Bartlett 76, Maine West 65
Bartlett boys basketball coach Jim Wolfsmith has said time and time again that his team has depth.
And that rang true once again as the Hawks' top three scorers on the night netted 57 points in a 76-65 nonconference win over the Maine West Warriors.
"It's a theme that I've repeated so many times," Wolfsmith said. "We have so many offensive threats that teams have to choose who to stop."
With 17 second-half points and three 3-pointers, Cory Hrynyk led the way with 24 points while Marc Little added 18 points and Luke Labedzki 15 for the Hawks (15-6).
"It's great having a balance on the perimeter," Hrynyk said. "It's a good team effort. That's what makes this team so special."
After a slow start to the game, with the Hawks clinging to a 32-28 lead at the break, Hrynyk opened up a 10-2 run in the third quarter after nailing a 3-pointer.
The Hawks went on to score 24 points in the quarter to take a 56-46 lead over the Warriors (5-17).
Little kept the momentum going with a steal for a layup followed by another basket and 5 points for Hrynyk to start the fourth.
"Marc Little in the middle of the field is a dangerous creature," Wolfsmith said. "He did a nice job driving to the hole and also getting the ball to our outside guys."
The Hawks went on to take the largest lead of the game minutes later after baskets by Marcell Randell and Kamil Janton for a 72-50 lead.
The Hawks finished the game shooting over 60 percent, but it took the strong 48-point second half to win the game after a slow start led to an early 12-9 deficit after one quarter of play.
"I'm getting tired of that slow start stuff," Wolfsmith said. "We just settled for poor jump shots early."
"Everyone gets to a slow start, and I don't know why," Hrynyk said.
After falling to a 5-0 deficit to begin the game, the Warriors went on a 10-2 run keyed by 6 points from Jimmy Orlowski.
The Warriors also made a run near the end as Tommy Solis netted 6 of his team-leading 21 points in the final 4 minutes of play. Orlowski finished the night with 17 points.