Yorkville drops Kaneland in OT
Yorkville’s Josh Bondurant was crushed, missing on the potential game-winning drive in the last couple seconds of regulation against Kaneland.
“Really crushed because I was, like, I probably just lost a game for my team,” said the Foxes senior guard.
Minutes later Bondurant helped win the game, swishing two 3-pointers in overtime, among his 10 overtime points in Yorkville’s 64-60 victory Friday in Maple Park.
“I was, like, really focused on making the baskets so I could make up for all the missed layups I had in the game,” said Bondurant, whose 20 points followed the game-high 25 of hard-charging Kaneland guard John Pruett.
No one will remember those misses now. Though Kaneland (9-6, 2-2) rallied late in regulation to force overtime, Yorkville (9-7, 2-2) shook a 3-game skid to pull even with their host in the Northern Illinois Big XII East.
“We had a substantial lead at the end of regulation and usually the team with momentum is the team that comes out on top in overtime,” said Yorkville’s third-year head coach, Dan McGuire. “Our kids didn’t quit and I was real proud of the way they finished the game because we haven’t been able to do that in the last couple ballgames.”
Aside from a couple early 6-point Knights leads, a game of 19 lead changes and 10 ties makes a substantial lead a relative term. Yorkville led 47-44 and 49-46 in the last two minutes of the fourth quarter, but off an inbounds play Kaneland’s Tyler Carlson canned a 3-pointer from the left wing with 18.6 seconds left to send it to overtime.
“We played hard. We can’t hang our heads about that,” said Carlson, who scored 19 points with 9 rebounds.
Bondurant’s first overtime 3-pointer put Yorkville up 54-51. Pruett — a wad of gauze clogging his left nostril after getting hammered and bloodied on a second-quarter drive — countered with a duece.
Yorkville gained a 5-point lead on lefty Kyle Shimp’s transition bucket. Pruett, taking over after halftime with 21 of his 25 points, answered again.
Bondurant’s second 3 keyed a 5-point mini-run to spread the Foxes’ lead to 61-53 with 54.2 seconds remaining in overtime.
“Those were game-changers right there,” Carlson said.
Kaneland pulled within 63-60 on a lay-in by Cole Carlson off a Drew David assist with 17 seconds left. Seven seconds later Shimp made one of Yorkville’s 30 free throws on 39 attempts. Eight of Shimp’s 14 points were at the foul line; Foxes guard Cedric Payne scored 9 of his 11 on free throws.
By comparison, Kaneland went 13 of 16 from the line.
“I think they executed down the stretch better than we did,” said Knights coach Brian Johnson. “...We’ve got to do a better job of finishing by the bucket or creating more contact to get to the line. And (Yorkville) did a great job of it and they made their free throws.”