Prospect downs Barrington
Prospects Ben Zellmer picked the right night for his season breakout game.
The 6-foot 2 senior guard scored a career-high 24 points in the Knights' 62-57 Mid-Suburban crossover win at Barrington Tuesday night.
"I knew a night like this was coming," said Prospect coach John Camardella. "It was just a question of when it was going to happen. From the end of last year to now, he has transformed his game. He did just about everything for us tonight. Ben played a lot of positions for us."
Zellmer also had 4 assists and 4 rebounds on the night.
"I was feeling good in warmups," said Zellmer. "My team found me in the right positions and I made the shots. This was an important win for me as a senior because you don't want to waste opportunities."
T.J. Johannesen scored 6 of his 8 points in the first quarter and Zellmer 5 as Prospect (3-3) led 16-8 after the first quarter.
Barrington (4-2) fought back in the second quarter narrowing the score to 31-28 at the halftime break. Jason Boock scored 7 of his 13 points and freshman Damien Zivak (9 rebounds) popped in 5 of his 14 in the quarter.
Prospect led but could never shake the stubborn Broncos in the second half.
The Knights' biggest lead was 46-37 following Sam Murrays basket to start the fourth quarter.
Aaron Sarkar scored 8 of his team-high 16 points in the fourth quarter to help narrow the gap. Sarkar also collected 10 rebounds for the Broncos.
Barrington pulled to within 52-51 on a 3-pointer by Boock with 2:50 left in the game.
The Knights, though, hit 8 of 12 free throws down the stretch to hold off Barrington.
"This was big win for us in that we were able to get to .500," said Camardella. "It was a different way for us to win."
Zellmer felt that his breakout game is a sign of good things to come.
"If defenses are focusing on me then it gives the other players a chance to make some plays," said Zellmer. "We just want to keep our momentum going for future games."
Prospect shot 21 of 43 in the contest from the field and Barrington hit on 20 of 45 shots.