Konopka, Fremd stand tall for win

Fifteen seconds left at Fremd, and the 3-point shot off the hands of Austin Marrison that would've put Palatine ahead has just barely spun out.

Rebound, Fremd's Jack Konopka. The 6-foot-5 football all-stater had shown soft hands to go with his strong moves all night. Now, he'd have to show them at the free-throw line, where Palatine promptly put him.

And right where he wanted to be.

"I can definitely handle the pressure," said the towering Fremd center.

Indeed, he could. He added 1 of 2 there, and after another Pirates miss he hit another 1 of 2 to finalize a 44-40 Fremd victory in their last Mid-Suburban West game before holiday tournament time.

Konopka's contribution a 12-point, 12-rebound performance was just what Fremd (6-4, 2-1) needed in the absence of Zach Monaghan, the Vikings' injured perimeter deadeye. His status is still uncertain for Monday against Guilford in the Elgin holiday tournament.

Konopka was quick to point out that he knew he had step up his contribution and how guys like lightning-quick Quinton Brown (9 points) and blue-collar battlers like Jimmy Scharfe (7 points) and Sean Benka (9 points off the bench), helped the cause. Brown's two darts to the basket produced a pair of quick fourth-quarter hoops after Fremd had surrendered a lead once as wide as 10 and trailed by 6.

Palatine (5-4, 1-2) got back in it by stepping up its defense in the third quarter into the fourth, forcing turnovers from the Vikings and getting huge offensive contributions from Egan Malley (17 points) and sophomore Josh Baldus, both off the bench.

Malley finally put them ahead after three quarters on a nice feed from Kurt Becker while Peter Bony (9 points) heated up from the perimeter.

"They did a nice job," Fremd coach Bob Widlowski said of his alma mater.

But, as he noted, his team scored the game's final 10 points, most from the impetus provided by the defense.

Pirates coach Eric Millstone was not pleased with the Pirates' perimeter shot selection down the stretch nor how quickly they shot especially after such a valiant comeback.

"We needed to play a smarter game at the end," Millstone said.

But there was no "smart" way to stop Konopka, who towered over everyone around the basket.

"I just knew I had to get a little more aggressive," he said.