Elgin lets one get away vs. Solorio
Free throws are supposed to be easiest shot in basketball, but instead they can be absolutely maddening.
The Elgin boys basketball team knows all about that.
The Maroons shot just 50 percent from the free throw line Friday (11-for-22) in a 57-56 loss to Chicago Solorio Academy in the fourth round of the West Chicago Wildcat Turkey Classic.
Elgin frittered away a slim 23-19 halftime lead by going 4-for-7 from the line in the third quarter and 5-for-9 in the fourth. The Sun Warriors, who started four freshmen, didn't fare much better, going 7-for-12 in the fourth quarter, but made up for that with a 7-for-11 showing from the field in that period to escape with their first victory of the season.
As far as Elgin coach Mike Sitter was concerned, the inability to hit free throws was just the beginning of his team's predicament Friday.
"They were, but you know, it was a lack of fundamentals, not moving our feet on defense and things like that that came back to hurt us," said Sitter, whose team fell to 3-1 and will face West Chicago at 4 p.m. today for the tournament title. "Giving up offensive rebounds at the wrong time … It was a lot of little things - nothing that comes down to the last minute in the game."
It also didn't help Elgin's cause that senior point guard Desmond Douglas fouled out with 4:18 left in the game. Junior Reggie Cole filled in admirably, hitting a long 3-pointer with 24.8 seconds to cut Solorio's lead to 54-53.
He also hit another one with 1.2 seconds left to set the final score, but in between those shots, he attempted a cross-court pass to fellow junior Courtese Cooper that sailed out of bounds. It was a crucial turnover, because Elgin was forced to foul, which put Solorio senior Anthony Thompson at the free throw line with 8.7 seconds left. He coolly hit both shots, giving his team a 4-point lead.
It was an aggravating loss, for sure, but Cole chose to look at the bigger picture.
"It's pretty hard, but also it's a learning thing," said Cole, who finished with 13 points on 5-for-10 shooting from the field. "When we were playing bad in the beginning, we needed to up it - we needed to play like the fourth quarter the whole time."
The loss of Douglas especially hurt, because he appeared to be on his way to rescuing his team for a second straight game. On Wednesday, he parlayed a personal 8-0 run in the third quarter to hand the Maroons a 56-53 win over Chicago Schurz.
On Friday, Douglas nearly did it again, crafting a 5-0 personal run midway through the third quarter to give his team a 28-23 lead with 5:34 to go. That included a pair of free throws and then a layup off a steal.
But it just wasn't Elgin's night. Thompson hit a 3-pointer to start the fourth quarter and erase a 35-35 tie. Then freshman teammate Jalen Stanford hit a layup on a left-lane drive to give the Sun Warriors a 40-35 advantage. By the time Douglas fouled out, with 4:18 to go, Solorio was up 45-40 and more importantly, had the momentum.
"It's a game we should have won, it was a game we had right in front of us," Sitter said. "We had two of these games back-to-back, we won one and we lost the other. We've got to get over that hump and put teams away."
Elgin shot 36 percent from the field (21-for-57). Cooper registered a double-double, with 13 points and 10 rebounds. Thompson led the Sun Warriors with 18 points and 6 rebounds.