No. 7 West Aurora avenged a Christmas tournament loss Saturday night by beating No. 18 Lockport in a non-conference boys basketball game.
West Aurora (14-2) never trailed Lockport (10-7), winning 53-36 in a game that was close until midway through the fourth quarter. The Porters had defeated the Blackhawks in a close game at the Pontiac tournament.
“We had something to prove,” said Blackhawks guard Jaeh Thomas, who scored 17 points.
“I think we were pretty focused,” said West Aurora coach Gordon Kerkman, who didn’t mention the tournament loss to his team.
Dameon Mason scored 18 points, including five points in 30 seconds in one stretch of the fourth quarter when the Blackhawks pulled away after keeping a consistent eight- to 10-point lead. With about two minutes to go, Thomas scored on a driving layup and converted the free throw.
Lockport’s Alando Tucker scored 20 points in a matchup with Mason on both ends of the floor. Thomas also took Tucker a few times in the game.
“All the guys played good defense in trying to stop Tucker,” Thomas said. “We wanted to help Dameon by cutting off the ball to Tucker.”
The Porters were coming off a heart-breaking loss the night before, when Lincoln-Way Central won on a last-second shot in the Lockport gym.
“I thought we fought a hard battle,” said Porters coach Lawrence Thompson Jr. “I thought their quickness and depth took over in the second half.”
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Ken O’Brien.
Evanston 58, Loyola 50
Colin Falls was held scoreless.
Considering that Loyola (13-5) started each of the first two quarters 1-of-7 from the field with four turnovers, the Ramblers were fortunate to trail just 27-22 at the half.
Falls, who had averaged 32 points in the Ramblers’ last three home games, played less than two quarters overall and less than four minutes in the second half with Loyola still within reach.
Despite outrebounding Evanston 14-2 in the third quarter, the Ramblers trailed 45-42 heading into the final period thanks to a stretch of sloppy ballhandling. Evanston turned four Loyola turnovers into eight points in a 89-second span to turn a 36-35 lead into a 45-38 advantage.
Evanston (11-5) never let Loyola within three in the final quarter despite missing five of its first seven free throws in the quarter. Stacey Moragne led Evanston with 13 points. Michael Brennan led Loyola with a game-high 14 points.
Jonathan Schoenberg.
In other games
Waubonsie Valley 59, Lake Park 58: The No. 8 Warriors survived in the Upstate Eight as Morris Ellis notched 19 points and Derrick Clanton added 17. Waubonsie Valley (17-0, 7-0), which trailed 29-24 at the half, took the lead for good on a three-point play by Ellis that put them up 52-49 with 3:50 left in the game.
Lake Park’s Andy Mack, who led all scorers with 21 points, sank a three with 6 seconds remaining to cut the lead to one, but the Lancers never got the ball back. Ryan Cibulka had 17 points for Lake Park (7-10, 3-4).
Antioch 48, Waukegan 45: Allen Patin scored 16 points to lead the Sequoits (7-11). LaRon Frazier led Waukegan (3-15) with 21 points.
Argo 29, Lincoln-Way Central 25: Richard Green scored 10 points for the Argonauts (9-9).
Aurora Christian 64, Hinckley-Big Rock 48: Benjamin Machet scored 25 points and Zach Utley pitched in with 19 points to lead Aurora Christian (7-10). Tom Bailey had 20 points for Hinckley-Big Rock.
Downers Grove North 59, Hinsdale Central 51: Matt Formato scored 20 points on 6-of-6 shooting from the line to lead the Trojans (10-8, 4-2) in the West Suburban Silver. Steve Schweer hit six three-pointers to finish with 24 points for Hinsdale Central (11-5, 4-2).
Downers Grove South 66, Leyden 41: Antonio Lewis scored 18 points to lead the Mustangs (11-4, 5-1) in the West Suburban Gold.
Driscoll 76, Aurora Central 65: Paul Pedi collected 41 points to lead Driscoll (15-3, 9-0) in the Suburban Catholic.
