Thomas, Prospect finish off Glenbrook South
A flexible finish from Prospect’s Danny Thomas helped contort the Knights into the semifinals of the Wheeling Hardwood Classic.
Thomas took a feed from teammate Bobby Frasco at the top of the key with 5 seconds to play, then weaved past two Glenbrook South defenders and laid the ball into the basket with 2.2 seconds left to lift his team to a 52-51 decision in championship quarterfinal play Thursday.
“The play call was for Bobby (Frasco),” said Thomas, who was the second option on the inbounds play.
“They keyed in on him and he got double-teamed. I got the ball at the top of the key. They obviously didn’t want to foul me, so I was able to get to the rim.”
The win moved Prospect (8-4) into Friday’s semifinal against St. Viator. The Knights, who handed the Lions their only loss of the season back at Thanksgiving, are making their first appearance in the semifinals since 2009.
Prospect, which had been struggling to get off to a good start, played its best first quarter of the season as the Knights built a 17-11 advantage.
“There was a huge difference today,” said Frasco, who finished with 17 points. “We defended better and we played unbelievably hard today. I think it is the hardest we played all year.”
Prospect coach John Camardella agreed with his star guard.
“It really was our best first quarter of the season,” Camardella said. “It really catapulted us. To Glenbrook South’s credit, they were hitting their 3’s. We were settling for that. They were much bigger than us.”
Glenbrook South (7-5) was able to stay in the game thanks to that 3-point shooting. The Titans closed to 26-25 with 2:26 left in the first half. But with Thomas (15 points), leading the way, the Knights closed out the half with a 6-2 run to lead 32-27 at the break.
Prospect came out slow to start the second half, allowing Glenbrook South to score 6 unanswered points on its way to 10-2 run to lead 40-36 with 3:25 left in the third quarter.
The Titans led 47-44 early in the fourth quarter when Frasco went to work. He tied the game on a 3-point play and then tied it again at 49-49 with 4:21 left on a basket.
Glenbrook South pulled ahead on a bucket with 2:14 to play. But that was the last Titans lead.
Kyle Beyak (10 points) hit a free throw with 1:58 to play as the Knights pulled to 51-50.
Glenbrook South had a chance to increase its lead with 18.3 seconds left, but the Titans missed the front end of a 1-and-1. Prospect called timeout with 8 seconds left to set up the final play.
“I thought Bobby and Danny were incredible tonight,” Camardella said. “ I thought they played off each other very well. And it showed on the last play.
“The first option was Bob and Danny was the second. That’s the thing. When plays break down our guys all year have been able to adjust.”