Jacobs knocks off Huntley for 20th win
Capture the Fox Valley Conference Valley Division boys basketball championship outright. Check.
Earn a No. 2 seed in the postseason. Check.
Jacobs was able to mark off another goal Friday, winning its 20th game of the season with a 57-41 victory over host Huntley in FVC Valley action.
Jacobs, 20-5 overall, remained undefeated in league play at 9-0.
"Twenty wins in the regular season is quite an accomplishment," said Jacobs coach Jim Roberts. "We have a lot to play for in the regular season. We have a big rivalry game with Dundee-Crown Tuesday, the crossover game Friday night, which we get to honor some great seniors. Tonight, we got some defensive stops when we had to and we were able to get some easy baskets off our defense."
Huntley (10-16, 4-5) stayed right with the Golden Eagles in the first half, courtesy of connecting on 4-of-7 from 3-point range. Jason Zobott made both his shots from beyond the arc and Makomborero Tizora and Alec Coss each made a trey as the Red Raiders only trailed Jacobs 28-25 at halftime.
Cam Krutwig muscled his way to 6 points while Cory Boeckh bombed in a pair of 3s for to lead the Golden Eagles to a 3-point advantage at intermission.
Jacobs was able to seize control of the game in the third quarter. Holding a slim 32-30 lead, Jacobs scored the final 7 points of the quarter. Chris Orange scored 5 points including a 3 and Krutwig had a layup off a perfect pass from Matt Bindi as Jacobs led 39-32 after 3 quarters. Jacobs' defense held Huntley to 5 points and 2 baskets in the quarter.
Jacobs' biggest lead of the game was 18, 51-33, on a putback by Krutwig with 2:46 left in the game.
Orange, who made 7-of-8 from the free throw line in the fourth quarter, scored 17, 14 in the second half.
"This is a big win for us because we lost at Huntley last year," said Orange. "We have a lot to play for. We want to go undefeated in the conference."
Krutwig backed Orange with 13 points and 12 rebounds.
Connor Boesch was the lone Red Raider in double digits with 10.
"I thought we played a good first half," said Huntley coach Will Benson. "The third quarter hurt. We couldn't make shots. I liked our effort for 32 minutes. "