Senior guard Gavin Szerlong was getting frustrated in the third quarter for St. Charles East.
The Illinois High School Association has placed an emphasis on calling flops on offensive players trying to draw fouls, and Szerlong got whistled twice to start off the second half Friday night.
“It was frustrating,” he said. “They were the right calls. I fell early on both of them. It’s different because it’s never really been a rule until this year. I have to thank my teammates.
“They told me to keep my head up and just keep playing.”
Szerlong shook that off and ignited a decisive 11-0 run with a pair of 3-pointers as the Saints pulled away for a 67-41 DuKane Conference victory at St. Charles North.
In all, Szerlong produced 11 points, six assists, five rebounds and two steals for St. Charles East (5-3, 2-2). Andrew Wolfsmith led the Saints with 13 points. Michael Hill added 10 off the bench.
Cooper Mellican was the only double-digit scorer for St. Charles North (4-6, 1-3), finishing with 11 points. Jake Love added nine points off the bench and Camden Vine had eight.
St. Charles East coach Rob Klemm was happy with the way Szerlong kept his cool in the third.
“He gave us a ton of energy,” Klemm said. “I was proud of him because he got those two flop calls and the technical. We really talk a lot about controlling our emotions. I thought he did a good job.
“He played through it. He knocked down two big shots in that third quarter.”
The North Stars cut the deficit to 28-20 when Szerlong got to work. He hit the two 3-pointers and tallied three assists in the quarter as the Saints pushed the lead to 43-24.
“I worked a lot in the offseason,” Szerlong said. “I’m able to handle pressure. I still have to work on it, but I’m thankful (Klemm) trusts me to handle the ball.”
Klemm knows he has three players he can rely on to distribute the ball with Szerlong, Marco Klebosits and Reese Dumpit coming off the bench.
“All three of those guys can handle the ball well,” Klemm said. “With Marco getting in foul trouble, (Szerlong) really stepped up his game and did a good job.”
Defense was what got things started for the Saints. They held an 18-3 lead until the 2:52 mark of the second quarter. North shot 4-for-19 in the first half.
“We didn’t shoot well because we weren’t bigger than the moment,” St. Charles North coach Tom Poulin said. “We didn’t shoot well because we were sped up because of their switching and their defensive intensity.
“Everything is going to make you better, but this is disappointing because we know what we can be. They came in and kicked our butts on our home floor. Luckily, it’s not the regional. We see them again.”
The Saints had lost three of four coming in, not scoring more than 48 points in any of the four games. The past two were particularly crushing, including a 46-45 loss at home in double overtime to Lake Park.
“The past couple games, we’ve been playing hard,” Klemm said. “Defense has been great. That’s been the staple that’s kept us in games. We were just struggling to put the ball in the basket.”
The Saints scored 44 points in the second half alone Friday. They shot 21-for-30 inside the 3-point line and recorded 17 assists on 27 field goals. They also came up with 10 steals.
That resembles the team Szerlong sees during the week, and he hopes the Saints can keep it going at over the holidays in a tournament at Hinsdale Central.
“That’s how we practice,” Szerlong said. “We get open like that and we knock down those shots in practice. We just needed to get back into it. We just have to keep this momentum going.”
Paul Johnson is a freelance reporter for The Beacon-News.
