Schaumburg's 3-point barrage does in Hoffman Estates
Schaumburg's girls basketball team is trying to get into a zone for the 2020 portion of its season, literally.
For the last three games, Saxons coach Jacqie Strauch has gone primarily with a zone defense and it has resulted in two wins in four days after Thursday's 48-18 Mid-Suburban West triumph at Hoffman Estates.
"We didn't run any zone in 2019," Strauch said. "Now in 2020 we're giving it a try. We're just switching it up a little and to give ourselves a different look."
The Saxons (9-14, 3-4) looked good from 3-point range, connecting for eight, a few days after tossing in 12 in a 51-42 win over Batavia at the MLK Day Conference Challenge on Monday.
Three of Thursday's long- range buckets were produced by senior guard Talia Torosian, who led the visitors with a game-high 15 points.
"We have players who can shoot and it's good to have people who can knock down the 3-pointers when we need them," Torosian said. "We really needed this conference win.
"I think the key was communication. We talked real well on defense and moved the ball well on offense."
The offense also got a pair of 3-pointers from sophomore Alyssa Orozco (11 points) and senior Katie Smith (6 points). Junior Emma Raupp (6 points) had her team's other 3-pointer.
Orozco was coming off four straight games with 20 or more points.
"It's great to get Alyssa going," Strauch said. "She needs to be in double figures for our team to be successful. Today the whole team was part of our win.
"I think Emma Raupp has really picked it up and is doing the things we need her to do - making layups, hitting a 3-pointer. She doesn't have to take every shot but she is starting to finish when she gets those open opportunities.
"And Katie Smith always plays great defense and does the things that nobody notices."
Senior Chiara Hurd's 3-pointer gave Hoffman a 3-2 lead but Schaumburg proceeded on a 14-3 lead and never looked back.
Smith, Raupp and Torosian each had a 3-pointer during the run, which led to a 30-12 halftime cushion.
"It's nice to have scoring come from a lot of difference players," Strauch added. "That's what we need most. That's what happened in our game against Batavia as well as Conant, even though we lost (56-52 in OT on Tuesday). We had a collective scoring effort which we need."
Kalicia Sims had 6 points for Hoffman (2-19, 0-7), while Ashley Oliver chipped in five.
"Schaumburg did the little things much better than we did," said Hawks first-year coach Brad Reibel. "We've had a few nice games. As I told the girls, it's kind of been two steps forward and one back.
"That's just the nature of it right now. Until we get a little bit more consistency this is kind of the boat we're in. But the girls have been working hard and hopefully it's just a matter of time."