Barrington edges Grayslake Central

Tuesday night gave Bryan Tucker an early idea of what he has with his young team at this point in this still-young season.

His Barrington Broncos rode their fourth-quarter defense to overcome a 9-point deficit in defeating Grayslake Central 51-50 at the Mundelein Thanksgiving Tournament.

For much of the first three quarters, it looked as if the Rams were in control. Grayslake Central led by 10 at halftime, and each time Barrington tried to piece together a run, a costly mistake and an answer by Rams guard Jordan Taylor kept the margin around double digits.

After scoring 10 points in the first half, Jordan added nine more in the third quarter. Whether it was an acrobatic finish in the lane, hitting the open 3-pointer or pulling up with a hand in his face, Taylor seemed poised to counter every Barrington flurry en route to his game-high 23 points.

But as the fourth quarter began, Barrington's defense began stringing together the stops it failed to get for most of the game. Grayslake Central missed its first five field goal attempts and finished with just one in the final quarter, and as a result, the Broncos were able to chip away.

"Defensively, I think we picked it up, and our offense flowed out of that," Tucker said.

Sophomore guard Brad Zaumseil added eight points and assisted on three Barrington field goals down the stretch, including a lay in by senior guard Tyler Weathered that put Barrington ahead 47-46 with 3:35 remaining.

"Even over the summer, it felt like I'd been playing with him for three years," senior Greg Gerrard said of Zaumseil. "He makes it so much easier for the other players on the court."

Grayslake Central managed to push the lead back to one, but it was Barrington who had the ball with a chance to win as time ticked down. And with 12.6 seconds remaining, Gerrard drew a foul going to the basket.

Despite being just 1-for-5 from the line thus far, Gerrard, who led Barrington with 11 points, sunk both free throws to put Barrington up for good.

"There's a senior leader for you," Tucker said of Gerrard.

"That's what you expect out of your seniors."