Fremd assembles winning effort against Guilford
Fremd showed once again that it can rise to the occasion.
Playing without leading scorer Zach Monaghan for a second consecutive game, the Vikings won their opener in Elgin's annual holiday tournament Monday, advancing to face Neuqua Valley tonight at 6:30 after a 62-50 first-round victory over Rockford Guilford.
The Vikings (7-4) followed up a 44-40 win over MSL West rival Palatine last Friday by regaining their composure and confidence after letting a 35-20 halftime lead evaporate in the third quarter, returning to form and pulling away at the end.
Monaghan is recovering from an automobile accident, when the car in which he was riding last Thursday was struck on the passenger side by another vehicle. A date for his return to the lineup is uncertain.
Jack Konopka led a balanced offense, scoring 10 of his game-high 19 points in the first half, while Quinton Brown (8 of his 15), Jim Scharfe (7) and Matt Wisniewski (6) gave Guilford fits in the first half. Fremd stretched a 14-7 first quarter lead to 35-20, and it held a 26-12 rebounding edge, which led to many second-chance baskets.
Guilford took advantage of some sloppy play by Fremd in the third quarter, outscoring the Vikings 19-5. Guilford's Vikings tied the game at 39 when their leading scorer Brandon Blankenship (15) made the first of 2 free throws with 1:13 left. Konopka's free throw with 33.4 seconds left gave Fremd a lead it wouldn't lose the rest of the way.
"We turned the ball over uncharacteristically in the third quarter, and they scored some easy baskets," Fremd coach Bob Widlowski said. "Jack and 'Q' stepped up scoring-wise."
Brown made 7-of-10 free throws, and Konopka scored 6 points, allowing Fremd to pull away. The Vikings were 15-of-18 from the line in the fourth quarter.
"Jack has been very solid on the offensive end," Widlowski said. "He's been aggressive on offense."
"I try to be aggressive and go to the boards," Konopka said. "Once the game is going, I try to establish a rhythm and try to create some shots."
"The kids look to Quinton," Widlowski said. "When things got a little tight, he did a good job of settling us down."
"Coach called a timeout and said to regain our composure," Brown said. "He told us to push the ball up court to get fastbreak baskets.
"Everyone's confidence is high," Brown said. "Without (Zach), it was a whole team effort."
"(Zach's) our leader and best player," Konopka said. "Seeing him on the bench gave us that extra drive."