Schaumburg, McDonald pull OT stunner against St. Joe
A tough task looked even tougher for Schaumburg when it trailed perennial power St. Joseph by 10 points in the fourth quarter of the St. Charles East boys basketball tournament Tuesday.
But the Saxons forced overtime and a free throw by Javon McDonald with 4.4 seconds left gave them a dramatic 52-51 season-opening victory.
"We didn't shoot the ball well but we relied on our backbone," said Schaumburg coach Matt Walsh. "We were able to get some stops and play some 'D.'"
And McDonald played a big role in that regard along with his team-high 22 points. The senior guard also hit the tying free throws in overtime and nailed the game-winner after missing his first attempt.
"I was just as impressed with Javon's defense every bit as much as the points he scored," Walsh said. "He really put a lot of ball pressure on the other team.
"He was cramping late in the game and he was hurting but he really showed a lot of toughness and leadership for us."
Mike Mallett tied the game with 15 seconds left in regulation on a rebound basket and Schaumburg got a defensive stop to send it to overtime. St. Joseph was unable to get a shot at the end of overtime.
Sophomore Jimmy Lundquist added 11 points for the Saxons, who have another tough test at 5 p.m. today with Proviso East.
Hersey 73, Clark 43: Connor Miklasz scored a game-high 19 points as Hersey (1-1) just missed having five players in double figures in the York Thanksgiving Tournament victory.
Miklasz hit two 3s as Hersey led 38-21 at halftime. Also in double figures were Tom Sutrinaitis (16), Justin Jobski (12) and Stefan Vucicevic (11) while Trevor Haas added 8 points.
Maine West 74, Englewood 49: Conor Hart scored a career-high 32 points on 8-of-12 shooting from the floor and hit two 3s as Maine West (2-0) rolled in its Warrior Classic. Paul Solka added 10 points and Odera Eneogwe scored 8 points.
Christian Liberty 44, Holy Trinity 37: Christian Liberty's first trip to the Buffalo Grove Bison Classic as Matt Litzenberger made all 4 of his free throws in the final 1:30.
Luke Comerouski had a team-high 13 points and was 9-for-13 on free throws. Litzenberger had 10 points and 10 rebounds and Mike Hennek had 9 points and 10 rebounds as the Chargers committed only 11 turnovers.
Conant 55, Luther North 22: Conant improved to 2-0 in the St. Viator Thanksgiving Tournament.
WW South 46, Leyden 39: The Eagles lost their opener in the Wheaton Academy tournament.
Elk Grove 54, Fenton 50: The Grenadiers (1-1) shot 17-for-20 from the foul line to pick up their first victory of the season in Fenton tournament play.
The game was close virtually all the way, with the Grens holding 1-point leads at the half and to begin the fourth quarter. Elk Grove then led 41-33 before protecting its lead down the stretch at the foul line.