Huntley handles Dundee-Crown

Huntley took care of business with a dominant 59-33 win over Dundee-Crown on Wednesday night, jumping out to an early lead and never looking back.

The Red Raiders (21-4, 10-1 Fox Valley Valley) forced the Chargers (2-21, 0-10) into turnovers on their first six possessions of the game, jumping out to an 11-0 lead.

The Chargers battled back to pull it to 14-7, but a three-pointer by Sam Andrews brought the Raiders lead back to double digits and it would remain that way the rest of the game.

The Raiders built their lead to 34-14 by halftime, with Andrews scoring 18 first-half points on an impressive 7-of-13 shooting.

“I thought our kids jumped out to a nice start, and Sam Andrews had just an outstanding first half, really carried the offensive load for us,” said Huntley coach Steve Raethz.

The Huntley lead ballooned to 49-16 going into the fourth quarter and the Raiders took their biggest lead of the night early in the fourth quarter when a Bethany Zornow basket made it 51-18.

The starters gave way from there and Huntley came away with the big win as it shot 21-of-54 from the field. Defensively, the Raiders held Dundee-Crown to just 14-of-41 shooting, while forcing 23 turnovers.

“I thought defensively we did a decent job (against the Andrews sisters), as good as we’re gonna do against them, and I was proud of our defensive effort,” said Dundee-Crown coach Michelle Russell. “Offensively though we just had way too many turnovers, and that turned into more offense for them.”

While the Chargers defense made it tough, the sisters still both managed strong games as Sam led the Raiders with 25 points and nine rebounds, and younger sister Ali added 13 points, six rebounds and three blocks.

Lauren Lococo paced the Chargers with nine points, while Jillian Weichmann chipped in seven points and three steals.

The Huntley win sets up a huge matchup at Cary-Grove this Saturday to decide the FVC Valley Division champion. Cary-Grove kept pace with a big 61-19 win over Jacobs on Wednesday night, and both teams now sit at 10-1 in conference play.

The last time the two teams met on Jan. 12., Cary-Grove came out on top with a 42-33 victory. That marks the last time Huntley lost as it has rattled off seven straight wins.

“It’s going to be a tough game at their place, and we’re going to need to sustain four full quarters,” said Raethz. “We’re anticipating a great game, and we’re excited for it and looking forward to the opportunity.”