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Wauconda hits reset button, tops Grant

With her Wauconda girls basketball team sporting a winning look all season, coach Jaime Dennis rarely has had to flash “The Look.”

Dennis did in Wauconda's first-place showdown with host Grant on Tuesday.

She angrily burned a 30-second timeout after Wauconda failed to box out on a free throw, allowing the shooter, Caitlin Wedge, to rebound her own miss and bank in a shot, extending the hosts' lead to 20-13 with 3:17 left before halftime.

“The Look?”

Every child has gotten it from mom or dad. Students are recipients, too.

“It's kind of like when you know you did something wrong,” Wauconda forward Maggie Sarich said. “All teachers do it. They don't even say anything. ... It's just one of those where you kind of get stared at. No smile. I don't think it's a scowl.”

At game's end, Dennis' look was happy, one she's displayed after, now, 15 games this season.

Wauconda pulled away in the fourth quarter to win 44-33, improving to 15-0 overall and 6-0 in the North Suburban Prairie Division, while dropping Grant to 5-10 and 3-1.

“We talked in the beginning of the game about executing, doing all the little things — box out, limit (Grant) to one shot, intensity on defense and taking care of the ball,” Dennis said. “In the second quarter, when we didn't score forever, we didn't do any of those things.”

In the first half of the first quarter, Wauconda executed. Sarich's 2 free throws had the visitors up 10-0.

But back came Grant, scoring 14 unanswered points, with Kassie Stimpson, Morgan Jahnke and Donnie Taggart knocking down 3-pointers.

Grant led 14-12 after a quarter.

“I think we got overconfident,” said Sarich, who equaled her season high with 10 points. “We just thought, ‘Oh, this is going to be easy now.' But no game is going to be easy.”

Wauconda responded immediately to Dennis' second-quarter timeout. Roslyn Summerville (8 points, 6 rebounds) found Sarich for a layup, and then Sarich came up with a steal at the other end. Tammy Ellis (game-high 14 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists) sank 2 free throws, and Wauconda was on the way back.

The visiting Bulldogs closed the half with a 12-2 run, with layups by Ellis and Melanie Prudhomme putting them up 25-22 at halftime.

Two free throws by Nicole Swanson got Grant back within 27-26 with 6:39 left in the third. But Summerville scored off a Prudhomme dish and Ellis sank Wauconda's only 3 of the game to make it a 32-26 lead.

Grant had trouble scoring the rest of the way, finishing just 10 of 52 for the game.

“(Wauconda) shot the basketball a heck of a lot better than we did,” Grant coach John Eiduke said. “We certainly did not make shots, and they certainly made a lot more. They clearly beat us tonight. Give them credit. They're a good basketball team.”

Swanson, the sister of former Grant star Jamie Swanson, led the hosts with 9 points and 5 rebounds, four on the offensive glass. Wedge added 7 points off the bench.

“I thought Nikki Swanson and Caitlin Wedge did a nice job at our five spot,” Eiduke said. “They both played well in the same game. For us, the more productivity we get out of them, the better.”

“(Grant) definitely played scrappy,” Dennis said. “They were 3-0 in our division for a reason, and we had to be ready to play. They played a nice game. They were aggressive and pushed us out of our comfort zone in the first half.”

Wauconda prevailed despite allowing a season-high 15 offensive rebounds.

“Definitely no excuse for that,” Dennis said. “That second quarter, we'd like to forget about.”

Images: Wauconda at Grant girls basketball

  Grant’s Morgan Jahnke, left, tries to save the ball from going out of bounds as Wauconda’s Melanie Prudhomme defends Tuesday in Fox Lake. Steve Lundy/slundy@dailyherald.com
  Wauconda’s Diana Enriquez, left, drives on Grant’s Donnie Taggart Tuesday in Fox Lake. Steve Lundy/slundy@dailyherald.com
  Grant’s Morgan Jahnke, right, dishes off the ball to Donnie Taggart during their game against Wauconda Tuesday in Fox Lake. Steve Lundy/slundy@dailyherald.com
  Grant’s Caitlin Wedge, left and Wauconda’s Diana Enriquez battle for a loose ball Tuesday in Fox Lake. Steve Lundy/slundy@dailyherald.com
  Wauconda’s Chavez Coombs, right, drives on Grant’s Donnie Taggart Tuesday in Fox Lake. Steve Lundy/slundy@dailyherald.com
  Wauconda’s Melanie Prudhomme, left, and Grant’s Morgan Jahnke battle for a loose ball Tuesday in Fox Lake. Steve Lundy/slundy@dailyherald.com