Boys Basketball: Lake Zurich seals OT win over Libertyville at the line
BY Tim Froehlig Contributor January 28, 2012 12:06AM
Lake Zurich's John Repplinger drives to the basket against Libertyville's Luke Mathewson on Friday night. | Joe Shuman~Sun-Times Media
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Updated: January 31, 2012 11:14AM
Lake Zurich’s boys basketball team has made a habit out of being in close games this season.
In fact, coming into Friday night’s North Suburban Lake showdown against visiting Libertyville, six of the Bears’ last eight games were decided by five points or less.
This time was no different.
Thanks to some outstanding free-throw shooting down the stretch, Lake Zurich held on for an exciting 68-62 overtime win, while also managing to fend off some potential late-game heroics by Libertyville. The Bears also overcame some sloppy ball-handling, which included 19 turnovers.
“We’ve done an excellent job of taking care of the ball the last few games,” Lake Zurich coach Billy Pitcher said. “So I don’t really know what happened tonight, but we’ll take it.”
Lake Zurich (12-10, 3-5) led most of regulation, with the exception of a two-minute span in the second quarter, and again briefly midway through the third. The Bears rallied from both deficits, which were never greater than five points. They then built an eight-point early fourth quarter lead, which was the biggest by either club all night.
But Libertyville (13-7, 3-5) responded with an 8-0 run that tied the game, 49-49, midway through the fourth. And as the teams see-sawed down the stretch, it was a familiar face that nearly ruined Lake Zurich’s night.
Six days after he drained three free throws to send a game to overtime against Carmel in dramatic fashion, Libertyville guard Griffin Pils found himself in familiar territory.
Pils banked in a circus-shot three-pointer that cut Lake Zurich’s lead to one, with 47 seconds left in regulation, which was followed by an open jumper from Bears junior guard John Repplinger. That gave the Bears a 57-54 edge.
On the ensuing possession, Pils was fouled while shooting another three — this time with 24 seconds to go. He calmly made all three free throws, despite Lake Zurich coach Pitcher using a timeout after his second attempt in an effort to ice Pils, tying the game 57-57. Pils scored eight points in the game’s final 1:01.
“I’m not sure why (I seem to have a knack for scoring late),” Pils said. “I guess when my team is down, I just try to be more aggressive and get as many quick shots off as I can.”
A last-second desperation shot by Bears forward Mirko Grcic (game-high 24 points, 10 rebounds) hit the side of the rim, sending the game to overtime.
In overtime, Lake Zurich scored first on a layup by forward Doug Murphy, only to have Libertyville senior guard Ellis Matthews connect on a three-point play, giving the Wildcats a 60-59 lead. But the momentum turned for good the next time Libertyville got the ball, as Matthews was called for a charging foul on what he thought was a layup that would have given his team a three-point edge.
The Bears responded with nine unanswered points to pull away after that, including 6-of-7 free throws from Grcic (6-for-12 from the field) to ice things.
“There’s a lot of pressure out there in overtime, but I was really focused when I was out there shooting free throws,” Grcic said. “It was a heck of a game, and Libertyville is a really good team. Fortunately we worked hard when it mattered most and got the win.”
Lake Zurich finished 17-for-18 from the foul line, despite having just two attempts during the first three quarters. Ryan Roach contributed 13 points for the Bears, while freshman Mike Travlos scored 11 off the bench.
The victory also snapped a two-game losing streak for the Lake Zurich, which is 4-1 in overtime games this season.
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