If there is such a thing as a moral victory, chalk one up for St. Rita.
The Mustangs led second-ranked Fenwick at the half before finally falling 79-62 Friday night at St. Rita.
Corey Maggette led the Friars (8-0, 5-0) with 24 points and Corey Williams added 18. Steve Lickus led St. Rita, which was ahead 40-38 at halftime, with 25 points and 10 rebounds.
“It was a great effort,” said St. Rita coach John Bonk of his team’s effort. “In the long haul, Fenwick is a great team. They have a great team, a great coach, and they took it away from us in the fourth quarter.”
Waukegan 55, Evanston 47: Dominique Jones scored 14 of his 23 points in the fourth quarter to lead the Bulldogs (6-2, 2-0) past No. 15 Evanston (6-2, 1-1). Karlton Mims scored 18 in defeat for the Wildkits, who trailed 30-17 at the half and were outscored 20-2 in the third.
Providence-St. Mel 100, Holy Trinity 38: Cory Minnifield had 17 points and Linton Johnson added 16 as No. 8 Providence-St. Mel (6-1, 2-0) rolled in the Chicago Prep.
“We’re a little deeper than we were in the past,” said Providence coach Billy Garrett. “I can go 10 deep and not lose much off the bench.”
Robert Harris chipped in with 14 points and while Patrick Cunningham was 3 for 3 from three-point range en route to a 13-point night.
New Trier 73, Maine East 45: Matt Lottich scored 19 points to lead No. 10 New Trier (8-0, 2-0) in the Central Suburban South.
The Trevians jumped to a 17-4 lead after the first quarter and extended it to 38-10 at the half.
Hillcrest 81, Bremen 59: No. 11 Hillcrest (10-0, 2-0) continued its run through the SICA Central with the victory in Midlothian.
The Hawks trailed 18-16 after the first quarter, then outscored Bremen 28-11 in the second quarter. Ryan Blankson scored 10 of his 20 points in the second quarter for Hillcrest. Kerwin Fleming added 18.
“I think we came in here half asleep,” said Hillcrest coach Tom Cappel. “I think we may have taken (Bremen) lightly. A lot of games we’ve been behind, and all of a sudden we play better. The kids turn it up a notch.”
Freshman center Cerrone Prichett led Bremen with 19 points and 11 rebounds.
Joliet 58, Stagg 46: No. 12 Joliet (8-0, 2-0) went on a 14-2 run in the first quarter to open a lead it would not lose in the SICA West.
Richard Terry led a balanced attack with 13 points, Twayne Myers added 11 and Derrick Martin chipped in with 10.
“We held our cool,” said Joliet coach Bob Koskovsky. “We had heart and desire and we stayed focused.”
Leo 84, Weber 39: No. 13 Leo (7-2, 4-2) jumped to a 15-4 lead after the first quarter and never looked back in the Catholic League crossover contest.
J.R. Jackson, Andre Brown and Levon Wood all had 12 points to lead the Lions.
Schaumburg 68, Hoffman Estates 56: Isaac Holloway scored 20 points with nine rebounds and Jason Edwards and Mike Weel each chipped in with 16 points as Schaumburg handed Mid-Suburban South rival and 14th-ranked Hoffman Estates its first loss of the season.
The Saxons (6-1, 1-1) trailed 5-4 early before running off 15 straight points to take a 19-5 lead in the second quarter.
Hoffman (7-1, 1-1) pulled to within 54-46 with just over 2 minutes remaining, but Schaumburg hit 14 of 20 free throws the rest of the way to hang on. Chris Sigl led Hoffman Estates with 16 points and eight rebounds.
More Top Picks Why Kids With Adhd Struggle To Finish Books
Zion-Benton 54, Warren 47: The 16th-ranked Zee-Bees scored the last eight points to pull out the North Suburban contest.
Quiande Moore scored seven of his 24 points in the fourth quarter for Zion-Benton (8-1, 3-1). Al Lainio added 14 points.
“(Moore) did a really good job in the fourth quarter,” said Zion-Benton coach Don Kloth. “He came through when he had to.”
Notre Dame 77, St. Viator 71 (OT): The 18th-ranked Dons watched a 20-point first-half lead evaporate and then had to hold on for the East Suburban Catholic overtime victory. Kevin Clancy led Notre Dame (6-1, 3-0) with 32 points. He connected on eight three-pointers and scored seven of Notre Dame’s 13 points in overtime.
Mike Howland hit 12 of 13 free throws, including two with 2.3 seconds left, to send the game into OT en route to a 24-point night to lead St. Viator (5-2, 2-1).
“We knew they had the shooters to come back,” said Clancy. “In the fourth, we just didn’t want them to win it.”
Fremd 60, Wheeling 58: Senior guard Andre Duncan was once again sharp and provided the spark for Fremd (6-1, 2-0), finishing with 17 points in the Mid-Suburban North. Three Duncan steals in the second quarter were converted into points and helped his team pull away for the time being.
“Andre is still feeling his way as far as running the team is concerned, but there isn’t a kid in this league who is as quick as him,” said Fremd coach Mo Tharp.