Mundelein 46, Zion-Benton 44
THE SKINNY
Mundelein (15-6, 6-3) — which has won 10 of its past 11 games — handed Zion-Benton (16-5, 9-1) its first NSC Lake Division loss of the season Saturday. The victorious Mustangs opened up a 10-point second-quarter lead as the Zee-Bees were only 5-of-22 shooting (23 percent) in the first half. Mundelein shot 13 for 25 (52 percent) from the field in the opening two quarters.
TURNING POINT
Zion-Benton grabbed a 42-41 lead on a basket by Mia Yarbrough (6 points, 9 rebounds) with 2:28 left. But Mundelein’s Natalie Busscher (9 points, 7 rebounds) made a layup with 1:49 left to put the Mustangs in the lead for good at 43-42. Busscher hit 3 of 4 free throws in the final 45 seconds to give the Mustangs a 46-44 lead with 20 seconds left. Busscher then stole the ball with two seconds remaining to preserve the win.
THE STAR
Jamie Hemmer came off the Mundelein bench to score a game-high 16 points and grab 8 rebounds. She added 3 assists, 1 steal and 1 block.
BY THE NUMBERS
Taylor Lintner scored 6 points and hauled down 8 rebounds for the Mustangs. Krystal Walker and Marquetta Easley each had 12 points for Zion-Benton. Walker added 4 steals. Mundelein owned a 32-24 advantage on the boards, while Zion-Benton committed 18 turnovers to 23 for the Mustangs. Mundelein was 19 of 46 from the field (41 percent). The Zee-Bees made just 16 of 53 attempts (30 percent).
QUOTABLE
“I like knowing that the ball is in my hands at the end of the game. I think my teammates trust me, too.” — Mundelein junior guard Natalie Busscher
