Harper tops DuPage for first N4C victory

A pair of the North Central Community College Conference’s closest men’s basketball rivals hooked up in Palatine Wednesday night.

This season, they’re not only close geographically — they’re also close in terms of victories in league play. Neither Harper nor College of Dupage had won an N4C game entering the contest.

The game came down to the final possession as short-handed Harper came away with a 63-61 victory.

Harper coach Tony Amarino made the first tactical move of the game before it even started. With Brian Battaglia (Elk Grove) out with a shoulder injury, Amarino opted not to start Shonnon Barfield. Instead, Battaglia’s replacement was John Lorenz (Elk Grove), and he helped the Hawks set the pace early by scoring 7 of Harper’s first 11 points as the Hawks grabbed an 11-8 lead.

“I let my game come to me,” said Lorenz, who finished with 11 points. “I knew I had to step up.”

Another Harper freshman starting to come into his own is point guard Connor Miklasz (Hersey). He finished with 12 points and was one of four Hawks who scored in double figures.

The Chaparrals eventually battled back. When Xavier Biles provided a 3-point play, it tied the game at 14 with 11:39 left in the first half. Biles finished with a team-high 17 points while shooting 50 percent from the field.

“I was just trying to attack — I’m a driver,” Biles said.

The teams went to the locker room tied at 29. When play resumed, Barfield and sophomore forward Jordan Mack start to make their presence felt.

“I came to the game really focused,” said Barfield, who finished with a game-high 20 points.

The Barfield-Mack duo scored on seven of Harper’s first eight possessions of the second half.

“My mindset was to be aggressive,” Mack said.

He was also efficient, going 5-for-10 from the field and scoring 10 points.

Mack and guard Simeon Handy led the Hawks in rebounding with 11 apiece. Mack also had game-high 4 blocks.

“I promised (Harper athletic director Doug Spiwak) a win,” Barfield said with a relieved smile. “I didn’t want to let him down.”

The teams exchange runs of 4 and 5 points, and the game really started to tighten up.

Biles tied the game at 48, and DuPage (9-14 overall, 0-7 N4C) took its first lead with 1:38 left, when Jake Martin scored to give the Chaps a 61-58 lead.

On the next possession, DuPage fouled Barfield. He made both free throws.

With Harper (7-16, 1-6) leading 63-60, the Hawks fouled Mark Penczak.

“We didn’t want them to get a look at a 3 to tie the game,” Amarino said.

Penczak made the first attempt but missed the second. The rebounds went out of bounds off a Harper player, giving DuPage one last shot at tying the game.

Off the inbounds pass, guard Yeremiah Crutcher had a nice look but his shot didn’t go down.

“It was the shot we wanted,” said DuPage assistant coach Scott Wager, who was filling in for head coach Don Klaas.

“It was a great play, a great pass — I just didn’t make the shot,” Crutcher said.

“I though Louis (Erkins) played solid defense (on the last possession),” Amarino said. “Louis was able to push (Crutcher) away from the basket.”