Buffalo Grove grinds out victory against Barrington

"It was typical Mid-Suburban League basketball out there tonight."

Buffalo Grove head coach Ryan O'Connor sure did sum up Tuesday's boys game between the Bison and Barrington accurately. A clash of offensive and defensive strengths ultimately resulted in Buffalo Grove squeezing past the Broncos 50-49.

The first quarter belonged to the Bison as senior Brian DeSimone and freshmen Nick Prus rattled off back-to-back 3s, allowing Buffalo Grove (12-3) to take a 16-13 lead.

After a high-scoring first quarter both by both teams, the second quarter was controlled mainly by defense. Barrington began using its size more efficiently as the Broncos came away with 3 blocks and 6 steals before the half, when they trailed 23-21.

Buffalo Grove's struggles continued in the third quarter as they would allow the Broncos to catapult themselves into the lead. Senior Billy Parry scored all 6 of his points on the night in the third to support Barrington. The Broncos' leading scorer was 6-foot-7 junior Mack Darrow, who finished with 11 points. Darrow also added a slew of blocks on defense for Barrington.

Getting back to their earlier form, Buffalo Grove showed why it is one of the best at closing out games. Trailing 46-45 with 2:30 left, senior Matt Ricciardi hit a pair of free throws to give Buffalo Grove the lead. Soon after, Barrington junior Peter Leonard powered his way in for a bucket, tying the game yet again with a minute to play.

In the closing seconds Bison sophomore Kevin Mulligan would draw a foul against Leonard sending him to the line. Mulligan made his first free throw and that would be all they would need for the win. Mulligan finished with a game-high 13 points, 7 of which came in the second half.

"I wasn't nervous," said Mulligan. "I just wanted to be confident and just thought about how I make free throws in practice."