Mead, Hoffman outplay CL Central

Luke Mead couldn't miss anything Monday night.

Not 3-pointers, jumpers, drives or free throws. Not his Hoffman Estates teammates.

The junior guard parlayed a perfect shooting night route to a game-high 19 points.

And Mead's 5 assists led to 13 points as the Hawks beat Crystal Lake Central 61-42 in the finale of its inaugural Coaches vs. Cancer Thanksgiving Tourney.

"We were pretty excited," Mead said after hitting three 3-pointers, 3 shots inside the arc and 4 free throws. "We're playing them on their home floor, both teams were 2-0 and it's for the tournament championship.

"We were really pumped up. We talked about getting every loose ball and setting the tempo."

Mead did that with a 10-point first quarter and a pair of 3s. He also found senior Ben Collins (15 points) for all three of his 3s.

Collins also had 3 assists and 5 rebounds and Tom Dombrowski and Chris Hall added 8 points apiece as Hoffman (3-0) never trailed.

Casey Terry's layup assist to Collins and layup off Hall's feed started and ended a 12-point run that gave Hoffman a 34-15 lead 2:38 before halftime.

"We're also looking for each other," Collins said, "and starting to see what everyone can do."

Hoffman shot 60 percent from the field (24-for-40) and finished with a 23-16 rebound advantage against the taller Tigers (2-1).

The Hawks also held the Tigers to 37.8 percent shooting from the field (14-for-37) and 6-for-21 behind the arc.

Jim Capalbo's 9 points came on 3s but Dombrowski held Carson Sterchi to half of his 18-point average of a year ago on 3-for-12 from the field and 1-for-8 on 3s.

Steve Anderson and Kevin Lessner helped limit the damage inside against 6-foot-6 Josh Polk and 6-7 Nick Inzerillo.

"We did a good job as a group of denying access to the basket with dribble penetration or the pass," said Hoffman coach Bill Wandro. "We had a lot of energy tonight and made it difficult for them to run their offense the way they wanted to."

But the Hawks know their perfect start will be put to the test this weekend with a Mid-Suburban West opener at Schaumburg and a crossover against defending East champion Buffalo Grove.

"We're still trying to fix all the little things we're doing wrong," Collins said.

"It will be a lot more intense," Mead said, "and a lot more physical."