Cohn’s shot sparks York past South Elgin
Most everyone at York Tuesday night agreed that sophomore David Cohn hit the most important shot in the game for the host Dukes.
Cohn’s 3-pointer from the left corner gave the Dukes a 46-39 lead with 2:20 left in their matchup with South Elgin.
York held on to secure a 55-51 win in the quarterfinals of the 37th Annual Jack Tosh Tournament and a semifinal matchup against West Suburban rival Downers Grove South. South Elgin will play Riverside-Brookfield at 5:45 p.m. Wednesday in the consolation bracket.
“That shot by Cohn was a back breaker,” said Storm coach Chaz Taft who’s team takes on Riverside-Brookfield this afternoon in the winners consolation bracket at 4 p.m. “They hit their shots when they had to. On defense (York’s Cody) Kliethermes did a good job chasing our guards around the perimeter.”
Cohn finished with 12 points and 6 rebounds. Will Sullivan led the 6-5 Dukes with 26 points. Twelve points came in the fourth quarter and 8 in the last 48 seconds.
“I feel like I am improving game by game,” said Cohn. “The defenders go after Will and my job is to get open and shoot the ball. I have to admit it took some nerve to hit that shot. I know my role and I do what I can to help the team. Coach doesn’t look at me as a sophomore. By this time of the season I’m playing more like a junior.”
The Storm (6-5) led for the entire first half taking a 22-19 lead to the locker room.
Martin Duarte scored all 8 of his points in the second quarter for South Elgin to help sustain the lead.
Cohn gave York its first lead at 29-27 with 4:47 left in the third quarter. South Elgin went ahead for the last time at 33-31 on a Sammy Sutter 3 pointer with 2:44 left in the frame. Sutter would go on to score 30 points which included seven 3-pointers.
Cohn came back with a 3-pointer to give the Dukes a 34-33 with 1:02 left to finish the quarter.
Down 51-43 with 48 seconds left Sutter hit two 3-pointers and a layup. Sullivan, though, countered by hitting 4 of 6 free throws to keep South Elgin at bay.
“I like having the ball at the end of the game,” said Sullivan. “I know coach (Dominic Cannon) trusts me with the ball. We attacked the rim a little better as the game went along.”
“Our kids made some good shots at the right time,” said Cannon. “Cohn made that big shot and I’m glad for him. Cody Kliethermes (14 points) made some key baskets for us in the third quarter and that helped us get going. Our big guys inside did a good job of shutting off their passing lanes. This was a real team victory.”
“We had a lot of chances early to open a lead,” said Taft. “We would get the rebound and then lose the ball. We had some layups roll off the rim and that kept them in the game.”