Boys Basketball: Libertyville falls to Maine South at Bradley Center
BY TIM FROEHLIG Contributor February 4, 2012 8:50PM
Libertyville's Matthew Varner (No. 34) and Libertyville's Ellis Matthews (No. 5) apply heavy pressure on Stevenson's Colby Cashaw during Friday's game. | Rob Dicker~Sun-Times Media
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Updated: April 10, 2012 11:54AM
Throughout the season, Libertyville’s boys basketball team has made a habit out of starting games slowly, then having to furiously battle back to win.
The Wildcats’ latest two matchups — against Stevenson on Friday and vs. Maine South at the Bradley Center, in Milwaukee, on Saturday — were no different.
In fact, in a span of less than 24 hours, the Wildcats found a way to dig themselves a pair of first-half, double-digit deficits against both clubs, only to rally and take the lead both times. Libertyville was down by 12 points against Stevenson, and trailed by as many as 15 against Maine South.
While they ended up beating the rival Patriots 62-60, the Cats coughed up a four-point edge in the final two minutes in losing to the Hawks 50-47.
And in a recent game against Carmel, the Cats fell behind by 16 points in the second quarter, only to watch senior guard Griffin Pils score 20 points in the game’s final five minutes, rallying the Wildcats to an unbelievable win.
“I wish I had a magic answer for why we’ve started so many games slow, I really do,” said Libertyville coach Scott Bogumil. “We’ve got this habit of digging ourselves a big hole, then having to climb out of it. It’s something we’ve talked about with our players quite a bit.”
Next up for the Wildcats (14-8 overall, 4-5 North Suburban Lake) is a NSC Lake Division showdown at Mundelein (19-6, 6-3) at 7:30 p.m. Friday.
Libertyville might be well-served to forge a quicker start in that one. Mundelein’s high-powered offense has scored 70 points or more 15 different times this season.
And the Wildcats lost starting forward Jack Deichl to a broken hand against Lake Zurich on Jan. 27. Deichl, who was averaging about seven points and six rebounds per game, broke his shooting hand, and had to have surgery last week.
“The surgery was successful,” Bogumil said. “Which is good news, but he’s still expected to be out four to six weeks. But by then, the playoffs will probably be over, so we don’t think he’ll be back.”
As a result, 6-foot-3 junior Matt Varner — listed as a guard — handles the ball well and has seen his minutes increase. But the Wildcats’ best two players the past few weeks have arguably been senior guards Ellis Matthews and Anthony Mack.
Matthews, who scored 14 points against Stevenson and nine against Maine South, has consistently shown an ability to penetrate into the lane, creating open shots for the rest of his teammates. Mack, meanwhile, has suddenly caught fire.
In his past two starts, Mack has shot a combined 7-for-12 from three-point range, and he led the Wildcats in scoring both times. He led Libertyville with 17 points against Stevenson and 18 vs. Maine South.
“Losing our power forward (Deichl) is a huge blow, especially since we’re not the biggest team in our conference,” Mack said. “But we feel like we all have to step up and play bigger because of it. And on offense, we just have to be patient with the ball and selective with our shots.”
Mack talked about what it was like to have the once-in-a-lifetime chance to play on a pro court, as he did at the home of the NBA’s Milwaukee Bucks on Saturday.
“It’s just an unbelievable feeling, because growing up, I always wanted to play on a court like this,” Mack said. “I can’t even describe what it feels like.”
One area in which Libertyville has excelled is free-throw shooting. The Wildcats have shot around 76 percent from the charity stripe this season, and most nights have attempted between 10 and 20 free throws. They were 17-for-18 against Stevenson, but, remarkably, didn’t have a single attempt against the Hawks.
That last statistic will have to change if Libertyville hopes to be successful when the IHSA Class 4A playoffs begin. And with so much parity among local teams, there’s simply no telling how the coaches will decide to vote on Libertyville when it comes to the seeding process.
“If we had won (against Maine South) I think we could have made a legitimate argument for as high as a No. 4 seed,” Bogumil said. “But there are so many good teams — I mean, 15 or 16 of the 21 teams in our sectional have a winning record. That’s amazing. But you never know. I’m a fan of the way they used to seed teams. One year (under the current system) we were a No. 11 seed, playing a play-in game to advance, and playing a No. 2 seed. So who you end up drawing in the first few games is just as important as anything. If we draw a team with a lot of size, it might give us some matchup problems. But otherwise, we feel like we can play with just about anyone we face.”
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