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SYCAMORE – Kaneland senior guard Marshawn Cocroft said Sycamore came out in Friday’s Interstate 8 Conference matchup and punched the Knights hard.
But Cocroft got the last shot as his 3-pointer in the final 90 seconds of overtime gave Kaneland the lead for good in its 58-53 win over the Spartans.
“The first quarter was a little slow,” said Cocroft, whose team fell down by 10 multiple times in the first quarter. “They punched us right in the mouth. But we were able to sort of turn the jets on and fight back, giving up six points in the second quarter. After that we just stayed defensively strong on them.”
The Spartans (18-7, 6-2 Interstate 8) had the chance to win the game at the end of regulation, but Carter York’s runner in the lane in traffic rimmed out, sending the game into overtime knotted at 49.
With 1:31 left in the overtime, Sycamore guard Xander Lewis got to the basket for a layup, putting the Spartans up 53-52. But Cocroft followed with 58 seconds left, draining a 3-pointer well behind the line on the right wing.
Sycamore had a chance to tie it on the next possession, but Unique Shaw missed, Evan Frieders got the rebound and Cocroft closed the game making three more free throws to seal the win for the Knights (24-1, 8-0).
“I knew we needed a shot and obviously I want to step up, take a shot. So I came down, got my teammate open, and if I’m getting them open I’m also getting myself open,” Cocroft said. “I knew I was wide open, shot the 3 and that gave us the energy we needed. All we know is we needed that one stop and we got that shot, then all we had to do is knock down free throws from there.”
Cocroft finished with a game-high 19 points, and Kaneland coach Ernie Colombe said he was glad to see his guard take that shot.
“We had confidence in him,” Colombe said. “He didn’t have a lot of free looks out there, so that was the one time he got free there in the end and obviously that’s a big momentum builder.”
After Freddy Hassan opened the game with the first two of his 18 points on the night, Sycamore responded with a 12-0 run. Two more times the Spartans built the lead up to 10, but a 3 from Cocroft late in the second gave the Knights a 24-23 lead going into the break.
The Knights extended the lead to 39-31 at the end of the third, but the Spartans scored the first eight of the fourth to tie things up. They took the lead with 3:19 left on a 3-pointer by Preston Picolotti, but with 2:07 left Kaneland tied it up at 47 on a steal and layup by Cocroft. Shaw and Frieders traded layups to wrap up the regulation scoring.
“We battled. That team leaves minimal margin for error,” Sycamore coach Ethan Franklin said. “We had a few lapses and they converted every single time. I’m proud of our kids for their fight. That team is the benchmark right now in 3A and if we want to make a deep run, that’s a group that we’ve got to find a way to get through. If we get that same effort we had tonight, we’ll find a way.”
Sycamore was playing its second consecutive game without leading scorer Isaiah Feuerbach, who tweaked his knee in practice on Monday.
“It’s unfortunate for them they’re dealing with an injury to a key player,” Colombe said. “But their guys stepped up tonight. It’s hard to relay that to high school kids. Sometimes when guys hear somebody is out, they assume, ‘Oh there goes x amount of points.’ But they’ve got more than enough guys who are capable of stepping up and they did tonight.”
Shaw led the Spartans with 15 points and Lewis added 12. Jacob Shipley had a team-best five rebounds and 10 of his 11 points came in the first quarter. York added 10 points and four rebounds.
Franklin said early on the Spartans got more great shots, but when the pressure kicked in later from Kaneland’s defense those chances shrunk.
“Their pressure forced longer possessions and not as clean of shots,” Franklin said. “But 6-9 (Jeffrey Hassan), 6-7 (Freddy Hassan), 6-5 (Frieders) out there, it’s hard to get a clean one.”
Freddy Hassan had 18 points and 10 rebounds in Kaneland’s win. The victory granted the Knights at least a share of the conference title for the third straight season.
Colombe said he’s proud the team was able to perform so well this year despite not only sky-high expectations but a tough conference slate. The Knights have lost two conference games combined over the last three seasons.
“Some people in school will say, ‘Oh you guys are going to to do this,’ or ‘You guys are going to do that,’” Colombe said. “But you have to play these games. They’re not easy. A lot of tough conference games. And we’ve had a nice three-year run here.”