Lake boys basketball notes: Lake Zurich, Stevenson on a roll
Numerous Lake County boys basketball teams have run up significant win totals of late.
Count Lake Zurich as part of that mover-and-shaker group.
The Bears have won 13 of their last 15 games to sit at 13-4 overall and are tied for first place in the North Suburban Conference with a 5-1 mark.
In recent action, Lake Zurich scored league wins over Lake Forest (47-43) and Mundelein (63-46). In the Mundelein win, Kain Kretschmar enjoyed an 18-point performance.
“Kain has had a nice stretch shooting the ball and getting to the line,” Bears coach Terry Coughlin said.
Connor Strauss also is helping out, averaging about 9 points a contest, Coughlin noted.
“Connor is stuffing the stat sheet with big-time rebounding performances and often times is taking on the toughest defensive assignment,” he said.
Building off Strauss, Coughlin has seen overall progress on the glass.
“We are starting to rebound the ball very well and that has made a huge difference in our offensive efficiency due to extra possessions,” he said.
Stevenson update: Balance is the word of the day for the Patriots, who stood at 13-5 overall and 4-2 in North Suburban Conference action to start the week.
The Patriots downed Yorkville by a hoop 47-45 at the Geneva MLK shootout event.
“Our balance continues to be a strength,” Stevenson coach Will Benson said.
Benson pointed out Stevenson’s Top 4 players in Aidan Bardic, Jack Dabbs, Rocco Pagliocca and Atticus Richmond all are averaging between 10 and 14 points and all have taken between 155 and 170 shot attempts.
Bardic has scored in double figures in Stevenson’s last 8 games. “Aidan has been really good and pretty consistent lately,” Benson said.
Stevenson has “quietly,” Benson said, won 7 contests in a row and 9 of 10. “The guys have gotten better and sort of figured out the formula that gives us the best chance to win,” he said.
In addition to the Yorkville 2-pointer, Stevenson edged Waukegan by a basket (70-68) and downed Libertyville by 3 on the road, 54-51. “We have won our share of close games recently,” Benson said.
Antioch update: The Sequoits started the week tied for first place in the Northern Lake County Conference with Grayslake Central and Wauconda — all three teams at 5-1.
In recent action, Antioch (8-11) defeated Grant (61-38) and lost to Wauconda (69-55) in conference play and dropped games to McHenry (48-44), Chicago Perspectives (48-46) and Hersey (52-38).
Since Christmas, junior Marshall Gehrke is averaging 15 points, 5 rebounds and 2 assists, while junior Teddi Wetu is averaging 13 points, 6 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 steals.
Coach Sean Connor noted Antioch was 1-4 in a recent five-game run, but with many positive numbers appearing on the stat sheet. “We have more field goals, we are shooting the ball better from 3, we have more assists, more steals, more blocks and less turnovers, but the wins just aren’t coming,” he said.
Carmel update: In a Martin Luther King shootout event at Wheaton-Warrenville South, Carmel lost to the hosts, beat Willowbrook and lost to Waubonsie Valley.
“Waubonsie is ranked in the Top 10 in the state,” Corsairs coach Dmitry Pirshin pointed out. “We played really well against them.”
Pirshin had high marks for the recent play of Kaleb Jackson, Ethan Henderson and Ethan Matz. “Kaleb, Ethan Henderson and Ethan Matz are playing great,” he said.
Carmel started the week 7-12 overall and 1-5 in East Suburban Catholic play. Carmel is tied for seventh in ESCC play with Nazareth Academy and Joliet Catholic.
Grayslake Central update: The Rams went into the week engulfed in a three-way tie for first place in the Northern Lake County Conference with Antioch and Wauconda (5-1 records). Central was 12-5 overall and riding a 3-game winning streak (wins against Lakes, North Chicago and Lake Forest Academy). Central and Wauconda square off in Wauconda Friday.
Senior Jayden Hall scored 22 points in the Lake Forest Academy game.
“Jayden had a terrific game against Lake Forest Academy,” Rams coach Brian Centella said. “He has been playing tremendous basketball since coming out of winter break.”
