Riverside Brookfield High School sophomore Claire Evans’ return to the varsity girls basketball starting lineup this season started with her first all-tournament honors ever following the Schaumburg Thanksgiving Tournament.
“It was really cool. I did not think it was going to happen and then it did,” Evans said. “I was really, really happy about that.”
In Friday’s home opener, Evans enjoyed her best offensive game so far as part of a huge second half with senior Arianna Hudson. The pair combined for 26 of the Bulldogs’ 39 points after halftime as the team shook off a rough second quarter to beat visiting Fenton 51-39. The Upstate Eight Conference East Division victory for the Bulldogs (2-5, 1-1 in UEC East) was part of a home doubleheader with the RBHS boys, who later beat the Bison 70-27 behind a 23-3 first quarter.
With Evans (18 points with 3 three-pointers, 6 rebounds, 9 steals, 10 deflections) and Hudson (16 points, 6 rebounds, 3 steals, 8 deflections) leading the way, the Bulldogs overcame a 17-12 halftime deficit on the strength of 26 steals, 16 in the second half.
Kate Hamilton (5 points, 3 steals), Addie Vaia (3 points, 4 steals, 7 deflections), Abby Weinert (3 points, 3 rebounds, 4 steals), Giselle Rodgers (4 rebounds) and
Joselyn Hernandez (3 points) also contributed.
“We just needed some more energy,” Hudson said of the second half. “We needed to work together more and realize that this is our gym and that we can do it if we put our minds to it. We just got that energy back.”
Evans, a 5-foot-9 guard, collected a team-high 45 points over the five games at Schaumburg, including 17 in the loss to the host Saxons. Hudson had a personal-best 19 in the victory over Bartlett. Evans has never scored 20 points in a game, but that could happen soon. Varsity experience as a freshman certainly has helped.
“It’s nice playing with older girls (on varsity) and kind of having a bigger challenge. Just being on the varsity is the next level and I really, really love it,” Evans said.
“Claire looks great. She’s been scoring. She’s everywhere on the floor. A non-stop motor,” RBHS coach Jordan Mack said. “She has more confidence (this season). She’s stronger, just physically from the weight room. She has that strength and that’s only going to progress when she gets older.”
The 6-foot Hudson continues to progress after minimal play the last two seasons because of injuries. Her quickness and mobility, especially for her size, makes her an inside and perimeter threat.
“The first couple of games I was definitely nervous. I wasn’t used to the (varsity game) pace,” Hudson said. “It’s definitely different than in practices but after a couple of games I got used to it and I’m feeling more confident.”
Most of the Bulldogs’ first-half energy came out in nerves. In their three-point second quarter, they made just 1 of 15 shots and 1 of 8 free throws. They greeted Fenton (2-5, 0-2) with full-court pressure in the second half and collected nine steals in the third quarter.
“It definitely did (change the momentum),” Mack said. “The defense was great. They were moving, shifting. Everything was like a chain. Everybody was together.”
RBHS scored the first eight points of the third quarter to lead 20-17 while holding the Bison scoreless for 3:23. Evans hit 3 of 4 free throws to put the Bulldogs back ahead 30-28 lead entering the fourth quarter. A steal and layup by Hudson, driving basket by Weinert and three from Evans opened a 37-28 advantage with 6:39 left.
“It’s the first home game. The girls were really excited but had a lot of jitters. They wanted to perform really well,” Mack said. “During halftime, (they) calmed their pace, breathed a little bit and then just worked together. They were able to focus, to talk, just play their game. I’m glad we were able to lock back in and focus.”
The Bulldogs actually fed off the crowd after Fenton closed to 41-39 on a conventional three-point play with 3:54 left. Evans nailed a corner three-pointer off a Weinert pass and free throws from Evans and Hudson opened a 46-39 advantage with 2:43 left. The Bison went scoreless on their last nine possessions with eight turnovers.
“The first half, you could tell we were a little bit nervous just because it was our first home game and there was a big crowd,” Evans said. “Towards the second half, everybody was getting hyped so it was really helping with our energy.”
The Bulldogs were coming off a 51-48 Dec. 2 conference loss at undefeated West Chicago (7-0, 2-0) after holding a double-digit lead in the third quarter. Top performers were Hudson (14 points, 11 rebounds), Evans (10 points), Weinert (9 points, 8 rebounds, 5 assists), Maggie Porter (5 points), Vaia (5 points, 5 steals), Eleanor Kowynia (4 points) and Greta Lupfer (4 rebounds).
The RBHS boys (3-1, 1-0) made 24 of 46 shots against Fenton with 11 threes and 11 of 15 free throws.
Liam Enright (19 points with 5 threes), Cam Mercer (19 points with three, 4 rebounds, 9 steals, 6 assists), Colin Cimino (16 points with 4 threes) and Noah VanTholen (9 points with three, 4 rebounds) paced the Bulldogs.
LTHS basketball
The LTHS girls are now 8-0 after beating Huntley 43-29 Saturday as part of the Fremd Invitational in Palatine.Emma O’Brien (16 points, 10 rebounds) and Gwen Smith (14 points. 11 rebounds) both had double-doubles against Huntley (5-2), followed by Kennedy Moore (6 points, 6 rebounds) and Anna Bigenwald (4 rebounds, 5 defections).
The Lions also won their first two West Suburban Conference Silver Division games, beating Hinsdale Central 40-30 Dec. 2 and Oak Park and River Forest 58-24 Thursday. Against the rival Red Devils (5-3, 1-1 in Silver), O’Brien also had 12 points with a three, 10 rebounds and 5 assists). Smith (15 points with three, 5 rebounds), Bigenwald (4 points, 9 rebounds), Moore (6 points with three), Colleen Chambers (6 rebounds) and Sydney Munson (4 rebounds) also contributed.
The LTHS boys moved to 4-0 by beating Proviso West 65-22 in their Silver opener Friday in La Grange behind Grant Smith (12 points, 5 rebounds), Byron Walton (11 points), Nate Woods (9 points, 4 rebounds), Blake Ragsdale (9 points, 6 rebounds), Tommy Blyth (9 points, 3 rebounds), Tommy Sloan (5 points, steals), Timmy Sloan (3 points, 5 assists) and Dylan Holcer (5 rebounds).
