Brannick, Wauconda get by Grayslake North

As a triplet, Wauconda senior guard Matt O'Brien knows the importance of having a sibling on your side.

So there sat senior swingman James Connolly, one half of Grayslake North's Connolly brothers punch, on his team's bench before Saturday's Northern Lake County Conference game at Wauconda.

"We saw him on the sideline in warm-ups," O'Brien said. "It was a big confidence boost. We felt better going into the game."

Wauconda felt even better after the game.

Connor Brannick scored his team's last 7 points, including a go-ahead three-point play with 45 seconds left, and Wauconda edged Grayslake North 56-55. Connolly sat out the game with a concussion. His brother, Knights sophomore guard Ryan Connolly, led all scorers with 20 points, including a pair of 3-pointers.

James Connolly leads Grayslake North in scoring at 19.1 points per game.

"You can tell we lose a lot of experience without him," Knights coach Todd Grunloh said of his three-year varsity starter. "Not that Jon Smithson hasn't been on varsity or Ryan (Connolly) didn't start last year. But we're all baby-faced out there."

Grayslake North's inexperience surfaced down the stretch. After Brannick, who led Wauconda (2-7, 2-2) with 17 points, converted his three-point play to put the Bulldogs up 56-54, the Knights had chances to pull even or go ahead. Connolly split 2 free throws to make it a one-point game, and then after Smithson (12 points, 5 rebounds) and Alex Cisneroz (2 points, 5 rebounds) teamed up to steal the ball, the visitors called timeout with eight seconds left.

But Grayslake North (3-6, 1-3) held the ball at the top of the key, forcing Grunloh to call another timeout with one second on the clock. The Knights couldn't get off a shot and lost for the sixth time in their last seven games.

It was Brannick who was frustrated earlier.

The junior guard scored 10 points in helping Wauconda build a 21-11 lead in the opening quarter, but he sat out most of the middle quarters due to foul trouble.

"I was pretty upset," Brannick said. "I usually don't get in foul trouble. I don't like sitting, especially in a close game like that."

Jason Donohue (10 points) knocked down his second 3-pointer of the game with 4:42 left in the fourth to put Grayslake North up 47-46. But O'Brien answered with a 3 just 36 seconds later, and Brannick's drive made it 51-47.

O'Brien finished with a season-high 12 points, including seven in the first quarter, on 5-of-6 shooting. He hit a pair of 3s.

"He's been doing really well in practice," Brannick said. "He can shoot."

Connolly's 3-pointer and layup and Smithson's baseline bucket capped a 7-2 run and had the Knights up 54-53 with 1:34 left. Brannick then drove again, scored and was fouled.

"I was getting to the rim all game," Brannick said. "There was an open lane so I just decided to go to the hoop. I needed to get to the line or maybe make a dish."

Donovan Carter also scored 12 points for Wauconda, while Matthew Nolan had 8 points and 8 rebounds.

James Connolly will also sit out Grayslake North's nonconference game at Glenbrook North on Tuesday. Louis Lopez missed his fifth game in a row Saturday. After playing all four games in the Knights' season-opening Johnsburg/Richmond-Burton tournament, he injured his knee. The Knights found out Friday that Lopez did not tear his ACL.

"He'll be back mid-January, most likely," Grunloh said. "It's a bad sprain.

"We just need to get healthy."