It was Senior Night at Bolingbrook High School on Friday night, as Homewood-Flossmoor (19-6, 7-2) and the host Raiders (19-6, 8-1) squared-off for the Southwest Suburban Conference Blue championship.
After sharing the 2017-2018 SWSC Blue crown with the Vikings, a 65-60 win gave the Raiders consecutive championships.
The Vikings came out on fire, trying to extinguish the bad taste from the January 18 88-63 shellacking from the Raiders.
Converting on 16 of its 26 first half shots (61.6 percent), H-F exploded out to a 32-18 lead in the second quarter. Leading 36-23, with a minute remaining in the first half, Bolingbrook’s, Drake-bound senior Joseph Yesufu (19 points) scored and then senior Jordan Myrick (4 points), buried his only shot of the game from three-point land to pull the Raiders within 36-28 at the half.
Bolingbrook head coach Rob Brost made a couple of suggestions to his Raiders, during halftime.
“Step it up.”
Led by NIU-bound, Tyler Cochran (18 points, eight rebounds, four steals), the Raiders exploded in the third quarter.
Cochran who scored 11 third quarter points and pick up three steals to lead a 22-9 Bolingbrook third-quarter for a 50-45 Raider lead.
“We were not playing well in the first half,” Cochran said. “In the second half. we played the way we know how. It’s feel’s great to be SWSC Blue champs again.”
“Coach (Brost) suggested to us to “step it up on defense”, Yesufu said. “We weren’t playing well in the first half, as we came out a little too pumped, after our senior night pregame ceremony. We stepped it up on defense in the second half.”
In the fourth quarter, the Raiders repeatedly thwarted Viking attempts at a come-back.
Junior Darius Burford (12 points) split a pair of free-throws to give the Raiders a 55-46 lead with 5:54 left.
H-F’s Trace Williams (eight points), buried a three-pointer and Maurice Scott ( nine points) converted a pair of free-throws. to pull the Vikings within 55-51 with 5:21 remaining.
Raider senior Anthony Thompson’s (seven points) three-point dagger, at the 4:41 mark. gave the ‘Brook a 58-51 lead. Led by senior RJ Ogom (18 points, 10 rebound, three blocks) H-F pulled to within 58-54, with 1:52 left.
After Cochran missed the front-end of a one-and one H-F came down the floor with a chance to pull within one, with a three, with 1:40 left.
Six-foot-4 senior Tyrique McMurrin stole a Viking pass, fed Burford the ball, who found a streaking Yesufu at the other end of the court for the game-clinching bucket. McMurrin, in his limited playing time, haul eddown eight rebounds and pick up another steal.
“I owe all of my success tonight to our coaches who teach us how to play defense,”McMurrin said. “We really stepped it up to wrap up another SWSC Blue title and an exciting senior night victory.”
“Our bench always plays so well for us,” Yesufu said. “Anthony (Thompson) is a great player and Tyrique’s steal. was game-winner for us.”
Brost is happy to earn the conference title.
“I am blessed to have players on my bench. who deserve to play a lot more than they do,” he said. “Everyone on our bench played well and our seniors stepped it up, to win the game and another SWSC Blue championship.”