Building a basketball program’s confidence requires wins to validate hard work. Buffalo Grove’s boys team got one of those victories at home with a 62-59 win Saturday night.
Trailing Mid-Suburban East foe Prospect by as many as 16 in the second half, the Bison came all the way back to even the game at 53-53 at the end of regulation. In the overtime’s first possession, Prospect drained a three-point shot. But Buffalo Grove (5-12, 1-5) steamrolled the Knights the rest of the way, outscoring them 9-3 to close out the four-minute overtime period and seize an unlikely victory.
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“We had a great week of practice this week. We knew if we brought that same intensity to another team, we’re going to be pretty successful,” Bison coach Keith Peterson said. “That was the difference tonight.”
By the results of Buffalo Grove’s five previous games, Saturday night’s comeback win could be predicted. The Bison were 2-3 over the stretch, but two of the losses were by one point (69-68 to Waukegan on Dec. 26) and in overtime (65-60 to Rolling Meadows on Jan. 17).
The metadata from those close defeats — better ball movement in offensive sets, aggressive defensive pressure — emerged as a catalyst for the Bison’s reversal of fortune against the Knights. That, and the spectacular play of point guard Collin Dekorsi.
“He did everything tonight. Passing, shooting,” Bison senior forward Ryan Williams said. “We have all the confidence in him.”
With 6:50 left in regulation, Prospect (8-8, 3-3) led 45-35. Buffalo Grove began to chip away at the deficit. A Dekorsi three-point shot with 3:50 left cut the margin to 47-43. Two free throws from Dekorsi with 1:08 left made it a two point game, 52-50. Then, with just under a minute left and the Knights leading 53-50, the 5-8 sophomore lofted his longest three-point shot of the night from well beyond the line. It went through the net, tying the game at 53-53, the final points in regulation.
His steely resolve was not limited to long-range shots. In the fourth period and overtime, Dekorsi made 10-of-12 free throws. For the game, he scored a varsity career-high 30 points, including 4-for-6 shooting from beyond the arc.
“Whenever someone would get tight on me, I would use my quickness and go right by them,” Dekorsi said. “And when they’d set up, I’d wait for them to hesitate and shoot the three.”
After so may close losses, Buffalo Grove has its proof. It can play with one of the MSL East’s best teams. The victory is more gratifying for this reason — none of the Bison seniors had beaten Prospect in their high school careers before Saturday night.
“This is huge. All of the seniors are so excited about this. It’s took us forever to beat Prospect,” Williams said. “We are getting into that time of season where its almost playoffs and we’re playing well. It’s exciting to finally get over the hump.”
Sophomore Chris Calcagno added 10 points for the Bison.