Boys Basketball: Oswego trims Minooka
By Tina Akouris takouris@suntimes.com January 12, 2013 12:02AM
Minooka’s Neal Tyrell battles for a loose ball against Oswego’s Jamaal Richardson (left) and Elliot McGaughy (right) on Friday.| Ray Luna ~ For Sun-Times Media
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Updated: February 14, 2013 6:37AM
With Southwest Prairie Conference title implications pretty much on the line, host Minooka had hopes of putting a dent into Oswego’s league lead — or at least scaring the Panthers a bit.
It turns out Minooka might have taken a step backward, as Oswego defeated the Indians 63-57 Friday night.
Oswego (13-2, 5-0) is all alone in first place in the Southwest Prairie.
The Panthers wanted to make a statement early. They did that by taking a 10-point halftime lead thanks to 10 points each from Darion Reddick and Elliot McGaughy.
Minooka (8-7, 3-1) worked on cutting into Oswego’s lead in the third quarter. The Indians drew to within eight on Jake Hogen’s three-pointer at the 5:30 mark, and it appeared they were getting some momentum.
The Indians cut the lead to five with 13 seconds to play in the game on Adam Alexander’s three-point play. By that point it was too late.
“I think we have some young guys who were shell-shocked at the start of the game, in front of a packed gym,” Hogen said. “But as soon as we settled down we learned we could play with them. It seemed like we couldn’t cut it close enough to get it tied or a lead, because then we could have gotten some momentum.”
Minooka outscored Oswego 38-34 in the second half. It was a stat that made coach Scott Tanaka proud.
“In the second half we did a better job of attacking,” Tanaka said. “Things went our way, and we had almost 40 points in the second half. We more than doubled our input in the second half.”
Darrin Myers led the Indians with 14 points and Hogen scored 13. Perry Jones added seven points.
Reddick led the Panthers with a game-high 23 points. McGaughy chipped in 19 points and Miles Simelton scored 13.
