Libertyville can't weather Storm; Stevenson wins again
Two and a half minutes into the game, the Libertyville Wildcats looked ready to spoil the South Elgin Storm's senior night by scoring the first 6 points.
But South Elgin seniors Kyle Osborne and Jeffrey Lewis had other ideas, and led the Storm back to a 61-40 victory in nonconference boys basketball action Saturday night.
Osborne, who recently returned from an injury he had suffered in the Storm's season opener, started things in the second quarter by drilling three 3-point baskets and netting 11 of his game-high 15 points to give South Elgin (16-6) a 35-24 halftime lead.
"In the second quarter, we got some good looks but couldn't convert," said Libertyville coach Scott Bogumil, whose team fell to 8-15. "They're really a tough defense and we couldn't come back."
"It just felt good to be out there tonight," Osborne said. "When I was out I just practiced every day and it helped."
Jeremy Letchford (11 points) narrowed Liberytyville's deficit to 35-26 and then 38-28 on a pair of baskets early in the third quarter, but that was the closest the Wildcats came.
Lewis, who went scoreless in the first half, scored the Storm's first 11 points of the third quarter, culminating with a 4-point play. Baskets from senior Josh Smith and Osborne ended a 15-4 run for South Elgin and a 50-28 lead.
"In the first half I was really struggling with my shots," Lewis said. "My teammates and coach just told me to settle down and set up my shots, and my teammates did a good job finding me in the second half."
All nine Storm seniors saw court time, and Dani Lopez and Jordan Dobler each contributed 6 points.
"They've started all of this here," said South Elgin coach Chaz Taft. "They believe in the system, they believe in their teammates and they believe in what we're trying to teach them."
Myles Burton added 8 points for the Wildcats.
Stevenson 48, Palatine 32: Jeff Arenson scored a game-high 17 points for the host Patriots, who won their third in a row.
Stevenson (14-8) also received 9 points from Henry wood and 8 from Grant Johnson.
Grant 49, Highland Park 33: The visiting Bulldogs won their second game in as many nights, after five straight losses.
A.J. Spohr and Gilbert Sheehan led Grant (13-10) with 12 and 10 points, respectively. Spohr sank a pair of 3-pointers.
St. Charles East 68, Lake Zurich 67: The host Bears dropped a heartbreaker for the second night in a row.
Lake Zurich (11-13), which lost by a point in double overtime to Lake Forest on Friday night, was led in scoring by Connor Mooney and Danny Coleman with 21 and 20 points, respectively.
Chas Evans had 12 points, while Brandon Kunz finished with 10 points, 13 rebounds and 3 blocks. Coleman grabbed 9 rebounds.
Huntley 60, Grayslake Central 52: The Rams dropped the Fox Valley Fox road game, despite Josh Rappaport's 17 points.
Grayslake Central (16-8, 5-2) also got 14 points from Kevin O'Rourke and 10 from Alex Anderson.