Boys Basketball: Vikings One Away From Perfection

The Hot Read: On Senior Night at Sandburg, it was a Homewood-Flossmoor senior that put on a show in the Vikings' 52-46 boys basketball victory on Tuesday. With a ladder-climbing dunk, Julian Lewis put the exclamation point on his 16-point performance. Lewis scored 12 of his 16 in the third quarter to lead a 12-0 run that pushed the Vikings over the top.

Patch’s MVP: While Lewis had the big play, the MVP nod goes to Sandburg's Nick Lehnerer. He scored 22 points in the Eagles' setback.

Key Stats:  H-F won the turnover battle. The Vikings forced 13 Sandburg turnovers while coughing the ball up themselves seven times. The Vikings also finished with a slight rebounding edge (24-21). H-F hit 10-of-15 from the free throw line.

H-F Leaders: Julian Lewis (16 points, 6 rebounds), David Fatoki (12 points). Tyrone Sherman (11 points, 2 steals).

Sandburg Leaders: Nick Lehnerer (22 points). Jason Viane (6 points, 4 rebounds). Ken Payonk (4 points, 7 rebounds).

Quotable I: H-F Coach Jim McLaughlin: "We didn't defend the last 4 minutes or execute like we're supposed to. I'll take the win and move on, but one week from tomorrow, we're playing for marbles. Those marbles are win or go home. We know we have to get a lot of things fixed."

Quotable II: Sandburg Coach Todd Allen: "H-F isn't 10th in the state for no reason. They have five, six, seven guys who can score. I give them a lot of credit. One guy in double figures isn't going to cut it. I thought we had some good looks, and we just didn't knock them down. To beat a team like H-F, you need two, three for four guys to step up and give you 10 or more points."

Team Records: Homewood-Flossmoor, 20-5 and 13-0 in the Southwest Suburban. Sandburg,  16-9 and 8-5.

What’s Next: H-F hosts Lincoln-Way Central on Friday night, and Sandburg finishes the regular season at Joliet West.