Bartlett holds off Huntley
Sandwiched in between Huntley’s great start and good finish was a huge double Bartlett burger.
The Hawks dominated the second quarter of Thursday’s nonconference game outscoring Huntley 20-5. Although the Red Raiders fought back on Senior Night, it was just too much of a deficit to overcome. Bartlett held off a late Red Raiders’ run to take a 66-56 girls basketball victory.
“We started out kind of flat and our defense wasn’t very good,” Bartlett coach Denise Sarna said. “In the second quarter we kind of picked it up. We had the size, but they had a quick team.”
The Hawks (25-1), who close out their regular season tonight against South Elgin, led Huntley (18-8) by as much as 50-30 late in the third quarter. Using its size advantage, Bartlett grabbed 11 rebounds, 6 offensive, in the third period. The 6 offensive boards led to 10 points.
Nicole Beck (12 points, 10 rebounds) scored off a pair of putbacks to give Bartlett a 39-22 lead with 6:26 left in the third quarter.
Haley Videckis gave the Hawks their 20-point lead with yet another offensive putback. Videckis (14 points, 4 steals, 2 assists) connected off a Beck miss with 3:08 left in the third quarter putting Bartlett up 50-30 for its largest lead of the night.
Huntley would spend the rest of the night scratching and clawing to get back into the game. The Red Raiders nearly did so as a hot run to open the fourth quarter found Huntley trailing just 55-48 with 4:50 left to play. Senior Kadie Lowery converted on of Bartlett’s 4 fourth-quarter turnovers into a basket giving Huntley its closest margin since early in the second quarter.
Beck and Jacki Gulczynski, who finished with a game-high 16 points, then scored back-to-back baskets for the Hawks and Huntley would never come within 10 points again.
Bartlett was able to build its lead after scoring a pair of buckets in the final 13 seconds of the first quarter. Bartlett’s 2 baskets would tie the game at 15 going into the second period.
“That changed the momentum of the game,” Videckis said. “Early on we weren’t playing as strong of defense and getting in the passing lanes.”
The Hawks’ momentum would carry over as they opened the second period on a 10-2 run in the first 4 minutes changing a. Bartlett forced Huntley into 7 turnovers in the second quarter and would score 10 points off the turnovers. The Red Raiders shot 1 of 13 from the floor in the period as well.
“That second quarter got away from us with our execution on both ends of the floor,” Huntley coach Steve Raethz said. “Their transition offense allowed them to get some easy baskets.”
Huntley also had some breakdowns in defense during the second quarter.
Huntley played intense help-side man-to-man defense and limiting Bartlett’s post in the first quarter. In the second quarter, Videckis was able to run the floor and finished with 7 of her 14 points.
“Our defense picked it up,” said the Wisconsin bound Gulczynski, who added 10 rebounds. “Janessa (Baker) did a great job pushing the ball up the court and getting some easy transition points with Haley.”