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Schaumburg clamps down on Hoffman in second half

There were some stretches where host Hoffman Estates played Schaumburg pretty tough Friday night in Mid-Suburban League boys basketball action.

But overall, the Saxons really dominated this MSL West Division contest as they completely ran away from the Hawks in the second half to post an impressive 54-29 victory behind an outstanding defensive effort.

Schaumburg (9-3, 3-1) jumped out to a 15-7 lead after one quarter and built a 21-7 lead on a basket by senior Mike Hodges early in the second quarter.

But Hoffman Estates (4-7, 0-4) hung in there and kept the game close as junior guard Vatsal Pandya scored 11 of his team-high 12 points in the first half to help cut the Saxons' lead to only 30-23 at halftime. Schaumburg was outscored 16-15 in the second quarter.

But the Hawks could not match the Saxons' intensity in the second half as 3-pointers by Christian Orozco and Mike Hodges capped an 11-1 run to give the Saxons their biggest lead at 41-24 midway through the period.

"I think the physical effort was there, we definitely played hard, but we didn't always play smart," said Hoffman Estates coach Luke Yanule, whose team was outscored 14-5 in the third quarter, and 24-6 in the second half. "I give Schaumburg all the credit, they're physical and they're athletic, but we've got to be able to handle that, it's a tough league."

Six-foot-8 sophomore Chris Hodges was also a huge factor for Schaumburg throughout the contest at both ends of the floor as he scored 10 of his game-high 15 points in the first half.

The Saxons took a commanding 44-28 lead into the fourth quarter as the Hawks could never get their offense going at all in the second half.

"I thought defensively we executed our game plan much better in the second half, we had better effort and energy, we had better communication, and I thought we were more aggressive," said Schaumburg coach Wade Heisler, whose team outscored the Hawks 10-1 in the fourth quarter when there was a lot of free substitution going on. "They (Chris and Mike Hodges) are phenomenal players, and they're team-first guys so they just make us better all the way around."

Besides Pandya, junior guard Jevin Dobbins (8 points) also helped keep Hoffman Estates in the game in the first half.

"We had to lock down on defense and we couldn't get complacent," said Chris Hodges, whose assist to Shamaree Brown made the score 48-28 with 6:38 to play. "We were able to capitalize on their turnovers, and now we're going to get ready for the York tournament."

Overall, Heisler is happy with the way his squad has been playing lately as it heads into the tough holiday tourney starting on Dec. 26.

"I feel privileged to coach this team," Heisler said. "And the entire roster has bought in, and they're fun to be around."

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