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Niles North outruns Lake Zurich

Call it a warm-up, just before boys basketball holiday tournament play begins next week in Pekin for Lake Zurich.

Or perhaps more like a wake-up call for the Bears, who were facing one of the best teams in the area, and perhaps the state.

Lake Zurich couldn't keep pace with unbeaten Niles North through most of the game and lost 70-43 in a nonconference matchup in Skokie on Saturday afternoon.

Ryan Kutsor led the Bears (6-3) with 12 points and 11 rebounds, Kenny Haynes added 10 and Peter DiCerbo had 8, all in the second half.

Meanwhile, the Vikings (9-0) had four players score in double figures. Dravon Clayborn had a game-high 22, Aquan Smart chipped in 15, Damarion Bariffe-Smith had 12 and Damaria Franklin 11.

"(Niles North's) speed was much different than what we could simulate in practice," Lake Zurich coach Billy Pitcher said. "It really is at a different level than the great athletic teams in the (North Suburban Conference). We had a tough time adjusting to that, and we weren't able to make the ball fakes or the back doors that we've talked about. Because they do so much, speeding you up so much - not only your body, but they speed up your mind, and it was hard to keep up that composure."

Lake Zurich did find a few positives in their play.

"We took four charges on them, and (Niles North) didn't take any on us," Pitcher added. "I thought our third quarter was really good. But we got off to a bad start. We did play well with them after that in the first half. The fourth quarter just got away from us."

The Bears opened the game on a Haynes jump shot in the first 35 seconds. But the Vikings hit subsequent shots in a hurry, running off a 15-point spurt that was capped by a Franklin layup at the 3:30 mark.

Lake Zurich managed to close the quarter with Haynes dropping in a 3 with 30 seconds left, cutting the deficit to 8 points at 20-12.

Joe Heffernan came off the bench hit a pair of free throws, making it 20-14 with 7:47 left in the second quarter. But that's as close as the Bears could get, and by the half Niles North led 37-23.

In the third quarter, Lake Zurich continued making adjustments but couldn't quite get the lead to single digits. The Bears trailed 53-39 heading to the final quarter, and Niles North outscored Lake Zurich 17-4 the rest of the way.

"It's always good when you can start by hitting a couple of shots," Niles North coach Glenn Olson said. "Our kids were ready to play today. (Lake Zurich) likes to run a little bit too, but we really wanted to get up and down with them. In that stretch we were getting up and down - that's when we're at our best, when we're in transition.

"Third quarter, Lake Zurich was really good and it wasn't like we were playing bad. I loved the way we closed the third and started the fourth."

Lake Zurich begins play in the Pekin Holiday tournament at 10:30 a.m. Wednesday against Moline United. The Bears have gone 10-2 over the last three years at Pekin and earned the consolation title last year.

"I think this game (against Niles North) exposed all of our weaknesses individually and as a team," Pitcher said. "It's a good thing and it forces us to evaluate on the things we need to work on."

Niles North again has a spot in Wheeling's Hardwood Classic, which begins Wednesday. The Vikings open up the action with the first game, starting at 9 a.m. against Vernon Hills.

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