Boys basketball: Fremd pulls away from Burlington Central in second half, advances to Lakes MLK title game
After having dispatched Hoffman Estates to recapture sole possession of first place on the Mid-Suburban West on Friday night, Fremd turned their attention to a Saturday afternoon bout with Burlington Central in the first semifinal of the Lakes MLK Classic.
It could have easily caught the Vikings off-guard having played less than 18 hours before leading to a possible stumble against the Rockets.
But thanks in large part to obtaining and maintaining their mental discipline throughout the contest, Fremd cruised to a 61-42 victory and a berth in Monday afternoon's 2:30 p.m. championship game of the fourth annual event in Lake Villa.
The Vikings will play Deerfield (14-5), a 64-43 winner over Mundelein (8-12) in Saturday's second semifinal. The contest will be a rematch of last month's Wheeling Hardwood Classic title tilt won by the Vikings 56-44 on Dec. 28.
"It was a tough game today because Burlington Central is a very good team," Fremd’s first-year coach Mike Brown said.
"The system that they run is very difficult to go against and coming back from (Friday) night's game this was a tough spot. We're proud of our guys for responding and playing well against a really tough team."
After a three-pointer by Central's leading scorer, senior forward Jake Johnson (12 points) put the Rockets ahead for the final time at 23-22, Fremd (17-2) went on a 6-0 run to finish the opening half with a 28-22 advantage.
Fremd provided the decisive response by going on a 15-3 tear over final three minutes of the third quarter. Six-foot-6 junior Jordan Williams topped it off with a buzzer-beating putback as he was falling to the ground that became a three-point play giving the Vikings a 47-32 advantage.
Fremd’s 6-5 junior forward Rafael Pinto, whose 15-point, 6-rebound effort led all scorers, talked about staying focused on the task at hand.
"Coach Brown really trusts all of us,“ Pinto said. ”When he came in here he (spoke) to us of needing to stay focused every game and that's what we did last night and that's what we did today. We all buy into his system."
Williams added 10 points while senior guards Ryan Brown and Samuel Hirsch added 9 points apiece for Fremd.
Senior forward Patrick Shell scored 11 points for the Rockets (13-6) who play in Monday's 1 p.m. third-place game against Mundelein.
"I thought the first 16 minutes was some of the best basketball we've played this year," Central coach Brett Porto said.
"Then we (faced) a little bit bigger bodies, a little bit longer and it just kind of wore us down and it got away from us. When you play a team like Fremd with no shot clock it's very difficult and some kids maybe get nervous and panic and you get away from the things that make you more successful. (Still). I really couldn't be more proud of this group."