, moved down in postseason class this year due to a drop in enrollment, tied a school record with its 21st win of the season in a 65-46 regional semifinal win over Senn.

The Chicago public-league Bulldogs team hung tough until a fourth quarter run by St. Viator put the game away.

"They fought hard," said St. Viator senior guard Alan Aboona, whose game-high 22 points included four 3-pointers. "They attacked the basket and got fouled and were able to knock down their free throws."

The Lions (21-6) sent Senn to the line 24 times - including 22 in the second half.

"Our coaching staff knew that Senn was a dangerous team," said St. Viator coach Joe Majkowski, "and they proved that tonight."

The Lions by as many as 10 points in the first half, but Senn twice closed to within 1 behind the play of Jalyn Mosby (19 points) and Anthony Hendricks (11 points).

The Bulldogs stayed close until late in the third when a 3-point play from senior forward Richard McLoughlin (15 points, 9 rebounds) helped St. Viator open up a 15-point lead.

"We put Richard in the middle on offense in the second half," said Majkowski, "and he was very effective down there."

The Lions' defense rose to the occasion in the final period.

St. Viator held Senn without a field goal in the final eight minutes, and consecutive layups from Richard Markovits (10 points) and Julian Sipiora (7 points) led the Lions to a 19-point lead and effectively ended any hopes of a Senn rally.

Jack Etchingham pitched in 7 points for the winners.

"Our experience helped us tonight," said Majkowski. "They (Senn) had a few runs, but our guys didn't panic."

"We've got a lot of senior leadership on this team," added Aboona. "We've seen it all before."