Big MSL showdowns this weekend
Mike Dolan said Rolling Meadows "had to keep its eyes on the prize" after it remained the only unbeaten boys basketball team in Mid-Suburban League play last week.
No one will be awarded any prizes this weekend as MSL division play reaches its halfway point. But there are three games to keep an eye on which will have a direct impact on who is in the lead going into the second half.
Meadows (10-5, 4-0) has a chance to open a two-game lead in the MSL East when it visits four-time defending division champion Prospect (9-5, 3-1) at 6 p.m. Saturday at Jean Walker Field House.
And the four-way tie in the West will be cut in half after the weekend with Schaumburg (11-4, 3-1) hosting Conant (8-8, 3-1) at 7:30 p.m. today and Barrington (11-6, 3-1) hosting Fremd (10-7, 3-1) at 6 p.m. Saturday.
Meadows won a share of its only East title in 2004-05 but has not been to the MSL title game since 1998. A 68-64 overtime win last February ended an 11-game losing streak to the Knights.
"Obviously it's a big game for us and it always has been with the rivalry," Meadows senior point guard Brian Nelms said of the matchup against Prospect senior guard and close friend Mike LaTulip. "But we can't get overhyped (about the game)."
One aspect not overblown is both teams have been playing well coming into the matchup. Both went 3-1 and finished fifth in their holiday tournaments with Meadows winning 10 of its last 12 and Prospect winning six of its last seven.
Prospect is the area's highest-scoring team at 67 points a game. The Illinois-bound LaTulip (19.1 ppg, 33 3s) is 102 points shy of breaking the school's career scoring record of 1,282 points by Craig Anderson (2000-03).
But Brad Reibel (10.8 ppg) and Kevin Somogyi (9.8) have been consistent scoring threats all season. Junior Devin O'Hara has emerged to average 9.7 points the last six games and Jack Landwehr is averaging 7.5.
Nelms (13.3 ppg) is in his fourth year as the engineer of the Mustangs' attack that averages 60 points a game. Senior Tyler Gaedele (14.1 ppg, 47 3s) has emerged as one of the area's top long-range threats.
Mike Olson and Eric Lowe bring experience and depth at guard. Dolan (5.3 ppg) and Mike Rose (7.6 ppg) provide the inside game and are coming off career-highs of 22 and 18 points respectively at Wheeling.
Barrington, Fremd and Schaumburg were part of a three-way tie for last year's West title at 7-3 with Conant finishing a game back at 6-4.
Conant swept Schaumburg 57-53 and 40-39 last year but the Cougars have lost four straight and five of their last six. The Saxons have won five of six behind Christian Spandiary (15.7 ppg) and Kyle Bolger (10.5).
Fremd and Barrington split their meetings last year. The Broncos are 4-3 since they beat Schaumburg 45-44 at the buzzer on a rebound basket by scoring leader and junior guard Brad Zaumseil and 6-foot-7 Western Illinois recruit John Schneider has returned from a broken hand to play the last two games.
The Vikings have lost five of six but were encouraged by the return of sophomore Riley Glassman (9.6 ppg) from back trouble to beat Conant 49-46 last Friday and take a lead into the fourth quarter of Monday's 66-55 loss at 11-2 Downers Grove South. Seniors Garrett Peters (11.9) and Adam Gorecki (11) have led the way offensively.
Elk Grove (7-9, 2-2) is at Wheeling (0-16, 0-4) and Hersey (6-9, 2-2) hosts Buffalo Grove (5-10, 1-3) in 6 p.m. Saturday games that could also impact the East race. Hoffman Estates (5-9, 0-4) is at Palatine (1-15, 0-4) at 6 p.m. Saturday in the other West game.
Dolan got rolling: A glut of experienced and talented guards forced junior Mike Dolan into a different position for Rolling Meadows.
Now he's a 6-2 forward after playing guard his entire life. Last Friday he looked as if he's always played inside as he scored 20 of his career-high 22 points in the first half of a 73-57 win at Wheeling.
"I was in the right spot at the right time," said Dolan, who still showcased his outside game by hitting a pair of 3s. "(Brian) Nelms found me I don't know how many times and it was all pretty much layups. My teammates were finding me and had confidence in me.
"I had a slow start and my confidence wasn't there. Lately I've been working on finishing in the post. I've been working on my post moves and I found spots in their zones."
What Meadows coach Kevin Katovich has liked about Dolan is his play in the matchup zone defense.
"In the matchup you need a smart 4-man and we've had some good ones," Katovich said. "Dolan is right up there in terms of his intelligence level and where to get other guys going."
Eagles are soaring: Matching last year's win total of 11 won't be easy for Leyden in its next three games.
It hosts West Suburban Gold leaders Downers Grove South (11-2) at 7:30 p.m. today and Proviso East (13-0), the state's second-ranked Class 4A team, on Jan. 21. In between is a Tuesday road trip to surging Niles North (10-5).
But the fact the Eagles are 10-4 after Tuesday's 40-38 win at Hinsdale South reaffirms the positive feelings coach Bill Heisler had about his team in the preseason.
"I'm ecstatic with where we're at," Heisler said. "There is still a lot of room for improvement but I'm really pleased with the effort."
Even when the Eagles lead for only 20 seconds as they did Tuesday in avenging a 54-47 loss to Hinsdale South in December. Omar Lazoya's two 3-pointers included the game-winner and a 48-footer at the end of the first half.
"We're hoping the last two games give him a lot of confidence," Heisler said of Lazoya also hitting four 3s for 12 points in a win at Willowbrook.
But the driving force behind Leyden's success has been returning all-area senior guard Alex Herrera (17.9 ppg, 3.6 assists per game). Herrera just extended his streak of made free throws to 33 to break the program record of 30 by former Boston Celtics coach Jimmy Rodgers in 1960.
"He's really good and every single team we play is doing everything they can to stop him," Heisler said of Herrera. "At the end of (Tuesday) night he still had 14 points and 7 assists and basically contributed to almost all of our points.
"He's been fantastic and him and (Patrick) Listwan have both been positive leadership forces for us."
Brian MacNamera, Jonny Woolf and Anthony Gonzalez have also been key contributors as the Eagles' only double-digit loss was 56-35 to 10-2 Glenbard West.
"That's a buzz saw there," Heisler said of Leyden's upcoming three-game stretch. "But I'm confident our kids will compete and I like our chances when we do that."
Lions get busy again: After a two-week layoff, St. Viator suddenly faces the equivalent of an NBA post-labor strife schedule with three games in four days this weekend.
The key one for the Lions (12-2, 2-0) is their East Suburban Catholic Conference trip to Carmel (6-7, 1-1) at 7:30 p.m. today. The Corsairs pulled a 44-39 overtime stunner of two-time defending ESCC champ Benet in Lisle last Friday.
The Lions host Geneva at 6:30 p.m. Saturday and play Marian Central Catholic at 4 p.m. Monday in the Martin Luther King Classic at Woodstock North.
Saxons' Saturdays: Schaumburg will have nonconference games the next two Saturdays. It hosts Morton at 7:30 p.m. this weekend and on Jan. 21 plays York at 4 p.m. in the first Glenbard East "When Sides Collide" Shootout.
Schaumburg plays its MSL West game at Barrington on Friday, Jan. 20.