Batavia notches impressive win over Rockford Jefferson
ROCKFORD - The Batavia boys basketball team needed a little extra scoring punch against host Rockford Jefferson on Saturday.
Enter unlikely hero Andrew Heinz.
Though the 6-foot-3 senior normally averages more rebounds per game (2.6) than points (1.6), he came up big when Batavia needed him in a 75-66 victory over Jefferson at the J-Hawk MLK Showcase.
Heinz delivered a career best 16 points, including back-to-back inside buckets on assists from Riley Cooper and Kyle LeFevre to cap a 7-0 run after Jefferson (15-4) had drawn within 7 points of the lead midway through the fourth quarter.
"I rely on my teammates a lot getting me the ball down low so I can make the easy baskets," said Heinz, a starting linebacker for Batavia's state championship football team last fall. "They're doing all the work out there. It's easy having good teammates pass me the ball."
Heinz's contribution was particularly important since Batavia senior Eric Peterson's effectiveness was limited against the J-Hawks due to a rolled ankle suffered near the end of Batavia's 74-43 win over South Elgin earlier in the day. Peterson played but was limited to 4 points. Jayden Johnson led the Bulldogs with 22 points and LeFevre finished with 16.
Batavia (16-3), which hadn't played since Wednesday's 30-point win over Elgin faced little resistance from South Elgin (11-5), which lost to West Aurora Friday night by 18.
Johnson sank eight 3-pointers, five in the second quarter, to give the Bulldogs a 37-22 lead en route to their fifth straight win. Eric Peterson had 16 points for Batavia while Drake Montgomery led the Storm with 11 points.
"My teammates did a great job of finding me," Johnson said. "I knocked them down. I felt good."
South Elgin managed a split on the day by defeating Harlem 62-57. Montgomery had 18 points and Vince Miszkiewicz finished with 16 points for the Storm, who sank 16 of 22 free-throw attempts.
"Coming out here gives us a good opportunity to play a couple of tough games," South Elgin coach Brett Johnson said. "I thought we just came out really flat against Batavia and Johnson was 8 of 9 from the 3-point line and made almost every shot he took.
"Against Harlem we got back to the way we want to play but I think our kids were tired from three games in 24 hours. You could see it in their faces. I'm proud of them for working it through and getting out of here 1-1."
Larkin (12-4) swept its two games in Rockford with ease, paced by 52 combined points from senior guard Anthony Lynch. The Royals defeated Harlem 82-56 and knocked off Belvidere 79-58.
Lynch enjoyed a 30-point game against Harlem (6-12). The Royals jumped to a 40-16 halftime lead and 11 players scored.
Lynch led the Royals with 22 points against Belvidere (4-14), supported by Pierre Black (14 points) and Jalen Shaw (12 points).
"I thought we played really well in both games," Larkin coach Deryn Carter said. "We got an opportunity to get everybody in and everybody got to play so that's always good. We took care of business the way we expected to. That's always a good feeling to have."
The Royals return to Jefferson on Monday for a game against Marian Central At 10:30 a.m., followed by a 3 p.m. matchup against New Trier (12-3).
"They're big," Carter said of the Trevians, who handed Niles North its first loss in 14 outings on Tuesday. "They're tall and they can shoot so it should be a good game."
Other Monday games at Jefferson include South Elgin vs. Marian Central at 1:30 p.m., South Elgin vs. Jefferson at 4:30 p.m. and Batavia vs. Belvidere at 4:30 p.m. Batavia plays Guilford at Guilford on Monday at 10:30 a.m.