Deere, Warren edge Oak Park at Pontiac; Lakes 3-0 at Jacobs
Warren’s boys basketball team has had a history of success at the Pontiac Holiday Tournament.
The Blue Devils got off to another good start Thursday, winning their opener 53-51 over Oak Park River Forest.
Adrian Deere scored 20 points, tying his season high, and grabbed 6 rebounds for Warren (7-5), which trailed 36-34 after three quarters. Aarias Austin added 14 points, hitting a pair of 3-pointers, as the Blue Devils advanced to today’s 11 a.m. game against Peoria Manual.
Lakes 71, Marian Central 44: At Jacobs, the Eagles moved into the championship bracket, shaking off a slow start to finish with a 3-0 record in pool play to win their pool.
Lakes (12-3) boasted four players in double figures, led by Justin Bergeron with 16 points. Direll Clark added 15, Jake Kohler had 13 and Andrew Spencer chipped in 12.
The Eagles, who have won five in a row, play Crystal Lake Central at 7:30 p.m. today.
Vernon Hills 58, Wheeling 49: At Wheeling, the Cougars overcame a 40-39 deficit after three quarters, outscoring the Wildcats 19-9 in the fourth to win their first game in the Hardwood Classic.
Trenton Fulton scored a season-high 14 points and collected 9 rebounds for Vernon Hills (7-7, 1-1), while Stephen Curry had a double-double of 11 points and 10 rebounds. Brett Peterson all scored 11 points for the Cougars, who play Maine West at 12:15 p.m. today.
Grayslake Central 57, Chillicothe IVC 51: At Normal Community West, Danny Reed scored 20 points and the Rams rallied to snap a nine-game losing streak, improving to 1-2 in the State Farm Holiday Classic.
Grayslake Central (2-10) received 8 points apiece from Matt Spalding and Alex Lennartz. The Rams, who were playing their second game of the day, trailed 41-38 after three quarters.
Thornwood 70, Grayslake Central 42: At Illinois Wesleyan University’s Shirk Center, the Rams fell to 0-2 in the State Farm Holiday Classic, falling behind 19-9 after one quarter.
Grayslake Central (1-10) got 7 points from Jack Spicer. Joey Mudd made a pair of 3-pointers, and Danny Reed also had 6 points.
Evanston 58, Lake Zurich 51: At Pekin, in opening-round action, the Wildkits went on a 7-0 run to close the first half and go up 29-26.
Brad Kruse had 19 points and Mike Travlos added 16 (three 3-pointers) to lead Lake Zurich (4-8), which dropped its fourth in a row. Evanston outrebounded LZ 35-21.
“We handled the ball well against their full court press,” said coach Billy Pitcher, whose Bears committed only 5 turnovers. “But all the second chances really hurt us.”
Wauconda 51, Woodstock 41: At Marengo, Austin Swenson scored 15 points and Ricky Sidlowski added 14 for the Bulldogs, who improved to 2-1 in the tournament.
Dion Head contributed 13 points for Wauconda (7-6).