Larkin tops Hillcrest at Proviso West
It was a much better finish than start for the Larkin boys basketball team at the famed Proviso West Holiday Tournament.
Larkin junior standout Christian Negron more than made up for a critical missed free throw with a 3-point play with 11.3 seconds to play on Saturday morning in Hillside.
It was only the Royals' second lead of the game in the tournament opener against Hillcrest. The Hawks had a chance to tie the game with four seconds remaining, but missed the front end of a bonus free-throw situation.
AJ Hunter then sealed the Royals' 56-52 victory by converting 2 free throws with 2.5 seconds to play.
Larkin (7-4) will meet undefeated and defending Class 3A state champion St. Joseph in the quarterfinals Monday at 8:30 p.m.
“We needed more energy,” Negron said of the Royals' disastrous start in which the team missed its first 10 shots in falling behind 12-0 in the first quarter.
Trailing for virtually the entire game — its only first-half lead was 16-14 on a Negron dunk — Larkin stormed from behind in the waning minutes with pressure defense.
Marcus Grant, who led all players with 19 points, provided Hillcrest (7-3) its largest fourth-quarter lead with a 3-pointer. But Larkin refused to wilt from its 48-40 deficit.
Hunter, who paced Larkin with 17 points, converted a 3-point play with slightly less than three minutes to play to bring the Royals to within 50-46. Negron, who finished with 12 points and a team-high 9 rebounds, grabbed a defensive board and went coast-to-coast for an uncontested dunk on the next Hillcrest possession.
The junior had a chance to tie the game on the ensuing Larkin possession but failed to convert the second free throw.
“That's something I have to work on,” Negron said of the missed free throw. “My teammates kept trusting me. (The win) means a lot to Larkin basketball.”
Larkin then forced a turnover with less than 20 seconds to play.
Negron, who missed his first shot at the tiebreaker, received a feed from Hunter who corralled the initial misfire. Negron scored in the paint and was fouled with 11.3 seconds to play.
Larkin eventually prevailed, overcoming 38-percent shooting (18-47) from the field, by converting 18-for-21 free throws.
“The biggest take-away was to win a game when (Negron) wasn't playing his best,” Larkin coach Deryn Carter said. “(Free-throw shooting late) is not about percentages; it's about being mentally tough.”
Keyvon Kyles (9 points) and Tariq Burns combined for 17 points for Larkin.
“We missed some free throws (2-for-13),” Hillcrest coach Don Houston said. “We forced some shots we probably shouldn't have taken.”