Defense has carried Northridge Prep all season, and Tuesday it helped earn the Knights their biggest win to date.
Northridge (20-10) kept Timothy Christian from hitting any field goals through a 12-minute-38-second first-half span en route to a 38-32 Class A Lisle sectional victory.
“We’ve not scored well in stretches, but we’ve won 20 games because we play solid `D’,” Knights coach Richard Knar said. “And I attribute that stretch to our defense.”
Still, it took a critical 7-0 run in the fourth quarter for Northridge to take command in a game plagued by poor free-throw shooting.
Over a nearly four-minute span starting at the 4:38 mark, the Knights went to the line six times and hit just three shots.
But Cullen Lee and Dan Kieres combined for a pair of field goals in an electrifying sequence that took only three seconds of that stretch.
With his team ahead 29-26, Lee scored on a driving layup to push the lead to five points. Kieres then stole the inbounds pass and put in a layup for a 33-26 Knights lead with 1:39 to play.
Lee finished with 15 points, while Kieres added 10.
Kieres was only 3 of 13 from the free-throw line, but he wasn’t alone. The teams combined to go 22 of 48 from the stripe.
Ryan Klein led the Trojans (23-7) with 10 points.
Jack McCarthy.
At Illiana Christian: North Lawndale rallied past Chicago Christian 70-63 in overtime after Tremel Phipps’s 25-footer tied the game 58-58 to end regulation. Jimmy Williams scored 21 points and Jason Pankey added 18 for the Phoenix (28-3), which started overtime with a 6-0 run. The Knights (19-9) were paced by Ted Black’s 22 points on seven three-pointers. . . . Leo converted 3 of 4 free throws in the final 13.5 seconds to hold off Hope 61-57. David Phillips’ basket with 32.2 second left pulled the Eagles (19-12) within 58-57, but he missed the following free throw on the possible three-point play. The Lions (23-5) were paced by Alan Downing’s 16 points and Frank Clair’s 15.
At Plano: St. Anne notched its 17th straight win with a 62-40 victory over Reed-Custer (21-8). Geremie Davis scored 18 points and Clay Butler added 12 for St. Anne (25-4), which opened a 20-point lead early in the third quarter.
“The kids came out very aggressive tonight,” St. Anne coach Rick Schoon said. “We really wanted to get out and pressure their guards and I thought we caused a lot of havoc early in the game.”
The Comets were paced by Michael Cuddy’s 11 points.
Class AA regionals
At Homewood-Flossmoor: No. 2 Homewood-Flossmoor (25-2) rolled over Oak Forest 91-48 behind D.J. Posley’s 12 points and 10 points apiece from Excell Hardy and Dominic Baker.
At Westinghouse: DeAndre Thomas had 18 points and Johnny Collier added 15 as No. 3 Westinghouse (24-3) breezed past Collins 71-57. The Cobras (13-14) were led by 19 points from Charles Washington.
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At Lane Tech: Ollie Bailey scored 26 points and grabbed 12 rebounds as No. 6 Farragut (25-3) blew past Gordon Tech 78-52. Emmanuel Little added 14 points and 13 rebounds for the Admirals, who opened with a 15-2 run. Chris Lee led Gordon Tech (12-15) with 17 points.
At Prospect: Jonny Reibel’s 22 points led No. 7 Hoffman Estates (26-2) in its 57-40 win over Prospect. Justin Gray scored 13 points for the Knights.
At Glenbrook South: Jon Scheyer scored 28 points and Sean Wallis added 14 as No. 8 Glenbrook North (24-3) defeated Maine South 55-43. Glenbrook North trailed late in the first half before going on a 9-2 run to take a 27-21 halftime lead.
Wallis hit eight free throws in a game-ending 8-2 run as the Spartans finished 28 of 33 from the free-throw line.
Scheyer, one of the top sophomores in the state, banged his head after running into a screen and falling to the floor in the final two minutes. He returned to the game after a brief stay on the sideline.
At Lincoln-Way Central: Reggie Boss tallied a game-high 15 points as No. 9 Hillcrest (24-3) downed Providence 78-39. The Hawks’ Jerel McNeal and James Smith each added 15 points, while Chris Buchanan led Providence with 10.
At Notre Dame: No. 12 Von Steuben (21-6) dismissed Mather 73-58 after trailing by one point at halftime. Ryne Hamblet collected 21 points and Joshua Hudson and Angel Santiago each had 11 points.
At Morton: Mario Brandon scored 19 points and Darryl Robinson collected 12 as No. 13 Curie (21-7) breezed past Kennedy 110-41.
At Thornton: Joevan Carter’s 20 points, Robert Bush’s 19 and Donnell Lyons’ 18 helped No. 14 Thornton (18-8) advance with a 77-47 win over Eisenhower.
At Rich East: No. 15 Rich Central (20-7) slipped past Rich East 54-46 behind Brandon Long’s 17 points. Steve Miller led the Rockets (6-21) with 18 points.
At Elk Grove: Zach Pancratz had 18 points and Craig Reichel contributed 10 points, 12 rebounds and four blocks as No. 16 Schaumburg (21-5) eliminated Maine West 63-51. Eric Samuelson scored 11 points and Jason Washington added 10 for Maine West (15-12).
At Oak Park: Christian Cornelius notched a game-high 21 points as No. 20 Oak Park (23-3) routed Elmwood Park 77-45.
At Conant: Andy Mack went 11 of 12 from the free-throw line, including 8-for-8 in the final 1:13, to give Lake Park (20-7) a 60-51 win over Palatine. Peter Gavin’s two free throws pulled Palatine (8-20) within three at 49-46 with 1:40 left, but Mack’s free throws kept Lake Park on top. Mack finished with 18 points and Dave Mikrut added 15 for the Lancers.
At Antioch: Marvin Bembry had 18 points and 12 rebounds as Warren (15-11) overpowered Grant 72-56. The Blue Devils used a 12-0 run to close the first half to lead 45-20 at halftime.
“Overall we played hard and used our great athleticism when taking the ball to the hoop in transition and on the rebounds,” Warren coach Chuck Ramsey said.
Reserve Marcus Lewis added 15 points for Warren, while Brian Lotz tallied a game-high 26 points for Grant (12-14) before fouling out with 10 seconds left.
At St. Charles East: St. Charles North (17-11) held off St. Charles East 69-64 for its first postseason victory in school history behind Kenny Goldthwaite’s 17 points and Dustin Lee’s 12. The Stars led 40-24 in the third quarter, but St. Charles East (6-22) pulled within 63-61. Eric Wright scored 19 points to lead St. Charles East.
At Hinsdale Central: Adam Kandah had 17 points on three three-pointers, including one that sealed the 43-39 win for Hinsdale South (9-16) over Hinsdale Central. After Joe Bozich’s layup gave the Red Devils (14-13) a 33-32 lead with 5:45 remaining, Kandah sank a three-pointer on the next possession for the 35-33 lead. Dan Portschy’s 12 points led the Red Devils.
At Lyons Township: Jonathan Peoples scored 17 points as St. Joseph (20-5) defeated Holy Cross 63-40.
At Riverside-Brookfield: Fenwick beat Argo 78-56 as Vince Humphrey scored 23 points and Kelvin Johnson added 18. Jared Bailey had 15 for Argo.