Junior Eric Brum hasn’t been too shabby either, Centella noted. “Eric has provided steady point guard play all year,” he said. “He is also a terrific on-ball defender.”
Grayslake North update: It was a good night all-around for the Knights in their 69-29 NLCC win over Round Lake. Junior center Tyler Morgan had what coach Josh Feinzimer termed the best game of his career with 14 points. Junior guard Brady Ballentine had 9 points on three 3s. Jayden Hunt tallied his first career double-double with 11 points and 11 assists against zero turnovers. North (5-13, 1-5 NLCC) racked up 21 assists against only 6 turnovers against the Panthers.
Feinzimer also has been impressed with the play of seniors Sergio Janneau and Junior Munoz since the holiday tournament. “Sergio and Junior have emerged as strong contributors,” he said. “Sergio is second on the team in rebounding and Junior just had 9 points against Highland Park.”
Feinzimer added the Knights are still trying to find consistency in their play of late, “but guys are working hard and remaining unified in the face of the adversity we have faced this season,” he said. “They are dedicated and committed to making themselves and each other better, and that comes through every day in practice and on the game floor.”
Lakes update: The Eagles hosted their own Martin Luther King event where Fremd was crowned champion. Lakes’ Jimmy Kania was named to the all-tournament team.
The Eagles started the week 5-14 overall and 3-3 in Northern Lake County Conference action.
“We are continuing to work hard each day and are focusing on improving individually and as a team for the final part of the season,” Lakes coach Chris Snyder said.
Libertyville update: Wildcats coach Brian Zyrkowski is seeing improvements from his squad, which started the week 8-10 overall and 2-4 in NSC contests. The Cats lost by 3 points to Stevenson recently.
“The team is definitely improving in all areas of the game,” he said.
Liam Hanson is averaging 12 points, 4 assists and 2 steals, while Bryce Wegrzyn averages 11 points and 8 rebounds.
“In the last 5 games, Liam and Bryce have been playing very well,” Zyrkowski said.
Round Lake update: In a recent game against Grant, Cameron Hundley led the Panthers with 17 points, Jordan Collymore had 12 points and Salil Masih had 11 points, giving Round Lake (0-18 overall) three players in double digits.
“Cameron Hundley has continued to emerge as our main offensive presence scoring the ball at will, while point guard Julian Jones has helped facilitate and get us into our offense,” Panthers coach Jack Hansa said. “Although it has been a challenging year, everything is coming together and we are really starting to look like a team willing to compete with anyone day in and day out.”
Vernon Hills update: The Cougars are red hot, having won 7 games in a row and 8 of 9 to sit at 12-7 overall to start the week (2-3 in Central Suburban North play).
Vernon Hills downed Hoffman Estates 45-39 in an MLK event where Deen Hatibovic led all scorers with 14 points and 6 rebounds.
Two days earlier, the Cougars trailed by 14 points in the first half against Cary-Grove and came back to score a 51-41 victory. Dylan Chung led the way with 16 points, while sophomores Brady Larsen and Daniel Odhiambo each had 8 points.
“We had a very balanced scoring book,” Vernon Hills coach Matt McCarty said.
More good news, Bryce Drexler returned from an early-season injury and “really gives us a boost on both ends of the court,” McCarty remarked. “He is certainly a glue guy for us because he does a lot of little things really well.”
Odhiambo, at 6-5, had 4 blocks against Cary-Grove. “Daniel continues to disrupt shots in the paint defensively,” McCarty said.
Defense also has been a key ingredient during the winning streak. “The team is doing a nice job of playing team defense,” McCarty said. “None of our opponents have gotten to 50-plus points. It has allowed us to win some close games and get some important stops late in games.”
Warren update: The Blue Devils headed east to New York to take part in a Martin Luther King shootout event in Thiells, New York, a suburb of New York City.
Warren scored wins against Poughkeepsie High and North Rockland to move to 18-3 overall and 4-1 in North Suburban action. Warren was ranked No. 10 in the state in the most recent Associated Press Class 4A state poll.
In the North Rockland game, Javerion Banks scored 22 points.
“We defended at a higher level the past two games,” Blue Devils coach Zack Ryan said.