Thompson's double-double leads Barrington past Buffalo Grove

Taylor Thompson summed up Friday's game for her Barrington girls basketball team as well as she scored, rebounded and passed the ball.

"After all the hard work and practice, it was nice to see it finally pay off," said the University of Missouri-St. Louis recruit.

Thompson's hard work paid off with a double-double with 20 points and 14 rebounds as Barrington posted its first win of the season 66-56 over Buffalo Grove in the Bison Classic.

"Taylor did a nice job at both ends of the floor," said Barrington coach Babbi Barreiro. "She hunkered down in the post and got the job done when she needed to."

The 6-foot Thompson even tossed a picture-perfect home run pass to Gracie Stagnito, who caught the ball in stride en route to a layup and a 60-50 lead with 2:35 left.

It proved to be a significant moment because BG had just gotten to within 8 points, as close it had been since the 3:45 mark of the second quarter.

"We got off to a pretty slow start and then we were just chasing the rest of the day," said Bison coach Steve Kolodziej. "Defensively our rotations were not the best and Barrington did a really good job taking advantage."

Senior Macy Floro actually drove for two baskets to start the game, completing a 3-point play on the second one for a 5-0 lead. But Barrington (1-4, 1-3 in tourney) went on an 13-2 run to take the lead for good.

Also reaching double figures for the Fillies were freshman Sophia Swanson (16 points) and sophomore Laura Mahlum (11 points) while senior Shanna Turczynski (9 points) clicked for three 3-pointers.

"It was nice because I felt it was really a team win," Barreiro said. "Floro (14 points) and Kendra Lee (10 points) still got their points but I felt we did a nice job not letting them get into their regular rhythm offensively. And that was Mahlum and Michaela (Goetze) defensively. They played very well."

Buffalo Grove had a stretch in the final quarter where freshman Kora Kipley and sophomore Gracie Vellers each hit back-to-back 3-pointers.

But the Bison (2-3, 2-2) never got closer than 8 points as Swanson connected for 10 of her 16 points in the final quarter.

"Sophia has that ability to make plays when you need them," Barreiro said.

Kipley led BG with a career-high 17 points.

"It was a great offensive game for Kipley," Kolodziej said. "She has a ton of talent and she's only going to get better."

Kipley was followed by Floro and sophomore Leah McKenna (10). Megan Fontanetta and Kim Stuercke also provided points for the BG offense that is missing Zori Angelova (hand injury) and Alyssa Ramos (ankle).