Taylor leads team effort in Glenbard West victory
Even in a one-sided boys basketball game, there's always a glimmer of drama.
Saturday night's drama concerned whether or not someone would join Evan Taylor in reaching double-figure scoring.
Glenbard West's 6-foot-6 junior forward led all scorers - by far - with 25 points in a 59-35 victory over Lake Park in the opening round of the Glenbard West Holiday Classic in Glen Ellyn.
Even with Taylor's dominance, though, the Hilltoppers (5-4) managed to get something from just about everyone as they pulled away. In fact it turned out to be a pretty nice team effort from Glenbard West.
"I think that's what we need to be successful," Taylor said. "If I can get other people involved, I think that's the best way to win. If everybody starts scoring, we're pretty tough to beat."
The double-digit question was answered with about three minutes left in the game when the Hilltoppers' Caden Phillips converted a three-point play to give him 10 points on the night.
Phillips, Nick Dwyer and Kyle Dell combined to match Taylor's 25 points, a good chunk of the contributions coming during a 16-4 third-quarter barrage that extended a 2-point halftime lead to 43-29 heading to the fourth quarter.
Lake Park (2-7) struggled offensively the entire night, but the second half especially hurt the Lancers. They made only 3 of 13 shots from the field and committed 12 turnovers while scoring a total of only 10 points.
"It's who we are right now," said Lancers coach Josh Virostko. "We're a team that can't do the little things right, and that's what's beating us. Finishing layups, executing plays, rotating on defense. Glenbard West exposed that in the second half."
There were six lead changes and eight ties in the first half, but Taylor gave Glenbard West the lead for good at 27-25 with a jumper at the halftime buzzer. Brady Olenek led Lake Park with 7 points off the bench.
"We got a couple stops and a couple runouts and all of a sudden instead of being up eight, you're up 16," said Hilltoppers coach Tim Hoder. "I thought we got outhustled in the first half, and we can't do that. That can't be who we are as a team, and I thought we did a better job in the second half."
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