Stevenson falls short against Lake Forest in North Suburban Conference
Lake Forest senior guard Thomas Aberle does it all on the basketball court.
Aberle was the engine that drove the Scouts in their 49-39 North Suburban win at Stevenson Wednesday night. The win keeps Lake Forest atop of the conference race.
Whether it was getting the ball to an open player on a double team, diving for loose balls or working inside for key baskets, Aberle was there.
"It's sort of in my DNA," said Aberle who scored 12 points. "Doing what I do is part of a good recipe to win games. I just try to do my best to stay calm on the floor."
Aberle hard work has rubbed off on 6-foot-7 junior center Hudson Scroggins.
Scroggins played a key role in the first half scoring 10 of his team high 16 points . In the second half his basket just inside the arc gave Lake Forest (18-5, 9-1) a 33-31 lead at the buzzer. Scroggins also had 5 rebounds on 7-of-11 shooting.
Scroggins also played a key role in the fourth quarter when the Scouts used a 10-0 run to fend off Stevenson.
"We had to lock in on defense and keep them from getting second shots," Scroggins said. "When we had the ball we had to take care of it."
Tied at 35 with 6:35 left in the game on Stevenson's Aidan Bardic's two free throws Lake Forest began their run.
Campbell Allan scored on an assist from Aberle to get things going. Scroggins scored off of a turnover, Campbell hit two more free throws to continue the run. Bolurin Taiwo (6 pts.) scored off of another Patriot (16-7, 6-4) then scored on an assist from Scroggins for a 45-35 lead with 1:15 left in the game.
"Our defense can help get us points on offense," Aberle said. "As a team, that is something we like to do."
Tommy was able to get inside and get us some big buckets," LaScala said. "They were tough buckets and that was a key for us. He's just tough as nails. He's one of the toughest kids I have ever coached. And Scroggins, he's just keeps getting better and better with his play.
"We got some good stops in that fourth quarter run We were able to get some easy baskets. Stevenson did a good job on defense. It seemed that they took us out of a lot of our stuff. But, we stayed the course."
Bardic led Stevenson with 13 points, Jack Dabbs had 11 points to go with 7 rebounds. Atticus Richmond added 10 points. The Patriots though only connected on 14 of 35 to Lake Forest's 20-40.
"I thought our half-court defense was really tough," said Stevenson coach Will Benson. "And they were tough on us with their defense. We didn't shoot well and they made us uncomfortable at times. They executed better than we did in the fourth quarter. They were able to protect their lead. They don't beat themselves."