Fremd edges Naperville Central for third at Wheeling

If Fremd wants fluidity, composure, rebounding, clutch shooting and general hard knocks as part of its basketball personality, well, then the Vikings really found themselves at the Wildcat Hardwood Classic at Wheeling.

Fremd's 53-44 win Saturday night over a talented Naperville Central team for third place in this rugged field showed the Vikings they are ready for whatever else is to come this season.

"I feel like we played good as a team," said point guard Zach Schoffstall, whose 19 points paced the Vikings (11-3). "We need to keep playing hard on defense."

That and solid rebounding was what separated them from the Redhawks (10-6) in the second half. The Vikings kept getting clutch rebound after clutch rebound from Patrick Benka (8 points), Ryan Kraske, James Kating and Xavier Williams (13 points), as they limited the aggressive Redhawks to one shot on most possessions, especially down the stretch. Kating, off the bench, was a particular pest around the basket.

"He got some real big rebounds," said Fremd coach Bob Widlowski.

Williams helped cool off Nate Dahl, who had 13 first-half points, including a buzzer-beating 3 to give Naperville Central a 20-18 halftime lead.

But after Schoffstall opened the third period with a pair of long 3-pointers, the Vikings were methodical in slowing down the Redhawks.

Schoffstall hit 5-of-6 free throws when they counted in the fourth quarter and added another 3-pointer. Benka had three press-breaking baskets, two on assists from Schoffstall and Williams. Schoffstall's free throws with a minute to go pretty much sealed it.

So, playing the likes of Naperville Central, Lake Park, Dundee-Crown and Niles North turned out to be a good thing for the Vikings, right?

"I think it helped us a lot," said Schoffstall. "It prepares us for anything in the future."

"We benefitted from this," said Widlowski. "We think it'll pay off."

Not so much for Naperville Central though. For the second straight night, the Redhawks let a seemingly winnable game get away late.

"They hurt us on the glass. That was the key to the game," said Redhawks coach Pete Kramer. "We got beat by a good team."

"They really rebound well," said Dahl, who led all scorers with 20 points. "We didn't get too many second shots."

Nor hit enough first shots. The Redhawks were 16-of-37 from the floor, but only 2-of-11 on 3-pointers. And they missed almost half their free throws.

They got superlative efforts from Dahl and Emmanuel Rugamba (13 points), whose quick moves to the rim are difficult to defend. But Fremd's height, depth and experience wore them down.

"We have to take care of the ball," said Dahl, who has four juniors as starting teammates. "We're a young team. We'll learn."