St. Charles North keeps its cool
St. Charles North basketball coach Tom Poulin learned something invaluable about his team Wednesday night.
He learned something about his team’s resiliency during the North Stars’ 64-53 victory over North Lawndale at the 55th annual Ron Johnson Thanksgiving Tournament.
After North Lawndale (0-2) rallied to tie the game at 49-49 with 4:10 remaining on a pair of inside baskets by Keith Mack (17 points, 11 rebounds), the North Stars (2-0) kept their composure and answered back.
Senior guard Alec Goetz, who scored 11 of his team-high 15 points in the fourth quarter, hit a runner in the paint to give the North Stars the lead for good at 51-49 with 3:18 left.
Tyler DeMoss and Goetz each added a pair of free throws, while Camden Cotter connected on a 15-footer from the corner during the North Stars’ 8-0 run that extended their lead to 57-49 with 1:34 remaining.
“They tied it up and our guys didn’t flinch,” said Poulin. “We didn’t get tight. I thought we played the same way we played since the (opening) tip.
“We knew that they (North Lawndale) were going to make their run and we answered.”
Goetz enjoyed a perfect fourth quarter, hitting both of his field-goal attempts and 6 consecutive free throws.
“It was a decent quarter,” said Goetz. “We got the win — that’s all that mattered. It was a good win. We beat two ranked teams (Plainfield East and North Lawndale) already.”
Junior guard Jake Ludwig added 4 fourth-quarter free throws as part of his 14-point, 7-rebound effort, while Erik Miller finished with 11 points.
“We want the ball in the hands of Alec, Jake and Jack,” Poulin said of his late-game strategy. “Those guys are good free-throw shooters.”
The North Stars connected on 13 of their 15 fourth-quarter foul shots.
Jack Callaghan added 9 points, 8 rebounds and 4 assists for the North Stars, who face Downers Grove South (1-1) Friday night.
“We need to learn how to play with the ball with the lead in the fourth quarter,” said Poulin. “This is something that has jumped out at us the last two games. We need to spend more practice time on it. But to have the lead in the fourth quarter against somebody like Plainfield East and somebody like North Lawndale is a positive.”
St. Charles North led 32-22 at halftime, as Callaghan drained a pair of 3-pointers during the North Stars’ 8-0 run over the final 1:25.
Garrett Johnson and Cotter finished with 6 and 5 points, respectively, for the North Stars.
Jeremy Williams added 7 points for North Lawndale, which will face Plainfield East (1-1) Friday afternoon.