Defense delivers for Palatine

Palatine's swarming defense stood its ground when it needed to most and dispatched Hoffman Estates 54-50 in a topsy-turvsy Mid-Suburban West boys basketball affair.

The Pirates (2-15, 1-4) jumped out to an early 9-point lead before Hoffman (5-10, 0-5) seized control and took a 6-point lead late into the final period. But Palatine responded to snap a 10-game losing streak.

"I thought we really showed a lot of resolve when we had the lead and lost it," said Palatine coach Eric Millstone. "A couple of weeks ago we probably would have lost this game.

"We stuck together and got a couple of stops at the end. Hopefully we can build off of this."

Freshman guard Roosevelt Smart had a game-high 18 points for the Pirates, but it was John Millin's grit under the basket that took back momentum and the lead as he converted a 3-point play the old-fashioned way.

"I pivoted under the basket and went for the shot-fake," said Millin, who finished with 15 points. "I was able to get him up in the air and he bit.

"We were able to withstand their run, and that was a big momentum-builder for us."

Hoffman got 18 points from Austin Terry but Millin and Jeremy Velinski limited him to 4 fourth-quarter free throws as Palatine switched from a zone to man-to-man.

"They did a great job on Terry in the fourth quarter and really limited his looks," Millstone said.

Millin said his team has dealt with closing out close games on various occasions this season.

"We've been in this situation before where we've lost in the fourth quarter because we just couldn't hang on," he said. "We executed our game plan and it feels great to get back to winning."

Smart had a decisive fourth quarter to bring the Pirates back with 8 points, hitting a long-range 3-pointer to knot the game at 46-46 with three minutes to go.

"We fought hard and made big free-throws late in the game," Smart said. "Coach has been asking us to give a complete effort and play 32 minutes. Tonight we did."

Getting pointers from the rest of the team, Smart said, has helped make the transition to varsity more smooth.

"I get pretty nervous at times," he said. "But my teammates do a great job of telling me what I need to improve on and they are always lifting me up."