Libertyville passes up Lake Zurich
On “Senior Citizen Night” at Libertyville, Ellis Matthews went “Bob Cousy.”
The junior guard threaded a behind-the-back pass to Jeremy Birck for a breakaway layup during the first half — early enough during the evening to call it an early-bird special for the senior citizens, including Matthews' grandmother, who sat in bleacher seats at no cost.
That Cousy-esque dish was old school, young people. The old folks would appreciate it.
“I couldn't go back to my left hand or make a chest pass because (the defender) was right there,” Matthews said. “So I decided to go around the back.”
In the end, good ol' fashion defense and Matthews' game-high 16 points lifted Libertyville to a 51-36 win over Lake Zurich in a North Suburban Lake Division contest.
The win for Libertyville (9-9, 3-5), which had lost five of its last six, spoiled the return of former assistant coach Billy Pitcher, whose Bears lost to Libertyville at Lake Zurich in early December.
“I was joking about how I've never been in this (visiting team) locker room before,” said Pitcher, the Bears' first-year head coach. “It's the girls locker room here, so I didn't know what it looked like. I walked in and I was saying, ‘It's actually pretty nice in here.' ”
Lake Zurich (5-14, 2-6) was coming off an upset of Mundelein and was seeking its third win a row. The Bears got off to an 8-4 lead after one quarter.
“They've been scrapping,” Libertyville coach Scott Bogumil said. “I thought defensively we played really well.”
Matthews led the defensive charge with 6 steals.
And consider his defensive effort a nice surprise for the Wildcats.
“He was really active,” Bogumil said. “We get on him about defense all the time. We tell him it could make him a really tough player if he would play both ends of the floor, because he's quick enough.”
“I'm starting to like it a little more,” Matthews said. “I don't really like defense too much; I'm more of an offensive player. But I've been really working on my defensive game.”
Matthews' three baskets, including a pair of layups and jumper that he rolled in, keyed an 18-10 second quarter for the home team that had the Wildcats up 22-18 at halftime.
Libertyville opened the second half with Matthews hitting a pull-up 17-footer and then a 3-pointer. When Griffin Pils (11 points, 5 assists, 4 rebounds) drove the length of the court for a layup, Libertyville led by 29-18.
Matthews made another 3 before the quarter ended, and the Wildcats led 37-26 entering the fourth.
“It was a slow start, but we picked it up, definitely,” said Matthews, who also dished out 5 assists. “Our defense was huge. We got a lot of steals. They're a really good team.”
Lake Zurich committed 23 turnovers, at times unable to handle Libertyville's zone trap.
Mirko Grcic led the Bears with 13 points and 9 rebounds, while Drake Orser had 9 points and 11 boards.
“We had a great start. We've had great starts all year long,” Pitcher said. “We anticipated the trapping and the zones, and we practiced that. We did a great job against Mundelein taking care of the ball, and tonight, unfortunately, was a step backward.”
Birck and Luke Mathewson added 8 and 7 points, respectively, for Libertyville. The Wildcats' 7-foot, 260-pound Keegan McAullife started his third straight game and blocked 4 shots.
“He's been playing better in practice,” Bogumil said. “I just kept saying I got to force myself to play him, and what better way to force myself than put him out there right away?”