Schaumburg gets win, but Elgin sees improvement
Schaumburg took big leads in both halves of Saturday's nonconference boys basketball game at Elgin, but the young Maroons demonstrated improvement by making the visitors work for their 62-53 victory at Chesbrough Field House.
Schaumburg (7-2) jumped to a 28-14 advantage midway though the second quarter after junior guard John Kirk sank three of his five 3-pointers and junior Kurt Kempema scored 7 points off the bench.
However, Elgin (2-6) rallied for a 9-0 run to trim the deficit to 28-23. Reserve guard Nikil Satish scored bookend baskets, sophomore Matt Andres sank a 3-pointer and sophomore Kory Brown added a bucket.
But another Kirk 3-pointer and a 4-point trip to the free-throw line for sophomore Glenn Frost that included 2 technical free throws staked the Saxons to a 35-25 lead at the break.
Schaumburg opened the second half on a 9-1 run, fueled by 5 points from Kirk and a 3-pointer from Frost.
"In the second half we tried to pick it up, but they came to play so we just had to keep on playing with them," Kirk said.
Trailing 46-26 with 4:44 left in the third quarter, Elgin again rallied. The Maroons held Schaumburg without a point for nearly five minutes as they reeled off a 10-0 run, led by a breakaway basket and 2 free throws by junior guard Jordan Dean (11 points).
"That's what you want them to do," Elgin coach Mike Sitter said of the comeback try. "You want them to dig deeper and fight harder and not give up."
A 3-pointer by Dennis Moore and a short turnaround jumper from Kory Brown pulled Elgin within 9 points with 3:02 to play, but the Saxons put the game out of reach with a drive from sophomore Declan Geraghty (12 points) followed by sophomore Josh Walker's transition layup with 2:42 remaining.
"The second half was a lot like the first half," Schaumburg coach Matt Walsh said. "We got off to a lead in the first half and didn't play real smart and let them back in by halftime. In the second half we got the lead up to about 20 and then we weren't able to put them away. We allowed them to get back into it.
"I thought we had some defensive breakdowns, we fouled too much and allowed them to score with the clock stopped. Credit them. They didn't give up. They continued to play hard."
Elgin coach Mike Sitter, who started three sophomores, said it was a sign of growth that his team didn't allow itself to be blown out after falling behind early, which was the case in lopsided losses earlier this season against Buffalo Grove and Stevenson and on Friday night against Lake Park.
"We played much better today than (Friday) night," Sitter said. "For us to come back 12 hours after a tough loss, a bad game - and to fight like that - I'm ecstatic. And I'm ecstatic that we were led by our younger kids. They really stepped it up, they're coming to the forefront, they're showing the leadership ability and getting things done for us. That bodes well for our future."
Sophomores Moore (16 points) and Brown (12 points) paced the Maroons.
"We just felt like we could do a little bit more for the team than we've been doing," Brown said.
"I think we have to take a leadership role and be go-to guys," Moore added, "but it's a team effort. If everybody works hard we'll be all right."
Williams called up: Elgin coach Mike Sitter said Saturday that freshman Arie Williams will begin practicing with the varsity team on Monday and will see time at point guard in the upcoming Elgin Holiday Tournament.
Williams is the younger brother of former Elgin guard Armani Williams (Texas-Arlington), whose 1,726 points are the second most in school history. Arie (5-foot-4) is the only true point guard in the Elgin program. He had been playing with the Elgin sophomore team.