East Aurora 71, Elgin 53: The Tomcats (10-7, 5-3) took control with a 7-0 run in the fourth quarter and got 24 points from Jarrah Price and 13 from Darice Venson in the Upstate Eight.
Great Western shootout: T.J. Parker had 17 points to go with Joe Cortez’s 14 as Lisle (16-1) downed Abingdon 78-55.
Holy Cross 61, Wheeling 46: Joel Burnett and Jack Walsh scored 21 and 19 points, respectively, for the Crusaders (16-3).
Holy Trinity 73, University High 48: Deon Smith tallied 24 points and 10 rebounds for the Tigers (13-4).
Neuqua Valley 67, St. Charles East 61: Josh Wesley scored 20 points and Keelan Amelianovich added 16 points as the Wildcats (15-2, 7-0) won in the Upstate Eight. Josh Maples’ rebound basket with 1:02 left put Neuqua Valley ahead 62-60, and the Wildcats sealed the game with free throws.
St. Charles East (8-8, 4-3) trailed 23-8 after one quarter before battling back in the second half. Brian Schmit’s 25 points paced St. Charles East.
St. Joseph 55, Conant 43: Tony Freeman scored 17 points and Chris Hart added 16 points and six rebounds for the Chargers (8-6). Freeman’s halfcourt shot at the end of the first quarter gave St. Joseph a 13-11 lead and the Chargers never trailed again. Joe Rizzo’s 20 points led Conant (9-9).
St. Patrick 67, Elk Grove 66: Chris Mroz scored 28 points for the Shamrocks (10-6).
St. Viator 70, Benet 63: Brian Hare poured in 35 points and Rob Costello chipped in with 16 to give the Lions (9-8, 4-4) the edge in the East Suburban Catholic. Chris Murphy had 25 points for Benet (5-12, 4-5).
Stevenson 54, Carmel 40: Greg Zimny scored 20 points and Reuben Trotter added 14 points as the Patriots won the non-conference game. Stevenson went on an 11-2 run in the second quarter, while limiting Carmel to 2-of-10 from the field.
Brian Schlemm’s 18 points led Carmel (9-9).
York 63, Proviso West 58: Andy Shields went 6-of-8 from the line in the final two minutes to seal the West Suburban Silver win for the Dukes (11-8, 3-3). Bryan Belville and Brad Heinz scored 17 and 15 points, respectively, to lead York. Tim Gee had 17 points for Proviso West (13-5, 4-2).
Zion-Benton 66, Lake Forest 51: Andre White scored 30 points as the Zee-Bees (15-3) won the non-conference game. Zion-Benton broke the game open by outscoring Lake Forest 20-7 in the third quarter. John Zilka and Danny Hodgkinson each scored 15 points for Lake Forest (9-9).
Girls basketball
Marian Catholic 60, Joliet Catholic 32: The third-ranked Spartans (19-1, 5-1) cruised in the East Suburban Catholic behind Maureen Simon’s 24 points.
Hinsdale Central 62, Downers Grove North 24: Maggie Acuna had 13 points for the No. 5 Red Devils (20-1, 8-0) in the West Suburban Silver.
Lake Zurich 53, Prairie Ridge 13: The No. 7 Bears (20-0, 13-0) rolled in the Fox Valley as Patti Hornung scored 12 points and Johanna Solverson added 11.
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Martin Luther King tournament: At Malcolm X College, Jacquay Holmes scored 16 points to go with Lashonda Grant’s 10 points as No. 8 Marshall (16-1) knocked off Peoria Central 56-32. Candace Crews scored 11 points to lead Peoria Central. . . . Karen McDaniel’s 25 points lifted Manley to a 76-61 victory over Gary (Ind.) Lew Wallace. . . . Erin Dickerson scored 19 points as Young defeated Philadelphia University City 65-48. . . . Jennifer Leaks had 23 points, but Morgan Park (12-9) fell to Dougherty (Ga.) 42-38.
