Finally, Mundelein shoots past Lake Forest

As he walked off the court at Lake Forest Saturday night, Mundelein junior Trey Baker let out a loud roar followed by a couple loud claps of his hands. Baker is a prolific shooter in the Mustangs' offense and a big reason for the success the team has had this season. But against the Scouts, Baker, and pretty much every player from the Mustangs, simply couldn't find the net.

Mundelein was a dismal 0-for-12 from long range and trailed by 12 points with 2:49 left. Yet Baker and his teammates didn't panic. They did what shooters do - keep shooting.

"Just keep shooting," Baker said. "You just keep shooting because you believe the next one is going in."

Eventually one was bound to fall and at the biggest point in the night for Mundelein it did. Baker hit a long 3-pointer with 29 seconds left to cap a 12-point comeback and force overtime. Once there, the Mustangs outscored the Scouts 8-0 on their way to a 56-48 North Suburban Conference boys basketball win.

The win was the sixth straight and kept Mundelein (21-3, 8-1) in a first-place tie with Stevenson. The two teams meet Friday night at Mundelein.

"Against Stevenson we were down like 20 and came almost all the way back," said junior Connor Enright. "So when we looked and saw we were down 12 with two-minutes left, we knew we could come back."

The run Mundelein used to win the game was a staggering 22-2 burst that saw the visitors turn a 12-point deficit into an 8-point win.

"We knew we didn't shoot the ball well pretty much all night," Mundelein coach Matt Badgley said. "Over a statistical basis you know it's going to come back. We were just fortunate it did when it did."

Mundelein got itself back into the game the very next possession with its defense. Jack Bikus (8 points) forced one of 5 Scout turnovers in the fourth quarter and turned it into a 3-point play. Two possessions later, Enright drilled a long 3-pointer - Mundelein's first of the night - to get the Mustangs to within 46-42 with 2:12 to go. Enright was the Mustangs offense for most of the night as he led all scorers with 24 points.

"One of the things we kept saying the time out was keep attacking," Lake Forest coach Phil LaScala said. "We didn't do that and I will take some of the blame for that. But I am really proud of our guys and how we competed the way we did."

Bikus got into the act next draining a 3-pointer from the same spot that Enright hit. Then it was his offensive rebound that led to the assist on the Baker 3 that tied it.

"When we got to overtime, we just kept saying one stop, one score," said Baker, who finished the night with 13 points. "I think we were all confident that once we got the lead we wouldn't give it back."

In overtime, Mundelein forced 3 turnovers and held Lake Forest (14-10, 5-4) scoreless. The Scouts scored just one field goal in the final 2:49 of play and overtime.

"We have built the way we play is to push those defensive limits and a lot of teams are going to gas out," Badgley said. "We think we have that endurance to push through all that."

Cade Nowik led the Scouts with 18 points, a dozen coming after halftime including a buzzer-beating 3-pointer at the end of the third quarter. Freshman Asa Thomas added 10 for Lake Forest.