Hersey gives Glenbrook South fits, but Titans prevail
Hersey's boys basketball team gave powerful Glenbrook South its best shot but came up short at Ken Carter gymnasium in Arlington Heights Tuesday night.
The Huskies stayed with the Titans by hitting 12 of 17 from 3-point range but came up short 66-60.
Glenbrook South (5-0) was led by outstanding senior Dom Martinelli, who funneled in 32 points including 14 of 15 from the free-throw line. Stevon Boyd and sophomore Cooper Noard each added 10 points for the Titans.
"When teams trap me," said Martinelli, "we have players like Stevon and Cooper. They have helped along with others to open up the floor. We have other players who can score in different ways as well. Tonight Hersey played with a lot of energy and shot the ball well."
The Huskies (1-4) were 4 of 4 from the arc and led 18-15 after the first quarter. Ethan Roberts (19 points) and Brent Wolff (14) scored 6 and 5 points respectively in the quarter.
Hersey opened a 29-20 lead with 4:21 left in the first half following Roberts' third of five 3-pointers.
But the tide began to turn as the Titans, led by Boyd's 5 points, a 3-pointer by Noard and a basket by Martinelli off a turnover gave Glenbrook South a 30-29 lead.
Ben Randal scored on an assist from Roberts with 25 seconds left in the half to give the Huskies a 31-30 halftime lead.
"We were up nine and the next thing I knew we were down by one," said Hersey coach Austin Scott. "That run was partially my fault."
The Titans rattled off an 8-0 run to start the third quarter for a 38-31 lead. Noard and Danny Pauletto started the run with a pair of 3s. Martinelli stole the ball and scored to end the run.
Roberts and Wolff hit 3-poinetrs and a steal and score by Scott Rogowski (7 points) kept Hersey close at 45-39 to end the quarter.
Martinelli did most of the damage to Hersey, scoring 15 points down the stretch including 11 of 11 from the free-throw line.
Glenbrook South took a 57-53 lead and after four Martinelli free throws the Titans extended the lead to 61-53 with 1:08 left.
"Hersey made some really tough shots tonight," said Glenbrook South coach Phil Ralston. "I give Hersey a tremendous amount of credit. We made too many turnovers and Hersey caused some of that."
Hersey finished 23 of 48 from the field while Glenbrook South connected on 20 of 36. The Titans hit 20 of 22 free throws while the Huskies were just 2 of 3.
"I'm not losing any faith with these guys," said Scott. "I really feel that were are going to channel this pain and turn it into something."