Schaumburg finishes strong at Palatine

Neither Cole Reyes nor Kyle Bolger started on Friday night at Palatine.

But both sure knew how to finish.

The two senior guards made all the big plays for Schaumburg in the second half and helped the Saxons pull away from Palatine 53-43 in Mid-Suburban West action.

Reyes had 6 of his 13 points during a 13-4 run in the third quarter and Bolger scored 11 of his team-high 14 points in the final 8:42 to close out the game for Schaumburg (5-4, 2-1).

“Just because you start or you don't start, doesn't mean you can't play starter minutes and it doesn't mean you can't be in the game at crunch time,” said Schaumburg coach Matt Walsh.

After sophomore Roosevelt Smart opened the second half with 2 free throws to cut the Pirates' deficit to 24-22, Reyes knocked down a pair of his own and then scored off a feed from Bolger.

Jimmy Lundquist then canned his third and final 3-pointer of the night and Bolger's drive put the Saxons up 37-26 with 42 seconds left in the third quarter.

Smart, who finished with a game-high 23 points on 9-of-20 shooting, scored just before the third quarter buzzer and then canned back-to-back 3-pointers to open the fourth quarter, bringing Palatine (5-4, 1-2) within 5.

But Bolger proceeded to pour in 9 straight points to bump the lead back up to 14.

“It seemed like every time we made a run and cut it down, Schaumburg went back to being Schaumburg,” said Palatine coach Eric Millstone. “They were very patient with the ball, got the most out of their possessions and they locked it up defensively. I don't think it was so much what we didn't do. I think Schaumburg had a lot to do with it.”

“A big problem for us has been close games in the fourth quarter and not finishing, but we came together and finished this game,” said Reyes, who handed out 3 assists in the fourth quarter.

Juniors Josh Rahn and Matt Rushing both contributed in the fourth quarter for a Saxons squad that has struggled some in the early going but got back to some of the qualities that have helped them win the West the last two seasons.

“We consider ourselves a work in progress right now but I certainly liked what I saw tonight,” Walsh said. “I thought it was a step in the right direction.”

Palatine shot 36 percent (17 of 47) but only turned the ball over 9 times, compared to 11 for Schaumburg.

Sophomore point guard Chris Macahon had 7 points for the Pirates while Josh Baldus added 6 points and 7 rebounds.