Boys basketball: Pomis scores 33 to power Hersey past Palatine in sectional semifinal
Charlie Pomis shot Hersey to a Class 4A boys basketball sectional final Tuesday at Fremd.
Pomis scored 33 points, converting 6-of-8 from outside the 3-point arc and 13-of-18 overall as the Huskies knocked off second-seeded Palatine 64-50.
Hersey (21-7), which is seeded third in the sectional, will meet top-seeded Fremd at 7 p.m. Friday.
Pomis made sure that the Huskies would be making a return trip Palatine. The senior hit from all over the court. He also fought his way inside for a pair of putbacks.
“My shot felt real good tonight,” Pomis said. “I love having the ball in my hands. I’m glad my teammates and my coaches trust me in this position.”
Hersey coach Bob Widlowski said that Pomis’ scoring was a key to his team’s success.
“Charlie gave us separation tonight,” Widlowski said. “And I thought we were solid defensively.”
While Pomis’ scoring got the Huskies rolling, it was the Hersey defense that slowed Palatine (29-5). Widlowski said assistant coach Luke Yanule came up with solid defensive plan.
“Coach Yanule came up with a great game plan,” Widlowski said. “It’s hard to stop Tony (Balanganayi) and those shooters at the same time. But I thought overall we did a good job of staying with the plan.”
Balanganayi did finish with 30 points. But the Huskies limited the remainder of the Pirates’ offense to just 20 points.
“It is so hard to guard that kid,” Hersey’s Jake Nawrot said. “It is our third time playing them, so we know how it is going to go. We just got the stops when we needed them.”
It was a deliberate first half by both teams. Each team took their time running their offense.
They battled to a 10-10 tie after the first quarter.
Hersey, behind some hot shooting by Charlie Pomis and the inside play by Nawrot, ran out to a 14-8 run in the first six minutes of the half to lead 24-18.
Palatine recovered as Darrin Dick (12 points), who moved this year to point guard from a wing, showed that he still had some muscle memory left. The senior drilled a pair of 3s, to go with an earlier 3-pointer he had converted as the Pirates tied the game at 24-24 at the half.
Pomis really heated up in the third quarter. He scored 19 points in the period, including a key 3-pointer in front of his bench as time expired to break a 41-41 tie and put the Huskies up for good at 44-41
“I love moments like that when the game is close,” Pomis said.
It stayed a three-point game until the final four minutes. Hersey pulled away by not allowing a Palatine a field goal during that stretch.
“Charlie (Pomis) was on a heater tonight,” said Palatine coach Eric Millstone, whose team set a school record with 29 wins. “You try to ride it out because the kid had it stuck in video-game mode. We just had trouble making shots the last two games. But our kids displayed great all season.”
Nawrot finished with 8 points for Hersey. Logan Luxem and Tristan Trotter each had six points.