Boys Basketball: Andrew tops Thornridge to earn historic win

Updated: February 17, 2012 9:54PM

On Tuesday, Andrew reached the 20-win mark for only the second time in the program’s 35-year history.

Friday night, the No. 10 Thunderbolts stepped into uncharted waters with a 58-31 win over Thornridge in SouthWest Suburban Red clash in Dolton.

The victory, Andrew’s 21st of the year, marks the T-bolts’ winningest single-season in boys basketball. The 1989-90 team finished 20-8.

Jubril Adekoya paced Andrew (21-1, 11-1) with game highs of 19 points and nine rebounds. The 6-foot-6 junior forward, who has led the Thunderbolts’ charge all season, reflected on the record-setting feat.

“People don’t realize it now, but looking back when we’re older, we’ll be the first team to break 20 wins,” Adekoya said. “So it’s a big accomplishment for myself and the rest of the team.”

The two teams engaged in a tit-for-tat battle through the first 21/2 quarters before Andrew went on a deciding run. Austin Dunbar’s putback pulled Thornridge (10-13, 5-7) to within five with 1 minute, 27 seconds remaining in the third.

The Thunderbolts responded with a 22-2 run over the next 8:29 to close out the home team.

“We really did finish strong, and that was good,” Andrew coach Mike O’Halloran said. “I think our defense rose on them by the end of the game. We have more depth, I want to say. And our depth showed.”

Thornridge shot just 3-of-11 in the fourth quarter, a frame in which the Thunderbolts came out firing on all cylinders. Tyler Hook (17 points) and Glorind Lisha (11 points) combined for 10 points to key the 17-2 spurt. No Falcon players reached double digits.

“We have a tendency to start rushing when teams get a two- or three-basket run on us,” Thornridge coach Scott Alderson said. “We got out ourselves a bit, started rushing things and panicked.”

© 2012 Sun-Times Media, LLC. All rights reserved. This material may not be copied or distributed without permission. For more information about reprints and permissions, visit www.suntimesreprints.com. To order a reprint of this article, click here.