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Boys Basketball: Lemont holds off Providence
Updated: January 24, 2012 9:24PM
With the Class 3A Rich East Sectional seedings scheduled to be determined in two weeks, Providence’s matchup at Lemont on Tuesday night was huge.
While that might have contributed to the Celtics playing tentatively in digging an early hole they never could escape, Indians junior guards Juozas Balciunnas and Joe Hehir were blazing en route to a 70-65 victory.
Balciunnas, the starting point guard for Lemont (16-2), waged a personal duel with junior Kevin Kozan of Providence (10-7), while Hehir was the microwave off the bench. Balciunnas hit eight consecutive shots in one stretch, finished 9 of 14, including four without a miss from three-point range, and scored 23 points. Hehir hit
his last six shots, was 3 of 3 from beyond the arc and 7-for-9 overall, and scored a career-high 18.
“He’s a good player,” Balciunnas said of Hehir. “He’s our sixth man. He gives us energy off the bench and he’s had sparks where he’s scored.”
Kozan finished with 20 points, but 13 came in the fourth quarter, when Providence made the final score respectable after trailing 13-1 early, 40-26 at halftime and 53-38 after three quarters.
“It was fun to play against him,” Balciunnas said of Kozan. “He made me better and I hope I made him better.”
“We thought this was our biggest game so far,” Lemont senior guard Joe O’Brien said. “It could get us a higher sectional seed and we might wind up seeing them again in the regional. They’re a tough team.”
Providence coach Tim Trendel noted the importance of the game, “but we have other big games coming up, so we have some chances to get back on the horse.
“Lemont shot the ball outstanding (27-of-48, including 9-of-13 from three-point range). That’s probably the best shooting team we played.
And we played a little tentative instead of attacking their pressure in the first quarter when we got behind.”
Mike Marietti, the Celtics’ 6-8 senior center, had 14 points and 11 rebounds and Brian Oddo chipped in with 12 points. But Providence was only 13 of 26 from the free throw line.
“Marietti is big and has some skills,” Lemont coach Rick Runaas said. “He was a point of emphasis in the third quarter, when I thought we defended well. That allowed us to be more comfortable going into the
fourth quarter; we knew we couldn’t hold them down forever.”
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