Swanson, Barrington take down Libertyville for 10th straight win
Barrington junior guard Sophie Swanson displayed a look of satisfaction after her 3-pointer swished through the nets midway through the fourth quarter on Saturday.
After enduring a rocky first two-plus quarters that caused her to sit out several minutes of the game against Libertyville, Swanson was suddenly in the midst of one of her patented heat-wave grooves.
Swanson scored 21 of her game-high 31 points in the second half to lead Barrington to a 61-45 win at the Midwest Hoops Spotlight Invitational at Trinity High School.
Swanson, a Purdue recruit, buried 5 3-pointers and added 4 rebounds and 2 steals.
"I knew we had to turn it up a notch," Swanson said. "We were kind of flat all game, so hitting that three-pointer I knew we were going to pull ahead. We were hyped, so there was no coming back from that. We wanted this win. We're on a good streak now."
The Fillies (21-5) won their 10th consecutive game, ending Libertyville's streak at five wins in a row. Barrington junior Gwen Adler had a solid game on offense and defense, tallying 10 points and helping the Fillies absorb missing several key minutes without the high-scoring Swanson.
"This was a big win for us," Adler said. "We've had some big conference games, so we knew we had to be just as focused to get the job done. This game will get us ready for the playoffs."
Libertyville junior guard Emily Fisher, a Maryland recruit, disrupted the game on both ends, finishing with 17 points, 12 rebounds, 3 blocks, 3 assists and a steal. Rachel Rule tossed in 12 points for the Wildcats (18-7) in a physical game that included Libertyville coach Greg Pedersen picking up a late technical foul.
"We fought back in the third quarter and built some momentum, and got some stops on Sophie," Pedersen said. "But she's such a good player that she wore us down in the fourth quarter. We totally gave our attention to stopping her, but she still found a way to do what she likes to do."
Swanson, a high-scoring guard with a plethora of moves, put together an atypical but typical performance against the Wildcats. She sat out the final 5:07 of the second quarter after picking up her second foul. She injured her knee in a collision in the third quarter, causing her to take another seat on the bench for almost two minutes.
But then, Swanson did what she does best - score points in bushel loads. She broke open a close game by hitting three straight 3s in the fourth as the Fillies took a 2-point lead to a 52-42 advantage.
The highly anticipated Swanson versus Fisher matchup never materialized. Swanson and Fisher have played on the same AAU team for many years, and are ranked among the top juniors in the Midwest.
But the future Big 10 players never guarded each other, and except for a few back-and-forth possessions in the fourth quarter when both exchanged baskets, it was not the typical superstar battle.
Still, Swanson cherished beating her longtime friend in the first of many matchups for several years to come.
"It felt good to win because I haven't played against (Fisher) in awhile, so it was good to get the win," Swanson said. "Our whole team stepped up. I have a feeling we're going to make a good run this season."