Knights shoot down Proviso West

Backcourt teammates Joe LaTulip and Jason Leblebijian combined for 46 points to help lead Prospect (3-1) to an 80-71 victory over Proviso West (2-2) in the third-place game of the 50th annual Ron Johnson Thanksgiving Invitational Saturday night at St. Charles East.

"I'm trying to think about what to say about the two of them," said Prospect coach John Camardella, who watched LaTulip score 19 first-half points before Leblebijian took over down the stretch with 13 fourth-quarter points.

"The type of play varies so much in this tournament and with very little time to prepare and practice, you're asking a lot of your team. For Jason and Joe to come out and play the way they did today, with 46 points, says a lot."

After having an 11-point fourth-quarter lead cut to 4 at 64-60 on a 3-point play from Panthers guard Miles Morgan (18 points) with 5:22 left, Camardella used a timeout to settle his team down.

"In that huddle, I could sense a little tenseness from our players," said the coach. "I just told them, 'if you can execute on the offensive end, I think it'll go in our favor.'"

A layup by Jack Redding (9 points) and 4 consecutive points from Leblebijian stretched the lead back to double figures at 70-60 with 3:50 left.

"Three or four possessions in a row there we got those backdoor looks and they couldn't double-down," said Camardella. "That's what we've been saying this year - on the defensive end it's about intensity and on the offensive end it's about execution."

LaTulip connected on 10-of-13 field goal attempts, including four 3-pointers, while Leblebijian added three 3-pointers and 4 assists.

"It's one of those days where (Kevin) Reed didn't touch the ball as much as usual down low so we had to step up," said Leblebijian.

Nsenzi Salasini added 12 points for the Knights, who finished the tourney with 3 consecutive victories after a heartbreaking 66-63 double-overtime loss to state-ranked St. Joseph on Tuesday night.

"The disappointment of that double-overtime loss fueled these three wins," said Camardella.

"A loss like that (to St. Joseph) never leaves you, especially in the first game of the season against one of the most successful programs in the state," said Leblebijian. "It was a heartbreaker but we learned from it."