Garrison Carter is not going to forget the date of Feb. 4, 2022.
The senior forward had been looking forward to Wauconda’s game against Lakes for the past month.
That’s because the Eagles had been the only team to beat Wauconda in the Northern Lake County Conference this season, and the Bulldogs wanted a little payback for that 69-68 loss on Jan. 8.
“We have had this game circled on our calendar for a long time,” Carter said.
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Wauconda rode a strong start and double-figure scoring from five players, including Carter, to earn an impressive 85-57 victory at home on Friday.
“We were focused and excited for this game,” Carter said. “We wanted to prove we were a better team than we showed before.”
Carter finished with 18 points and eight rebounds for the Bulldogs (19-3, 10-1). Senior guard Justin Drobnik scored a game-high 22 points, senior guard Nick Brinias had 17 points, senior forward Griffin Daun had 12 points and sophomore forward Braeden Carlsen added 11 points. Junior forward Brock Marino had 18 points for Lakes (12-13, 7-4).
“That’s why it is so fun playing with these guys — because everyone shares the ball, and everyone pulls for each other,” Carter said.
Lakes outscored Wauconda 27-18 in the fourth quarter of their last meeting, something the Bulldogs wanted to avoid Friday.
“We’ve seen that fourth-quarter video against Lakes a bunch of times to get ready for this game,” Carter said. “It got us ready to have a good start.”
Lakes cut the lead to single digits early in the third quarter. But Drobnik sparked another offensive burst by the Bulldogs, scoring 18 points in the second half.
“The tape of that fourth quarter the last time we played them showed that most of our poor play was because of our mistakes,” Wauconda coach Scott Luetschwager said. “We definitely needed to clean things up, and I think we did.”
Wauconda has a two-game lead over Grayslake Central with three conference games remaining in the chase for its first outright title in so many years that Luetschwager could not remember the last time it happened.
“I think it was in the 1960s,” he joked.
Wauconda shared the title with Round Lake in 2000, but the Bulldogs want this one all to themselves.
“I think we are in pretty good shape right now if we continue to do the things needed to be successful,” Luetschwager said.
One of the things the Bulldogs have been doing right most of the season is getting the ball into Carter’s hands. He showed his offensive skills inside and outside Friday, but he also was strong in the paint on the back end of Wauconda’s zone defense.
“Garrison is a force on both ends of the floor,” Luetschwager said. “He’s worked hard to be a much-improved player this season.”
Carter wants to follow his older brother Donovan into college basketball. Donovan Carter is in his second season at the Milwaukee School of Engineering.
“Donovan has taught me so much about the game,” Garrison Carter said. “He calls me all the time to see how I’m doing and to give me things to work on. He and my parents have been supportive of everything I do.”
Carter, a straight-A student, knows there is plenty of work to be done to play at the next level.
“I try to work hard before school, during practice and in games to go along with the offseason to get better,” he said. “I’ve seen what it took for my brother to play in college, so I have a good role model.”
Darren Day is a freelance reporter for the News-Sun.