Cary-Grove edges Dundee-Crown in double overtime
Adam McCloud's scouting report for Cary-Grove's Friday night showdown with Fox Valley Conference rival Dundee-Crown was spot-on.
The first thing it said was, "dogfight." And that's exactly what it was.
The Trojans held Dundee-Crown to a pair of free throws and no baskets for the last 6:38 of regulation and through two overtimes - a stretch totaling the better part of 15 minutes - and escaped with a 39-38 double-overtime victory.
"Awful. Ugly," said McCloud afterward. "Our games (against Dundee-Crown) are always like that. It doesn't matter if we're having a good year or they are. It's always low scoring and it's always ugly."
David Aulert, who was 5 for 5 from the floor in the opening frame, and Beau Frericks shared game-high scoring honors with 11 apiece. Clark Cunningham and Frank Jakubicek each added 5 points for Cary-Grove (15-6, 7-4).
Jakubicek contributed more than points, however: the 6-8 junior had a half-dozen blocks in the second half, including four in the fourth quarter and overtime periods, that repeatedly snuffed out the Chargers' tries with the game winding down.
"Coach was right; this was a dogfight," said Jakubicek. "We just showed a lot of heart tonight."
Dundee-Crown (16-6, 7-4) got 10 points apiece from senior forwards Joshua Raby and Brad Stec, who also hauled down a game-best 12 rebounds, many of them clutch.
"Our games are all tough," said Chargers coach Lance Huber, expressing complete agreement with McCloud. "We had a really hard time scoring. Cary-Grove's defense did a great job. But you've gotta make free throws and layups. It's disappointing, but that's the way it goes."
While Huber's lamenting of the Chargers' performance was understandable, it's not exactly like the Trojans were faring much better. During that same 15-minute game-closing sequence when the hosts managed a grand total of two free throws, Cary-Grove converted just three baskets. The first was a baseline drive by L.J. Waco with 5:03 left that pulled the Trojans within 36-34, and the second was a layup by Cunningham with 1:05 left that tied the game at 36-36 and sent it into overtime.
And the third, and final, of Cary-Grove's baskets down that stretch? Well, that came after a scoreless initial overtime, and it wasn't even a basket, really. It was a goaltending call against Stec on a shot by Cunningham 18 seconds into the second bonus period.
Cunningham made good on just the front end of a one-and-one a little over a minute later to put the Trojans up three, 39-36. Then Dundee-Crown's Demarion Butler, who appeared to be fighting off cramps in the second half, made a pair of free throws with 1:58 left to close out the scoring.
Cary-Grove managed to open up a 10-point lead at 18-8 two minutes into the second quarter, mostly on the offensive production of Aulert. But Jordan Hairston came off the bench for Dundee-Crown and sparked an 11-2 run to pull the Chargers within 20-19 with 2:15 left in the half.
With 1:02 left in the second Frericks hit a 3-pointer to pause the Chargers' advance, but it was a brief respite. With 36 seconds left in the half Raby answered with a three of his own from the top of the key, and that set up a fall away bank shot by Stec as time expired to give Dundee-Crown its first lead of the game, 24-23 at the intermission.
The third quarter, which featured four lead changes and three ties, ended with the Chargers on top 32-30. That lead grew to 36-30 when Stec drilled a nifty eight-footer in the lane - the last field goal Dundee-Crown would score on the night.
With 1:39 left in the second quarter, Chargers' guard Doug Miller went down, clutching his left knee in obvious pain. The junior guard apparently experienced a recurrence of the same patella injury he suffered last year - and he did not return.