Prospect able to shake Buffalo Grove

Prospect had a problem.

The Knights, fifth-seeded in the Libertyville sectional, couldn't shake 12th-seeded Buffalo Grove on Tuesday night in their Class 4A regional semifinal at Stevenson.

Every time the Knights put on a spurt and built something of a formidable lead, BG battled back, finally settling in down just 19-17 at the half when K.C. Dunne hit a buzzer-beating 3-pointer.

And then Prospect clamped down. The Knights opened the third quarter with 8 straight points while BG was going 0-for-7 from the floor with 4 turnovers. Prospect opened the fourth quarter just as impressively, scoring 7 straight points while BG was going 0-for-2 with a couple more turnovers.

That finally gave the Knights the cushion they needed for a 48-37 win and a spot in Thursday's 7:30 p.m. regional final against host Stevenson.

"I was very proud of our defense," said Prospect (19-8) coach Martha Kelly. "I thought we did a better job in the second half," especially taking away 3-point looks from Heather Nisbet and Dunne and clogging the middle with the length of Sarah Hunt, their 6-foot-2 junior center.

Hunt scored 14, put some verve into the Prospect offense by hitting 4 straight field goals from the first quarter into the second and helped the taller Knights block 4 shots and alter many others.

"I was anxious to make a difference," said Hunt, who didn't start but played like an All-America first-teamer. And while she made a difference at both ends, she professed no preference for blocking shots over making baskets.

She worked the high-low offense beautifully twice, taking turns with sister Rachel (7 points), and she was the designated pressbreaker/layup-maker when BG (10-20) went to a scrambling trap to get back in the game.

Sarah Winans (14 points) took some turns at that and some key driving buckets as well. In addition, Hunt, Marissa Pettenuzzo, Winans and Lexi Glennon combined to hit 11-of-12 free throws in the fourth quarter, and defensive specialist Glennon took turns rotating on BG's hottest shooter.

BG relied on season-long team leaders Nisbet and Dunne to get back in the game in the second quarter and then high-scorer Andrea DiPrima (14) and Dunne to rally in the third quarter and hang around in the fourth. Alanna Zawlocki provided a lift off the bench.

"Prospect played a great game defensively," said BG head coach Pat Dudle.

"Heather Nisbet and Stacy Lialios (4 points) just had a tremendous season for us," he said. But BG had no answer for Sarah Hunt, who "just takes up space," he noted.

Now the Knights have a rematch of an overtime win over Stevenson, "which does a good job of driving and is tall too," Hunt noted.

"Both teams play very good defense," said Kelly. "I would like to keep the number of turnovers down," she added after committing 12, most of those in the second half as BG rallied.