In-game adjustments are as common to the game of basketball as free throws and rebounds. The adjustment Bartlett made in the fourth quarter of its 72-60 victory over South Elgin Friday however was a little outside the box.
With South Elgin (11-8,3-4) leading 56-55 and 4:10 left to go in the game, Bartlett (11-7,3-3) decided to change to a whole new offense.
“We’ve kind of thought about going back to the offense that we used several years ago on certain occasions,” said Bartlett coach Jim Wolfsmith. “It’s more of a dribble and drive type offense and we thought it might work against a team like South Elgin.”
Luckily for Bartlett ,the change was just what the Hawks needed. Once Bartlett changed to its “new” offense, the Hawks went on a 15-2 run to end the game, preserving the Upstate Eight Valley win against their rivals from South Elgin.
“South Elgin has improved so much compared to the team we played a month ago,” said Wolfsmith. “You can tell they’ve practiced hard and started to play the type of game they want to play. This was a great win in front of a large crowd and a great atmosphere.”
Bartlett was led by junior Ryan DiCanio who scored a season-high 31 points.
“We haven’t played very well lately,” said DiCanio. “We knew this would be a physical game against a much improved South Elgin team. I’m happy I was able to step up for my team and help us get a great win.”
South Elgin had its chances against Bartlett, but couldn’t get that key basket late in the game.
“We grabbed a four-point lead early in the fourth quarter, but then couldn’t seem to execute on offense after that,” said South Elgin coach Matt Petersen. “We are a young team who keeps improving. We had a great chance, but just couldn’t capitalize”.
South Elgin was led by Matthew Smith with 15 points.
