Practice makes perfect for Mascari, Geneva
Mitch Mascari is highly regarded for his long-range shooting.
However, Geneva's 6-foot-5 senior guard may have even outdone himself Friday night.
Right before halftime, Mascari received a pass from senior guard Jack McDonald and buried a buzzer-beating, NBA-range 3-pointer to give the Vikings a 35-26 halftime lead over St. Charles East (13-12, 5-5).
The Vikings (22-1, 9-1) scored the first 6 points of the third quarter to extend their lead to double digits on the way to a convincing 75-55 DuKane Conference victory in Geneva.
Mascari scored a game-high 21 points, 11 of them coming in the second quarter when he drained three 3-pointers, including a momentum grabber with the clock winding down.
"I saw him (McDonald) doubled so I came to the middle because my guy was behind me," said Mascari. "I shoot from there a little bit but I don't know if I shoot that deep.
"I couldn't really tell how deep I was until people were telling me, 'dude, you were way behind the volleyball line.'"
Geneva coach Scott Hennig wasn't entirely surprised.
"His range - that's why he's a next-level player," said Hennig. "His ability to shoot the ball from anywhere is just special."
Saints coach Patrick Woods was impressed.
"Oh my, he hit a bomb," said Woods. "I think it was just inside the half-court line and it was all net."
The conference-leading Vikings sealed the decision with an 8-0 run to open the fourth quarter, punctuated by Mascari's 3-point play and a 3-point basket from McDonald that extended the margin to 59-40 with 6:19 remaining.
McDonald, playing with a bandage covering an 8-stitch cut just under his right cheekbone suffered during Tuesday's win over St. Charles North, finished with 17 points, 8 assists, 4 rebounds, a pair of steals and several highlight-reel, break-down the defense plays.
"I'll miss competing against him but I'm not going to miss competing against him at the same time," Woods said of the Vikings' point guard. "He's going to be missed a lot next year."
Kross Garth (7 rebounds, 3 assists) and Josh Preston added 9 points apiece for the Vikings while Alex Williams and Ben Johlie came off the bench to score 6 and 5 points, respectively.
"I thought Ben (Johlie) and Alex (Williams) both played well off the bench," said Hennig, whose team shot 59 percent (27 of 46) from the field for the game, including 71 percent (15 of 21) during its 40-point second half.
"I think two of three shots that we missed were right around the rim," said Hennig. "It was a great team effort."
Seniors Cody Mitchell (9 rebounds) and Mark Musial paced the Saints with 11 and 10 points, respectively.
"When you don't get to practice, this is what happens," said Woods. "Take nothing away from Geneva - they're very good. Simply put, we've practiced once in the last nine days. With our district rules, you can't practice when you don't have school - and they (the Vikings) can.
"I wish that rule would change for us. You cannot not practice, play a team like that and expect to win."