Swedura's swagger helps Prospect past Libertyville
David Swedura led a charged-up Prospect boys basketball team past Libertyville 61-56 on Friday in the Joe Majkowski Thanksgiving tournament at St. Viator in Arlington Heights.
Swedura scored 25 points, but it was his 2 steals and the charge he took on Libertyville's Drew Peterson in the final two minutes that turned the tide for Prospect (1-2).
"We just didn't want to think about the past," said Swedura, who was 9-for-12 from the field, including 4-of-5 from outside the arc. "My teammates got me in spots where I could contribute in the end."
Prospect came into the game riding a 2-game losing streak. The Knights struggled in both of those games, especially in the first half.
Prospect coach John Camardella challenged his squad before the game to be better prepared and to execute better.
"I think we faced our frustration from Wednesday night," Camardella said. "They didn't make excuses for it and were honest with themselves. It was great to see them respond."
And respond they did.
Facing a tough Libertyville zone, Prospect was patient offensively. The Knights first 11 shots were from outside the arc. Fortunately, they converted 5 of them as they led 15-11.
The sharpshooting continued, with Prospect converting 9 first half 3s and increasing the lead to 29-21. Libertyville rallied just before the end of the half to make it 29-27.
When Libertyville switched to man-to-man defense in the second half, Prospect adjusted as well. The Knights began to attack the basket and led 41-34 with 3:14 left in the third quarter on a 3 by Sam Murray. It was the Knights' first 3 of the second half.
Libertyville (1-2) which had turned the ball over 5 times early in the third quarter, got its offense back in gear. Travis Clark and Peterson rallied the Wildcats with 13 unanswered points and Libertyville led 47-41 with 7:45 to play.
Prospect came up with a run of its own, scoring 8 consecutive points to lead 49-47 with 5:19 to play on a pair of free throws by Jon Kreidler.
Peterson, who was heavily guarded by Prospect's Jalen McLachlan throughout the game, broke free for free throws and a sweet turnaround fadeaway jumper, and Libertyville surged ahead 56-53 with 1:51 to play.
Swedura then helped will his team to the win.
He had a driving basket and free throw to tie the game at 56. He then took a charge on the other end of the court on Peterson.
And when a Libertyville defender left to double Swedura, Tim Lussenhop took a pass on the wing and then buried the Knights' second 3 of the second half to put Prospect up for good.
"They were really focused on David," said Lussenhop, who finished with 9 points. "I was open, so I had to shoot it."
Swedura wasn't done. His steal set up a basket by Lussenhop and the Knights were able to pull away for the victory,
"This was a mass response game against a very tough Libertyville team," Camardella said. "We got contributions all over."
Kreidler had 7 points and Johnny Czeslawski and Murray each had 6 points.
Peterson finished with 19 points while Clark had 12 points and 10 rebounds for Libertyville. Chase Eyre added 7 points while Josh Steinhaus and Jackson Watson each had 6 points.
"Every game we have been fighting," Libertyville coach Brian Zyrkowski said. "Little things might not go our way - or they might go our way. We have to learn from it. These types of games at this time of the year are a good lesson for everybody."