Prospect defeats Stevenson for signature win
Prospect history teacher Brad Rathe coaches girls golf in the fall, boys basketball in the winter and boys tennis in the spring.
Busy, busy, busy.
The father of three and former Lake Zurich three-sport athlete wears lots of hats at the District 214 school.
Rathe doffed his figurative hoops lid to Knights senior Owen Schneider after a nonconference boys basketball game at Stevenson Saturday afternoon. His 5-foot-9 guard had scored a game-high 19 points - including 2 on an electric steal-and-layup sequence right before the first-half buzzer - in Prospect's 53-42 victory.
"I've known Owen since he was little," Rathe, Prospect's first-year varsity coach, said. "He's the reason I took this job. Great kid. Works hard. His offense today was outstanding. But he's all about the team, all about doing whatever he can do to help us win.
"This win," Rathe added, "was a signature win for us, no question."
Prospect (11-8) trailed 28-23 when Schneider, with about 8 ticks left in the second quarter, made the play of the game near the top of the key on a Stevenson possession.
"I didn't have any fouls, so I gambled and went for the steal," Schneider said. "As I drove to the other end, I looked up and saw the clock. Only 2 seconds were left. I thought, 'OK, that should be enough time to go for a layup.' "
The layup beat the clock. Schneider and his energized, ecstatic teammates then dashed to their locker room, hoping momentum would remain on their side at the start of the second half.
It did - and then some.
The Knights outscored the Patriots 15-2 in the first 8 minutes of the second half and didn't allow a point in the final 5:34 of the third quarter. Prospect junior guard Alex Georgakas (14 points, all after halftime) produced a pair of 3-point plays in a span of 23 seconds to up the visitors' lead to 39-30 at the 2:25 mark.
"Momentum can carry you, and that's what lifted us today," Rathe said. "We were missing that edge you need for most of the first half, something my assistants pointed out to our players. My assistants are awesome. Our focus was where it needed to be in the third quarter; it had to be, because Stevenson executes well, always."
Stevenson (12-6) had to play most of the game without stellar senior guard Jaden Evans, who suffered an ankle injury midway through the first quarter after dishing assists on Stevenson's first two baskets.
The gutsy Patriot returned to the court early in the second quarter but saw only limited action thereafter.
"It would have been nice to have the pressure Jaden provides for the entire game," said Stevenson coach Pat Ambrose, whose club used a 7-0 run at the outset of the fourth quarter to cut the Knights' advantage to 42-37. "Tough loss. We weren't ready to go. Total credit to Prospect. Prospect shot well, made a lot of layups, made more moves and plays than we did."
Seven of Prospect's final 11 points - in the final 3:12 - came from the free-throw line. Georgakas hit 6 of the freebies.
"Fun win," Schneider said. "Huge win."
Senior guard Evan Porto paced Stevenson with 13 points. Prospect senior forward David Marshall finished with 10 points and a game-high 8 rebounds.