Regina 68, Maria 36: Christina Quaye scored 18 points while Jenna Markoff and Lauren Schober added 14 points apiece to help the No. 10 Panthers (18-3, 6-1) clinch the GCAC Red title outright for the first time since 1982. Kate Zintak’s 10 points and 10 rebounds led Maria (9-13, 1-6).
Bolingbrook 64, Thornton Fractional South 33: Chloe Kerr sparked the No. 11 Raiders (19-0) with 13 points and 10 rebounds.
Neuqua Valley 48, St. Charles East 37: Lindsay Wilson had 19 points, seven rebounds, nine steals and three blocks to lead the No. 14 Wildcats (17-3, 9-0) in the Upstate Eight. Laura Laurent added 14 points for the winners.
St. Viator 65, Bishop McNamara 49: The No. 16 Lions (16-4, 4-2) breezed in the East Suburban Catholic behind Lauren Weber’s 17 points.
York 62, Proviso West 53: Krystal Hugelier’s 22 points and Gina Hugelier’s 15 lifted the No. 18 Dukes (16-4, 7-2) in the West Suburban Silver.
Bartlett 57, Elk Grove 46: The Hawks won as Lindsay Schrader collected a school-record 30 points to go with 10 rebounds.
Evanston 47, Loyola 40: Angie Lott’s 19 points carried the Wildkits (13-10). Maggie Duggan and Liz Gadison had 10 points apiece for Loyola (9-15).
Glenbrook South 59, Deerfield 46: Danielle Nabolotny (14-7) had 19 points to go with Pam Findlay’s 13 as the Titans (14-7) prevailed.
Lincoln-Way East 46, Lockport 40: Courtney Schiefelbein put in 17 points for the Griffins (15-5, 5-3) in the SICA West.
Nazareth 69, Providence 37: The Roadrunners (18-5, 4-3) used Shannon Hartney’s 18 points in the East Suburban Catholic.
Sweet 16 tournament: Heather VanHoegarden picked up 18 points and eight rebounds as Hinsdale South (18-4) downed Elgin (14-6) 58-34. . . . Erika Nelson’s 11 points led Sandburg (15-7) past Buffalo Grove (14-8) 45-36. Buffalo Grove’s Ashley Sandstead also scored 11.
Trinity 82, St. Francis de Sales 61: Caprice Smith tallied 37 points, 14 rebounds and seven blocks as the Blazers (19-4, 7-0) rolled in the GCAC White.
Warren 56, Libertyville 40: The Blue Devils prevailed in the North Suburban Lake as Tori Bloom and Amy Peters scored 17 points apiece. Warren (17-6, 6-2) outscored Libertyville 14-2 in the third quarter to break the game open. Kelly True had 12 points for Libertyville (9-13, 3-5).
West Chicago 45, Wheaton Warrenville South 37: Meghan Young’s 14 points led the Wildcats (6-17, 3-6) in the DuPage Valley.
Girls gymnastics
Despite not having one its top gymnasts and competing against a depleted field from past years, Stevenson still managed to win the Niles West Invitational with a 70.7 score. Only 16 teams competed in the invitational, compared with 23 from last year. Ten schools had originally pulled out, and only three could be brought in as replacements.
Nikki Rappin got the Patriots off to a great start, winning the vault by 1.25 points over Kasey Bell of Oswego. Stevenson’s Kate Kuchel and Lori Posler finished first and second in the floor exercise.
“That’s a nice tuneup meet for conference,” said Stevenson coach, Judy Harwood. “We’re still trying to decide on lineups. We tried to see as many girls as possible.”
Stevenson, which hasn’t finished lower than first in a meet since December 9, 2000, was boosted by the return of Greta Thomas, who had been out with stretched ligaments in her knee. Stevenson’s Michelle McGrady did miss the meet with the flu, as did Allison Cowen of Prairie Ridge, who missed because of a foot injury.