Attenton to detail helps Buffalo Grove past Meadows

Buffalo Grove did the little things on Thursday, and it all added up to a big Bison win.

Junior Sam Wacker scored 7 of his team-high 13 points in the final quarter to help Buffalo Grove pull away with a 56-47 Mid-Suburban League East victory at Rolling Meadows.

Buffalo Grove (5-2, 1-1) led 25-24 at halftime, but the Bison used solid defense and timely shooting to get separation.

"The little things made a huge difference," said BG coach Ryan O'Connor. "We came out with some energy tonight, and it wasn't the prettiest at times, but defensively we were solid."

Wacker was in foul trouble early, and Rolling Meadows senior Paul Volkman made the most of it by scoring 13 of his game-high 19 points in the opening half.

But Wacker settled down in the second half, limiting Volkman to 2 field goals before the Mustangs senior fouled out in the final quarter.

Wacker also did it offensively, scoring the Bison's first 6 points of the final quarter to push the lead to 46-35 with 5:30 remaining.

"Volkman is a great player and I had to work to get him out of shooting position," said Wacker, who also had 7 rebounds. "I get that intensity going in the final quarter, and I just did what I could."

Senior Nick Prus added 11 points, converting 3 of 4 free throws in the final quarter, and sophomore Luke Potnick came off the bench to add 11 points to aid the Bison.

"We're working hard as a team and we're playing much better defense," said Prus, who held Meadows' Tyler Gaedele to 2 points. "We wanted to keep the pressure on them, and I think we wore them down."

The first half featured seven lead changes and four ties, but Rolling Meadows (3-4, 0-2) could never find its rhythm. The Mustangs committed 28 turnovers.

"Turnovers are killing us," said Meadows coach Kevin Katovich. "We're trying to do too much, and we're not playing as a team right now. We need to take care of the ball better."

BG extended its lead to 40-35 entering the final quarter. Then the Bison slowly wore down the Mustangs with solid defense and key free throws.

Senior guard Jeff Zabrin added 9 points, and Kevin Tennenbaum (7 points, 5 rebounds) and Brian Akialis (6 rebounds) came off the bench to add some energy to the Bison attack.

Junior guard Brian Nelms scored 12 of his 16 points in the second half to help keep the Mustangs close.

"I think we're coming together as a team," said Wacker, "and tonight we brought it."