DeKalb avenges loss to Kaneland

When Kaneland looked up at the scoreboard in the waning seconds of the first quarter, it wasn't a pretty picture.

A determined DeKalb squad ripped off the game's first 21 points as the Knights missed their first 9 shots and committed 7 first-quarter turnovers.

The host Barbs extended their advantage to 40-11 at the half and rolled to an impressive 60-37 victory in Friday night's critical Northern Illinois Big XII East matchup.

DeKalb (16-7, 7-1) avenged its only league loss, a 53-52 decision on the Knights' home floor just over a month ago.

"It was just one of those nights when we couldn't get it going," said Knights junior Dylan Vaca, who led the team with 11 points. "No one on our team could hit a shot in the first quarter and they didn't seem to miss a shot."

"DeKalb wanted this game and they want to be conference champs. They shut us down in all aspects in that first quarter," said Kaneland coach Brian Johnson.

Kaneland (11-11, 6-4) failed to match DeKalb's intensity at the start and paid the price as Mike Pollack, Rudy Lopez and Luke Davis combined for 19 first quarter points.

Vaca finally got the Knights on the scoreboard with a 3-pointer at the first-quarter buzzer and hit 3 free throws to narrow the gap to 23-8 with six minutes left in the half.

Jace Kitchen (17 points) took over with a pair of dunks and a trifecta as DeKalb ended the half on a 17-3 run.

"We came out with great concentration and a lot of enthusiasm," said DeKalb coach Al Biancalana. "We didn't do that in the first game and they got up on us and we were back on our heels."

Kaneland outscored DeKalb 26-20 in the second half as Steven Limbrunner provided a spark off the bench with a trio of 3-pointers.

Connor Fedderly also knocked down a 3-pointer and contributed 5 second half points. Ryan David, who collected 14 points and 8 rebounds in the first matchup, was limited to just 4 points.

"I liked our effort in the second half, but when you play a team like DeKalb you can't dig yourself out of a hole like that," Johnson said.

The Knights expect to bounce back in tonight's nonconference game against Larkin.

"We need to put this game in the past, but not forget it completely so we don't come out flat again," Vaca said.