St. Charles North handles Glenbard North
Updated Feb 24, 2021 10:11 PM
St. Charles North was not at its best on Wednesday, but the North Stars were good enough to handle an upset-minded and short-handed Glenbard North team in a DuKane Conference game.The North Stars defeated the Panthers, 51-39, in St. Charles.“We could’ve done a lot better tonight, but we were able to pull out a conference win and that’s where we are at,” North Stars coach Tom Poulin said. “We did enough to win and we’ll learn from this one and take a look at what wee can do better and get ready for the weekend.”St. Charles North was at its best when it played selflessly, sharing the ball on offense and working its system with a balance of aggressiveness and poise. Poulin would have liked to have seen more of that unselfishness on display, but the Panthers also played a part in that with a strong defensive effort.“I’ve got to credit (Glenbard North) coach (Joe) Larsen and the six guys that dressed for Glenbard North,” Poulin said. “They came in and battled. And Joe is one of the best coaches around, so I feel like the way he had them ready to play tonight was impressive.”Early on, the North Stars were able to turn offensive rebounds into second-chance points, including some long-range 3-pointers as well as easy baskets that helped them jump to a 32-20 lead at halftime.“When we shared the ball and have multiple sides and inside out we got whatever we wanted,” Poulin said. “Sometimes I think we dribbled too much or kept it on one side of the floor a little too long, but that happens, especially when we haven’t had as much time to prepare for a season. The guys are doing their best and coming to work everyday and we haven’t questioned effort or energy with this group yet.”Ethan Marlowe paced the North Stars with 14 points, Jude Love added 12 points and Justin Hughes and Jimmy Durocher each added 6 points.“We had a solid start, but we’ve got to clean some things up on the offensive end,” Marlowe said. “We’ve got to start attacking our weaknesses and getting sharper every day. We’ve got two-and-a-half to three weeks left of the season to make the most of the time we have. It’s always tough to win, but we got it done.”Going up and getting it off the glass helped the North Stars separate themselves and build their 12-point halftime cushion while the second half was back and forth, but without any major scoring runs by the Panthers to close the gap.“We have a handful of guys who can get offensive rebounds,” Marlowe said. “But we need to utilize our size more and grab more rebounds and keep driving to the glass to get better.”Greg Strong led the Panthers with 13 points while Jacob Bonnema added 10 points.
