Sandburg Boys Zip Past Hinsdale Central

After a narrow win over Hinsdale South, Sandburg coach Todd Allen made sure his team put additional emphasis on defense in its game against Hinsdale Central Saturday night.

"I thought we were very poor defensively in the last game," Allen said. "That was the thing we talked about during the morning shoot-around."

The message paid off. The Eagles (2-1) were aggressive from the opening tip, forcing Hinsdale Central into numerous mistakes and errors. The Eagles faced little pressure all night en route to a 63-39 victory.

The Devils (0-3) got into early foul trouble, putting Sandburg in the bonus with 4 minutes left in the first quarter. The Eagles took advantage of the situation. They had a 20-7 lead after the first quarter and a 33-16 lead at the half. On offense, the Eagles created plenty of scoring opportunities with excellent ball movement and solid field goal shooting.

The trend continued in the second half, and the Eagles put themselves ahead 57-31 midway through the fourth quarter before Allen sent in the reserves.

The Red Devils struggled to break through Sandburg's full-court pressure. This led to several early turnovers and missed opportunities that turned to points for the Eagles on the other end of the floor. The Red Devils went winless in the tournament, losing all three games by double digits.

"We definitely need to improve, and we'll work as hard as we can, one day at a time, to get better," Hinsdale Central coach Nick Latorre said.

For Sandburg, junior guard Nick Lenherer led all players with 18 points. Senior Jason Viane had 14 points and six rebounds. Junior forward Ken Payonk scored 17 points and went 5-for-5 from the free throw line. For the Red Devils, junior forward Tom Garvin led the way with 12 points.

The Devils go on the road to play their first conference game on Friday, Dec. 3, against York. The Eagles play their home opener and conference opener against Lincoln-Way Central on Friday, Dec. 3, as well.