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Boys Basketball: Bartlett finds the range in closing minutes
| Andrew A. Nelles~For Sun-Times Media |
Updated: February 4, 2012 11:10PM
A poor-shooting Bartlett team came alive in the final two minutes of the game to defeat an aggressive East Aurora team 45-42 in Upstate Eight competition Saturday in Bartlett.
Matt Chaltin scored a game-high 20 points, but it was Jon Leigeber who did the damage with 10 points in the final minutes of the game to seal the win.
“I knew I had to keep shooting and when I got the ball out there I knew the next one was going to fall,” said Leigeber. “They came out wanting to win. If we would have played like we did in the second half the whole game, it would have been a different story.”
The Hawks (11-12, 3-6) were stifled by the speedy Tomcats (2-19, 1-8) for most of the game. The Tomcats forced the Hawks to turn over the ball 14 times in the first half. However, late in the fourth quarter, the Hawks found the range.
With the Hawks down 41-34 late in the game, Leigeber took command and hit two three-point baskets and two free throws to overtake the Tomcats, 42-41, with 1:34 left on the clock. It was the first time Bartlett had a lead in the game.
“They finally stepped up and hit their shots,” said Tomcats coach Wendell Jeffries. “They didn’t shot very well especially in the first half. Part of that was credited to our defense and part to their cold shooting. When they started hitting their shots, we didn’t step up down the stretch.”
Hawks coach James Wolfsmith cited his team’s defense for the turn around.
“We been in this position before,” said Wolfsmith. “We know there’s a lot of time left with four or five minutes on the clock. What we weren’t doing in the first three quarters, we did in the fourth quarter.”
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