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Matt La Cosse

Sunday, March 13, 2011

Basketball Season Provided Many Memories

As thoughts turn to spring sports, take a look back at the season that was in boys and girls basketball.

When Benet Academy’s perfect season came to a close Tuesday at the hands of East Aurora, it also signaled the end of the basketball season for all of the area schools. The final loss to the Tomcats notwithstanding, the journey the Redwings took this season was the hands-down highlight of the basketball season in the area. After surprisingly reaching the supersectionals against Simeon last year, all eyes were on Benet this year. Add in the college signings of center Frank Kaminsky (Wisconsin) and point guard Dave Sobolewski (Northwestern) prior to the season, and the spotlight was hot. But for 29 straight games, that spotlight never got to the Redwings. The Hinsdale South Thanksgiving tournament, Plainfield North tournament in December and …

In this Article:

Neuqua Valley High School, Waubonsie Valley High School, Naperville North High School, and 1 more ›

Monday, March 7, 2011

Anatomy Of A (Near) Upset

Naperville North coach Jeff Powers took advice from several people in preparing to face Benet, and saw his Huskies push the state's top team to double overtime Friday.

The old coaching cliché in basketball circles is that you must take it one game at a time. But when the pairings for the Class 4A Naperville North Regional were posted a few weeks ago, it was hard to blame North coach Jeff Powers for shifting one eye toward a potential showdown with the state’s top-ranked team, Benet Academy. While continuing to prepare his team for the rest of the regular season, Powers got a little outside help trying to pull off the state’s biggest upset. And, that work nearly paid off, as North pushed Benet to the brink Friday before eventually falling, 43-42, in double overtime. “Coach Powers spent tons of hours preparing for this game and we just had a great game plan,” North senior Matt LaCosse said. “They’re high …

In this Article:

Naperville North High School and Boys Basketball: Benet Survives North's Upset Bid

Saturday, March 5, 2011

Video: Highlights of Friday's Benet/Naperville North Game

Naperville North gave the state's top team all it could handle in Friday's regional title game, but Benet survived to reach the East Aurora Sectional.

Unbeaten Benet Academy had beaten Naperville North by 21 points back in December, but in the rematch, the Redwings saw their dreams of winning a state title flash before their eyes. The Huskies executed their game plan to near perfection and senior Matt LaCosse hit two of the biggest three-pointers you'll ever see, one forcing overtime, the other forcing double overtime. But Benet managed to survive, and moves on to the East Aurora sectional next week. The Redwings will face East Aurora in the semifinals Tuesday. Downers Grove South and Glenbard East meet in the other semifinal Wednesday.

In this Article:

Naperville North High School

Boys Basketball: Benet Survives North's Upset Bid

Benet 43, Naperville North 42 (2 OT). The Redwings' keep their state title dreams alive by escaping North with the regional title.

Many people assumed that Benet Academy’s road to a boys basketball state championship would be paved in gold, with the Redwings cruising to Peoria and coming home with some hardware. Apparently, Naperville North had other ideas. The Huskies gave Benet all it could handle in Friday’s Class 4A Naperville North Regional title game, but Jovonn Griffin’s shot in the final seconds of double overtime did not go in and Benet escaped a massive upset with a 43-42 win. Benet will face East Aurora, an overtime winner over Neuqua Valley Friday, in Tuesday’s Class 4A East Aurora Sectional semifinal at 7:30 p.m. “If people think that we overlooked them, we definitely did not,” Benet senior Dave Sobolewski said. “We didn’t look past them at all. We came …

Thursday, March 3, 2011

Boys Basketball: LaCosse, Huskies Set Up Date With Benet

Naperville North 67, Oswego 56. North gets a crack at the state's top team in Friday's regional title game after Wednesday's semifinal win.

Having grown up competing against Benet Academy’s star athletes since he was a child, Naperville North senior Matt LaCosse was not going to miss a chance to dethrone the state’s unbeaten top team Friday. So LaCosse and his Huskies teammates stormed to a 24-point lead over Oswego in Wednesday’s Class 4A Naperville North Regional semifinal and hung on for a 67-56 win to set up a regional title date with the 28-0 Redwings Friday at 7:30 p.m. for the regional crown. “I can’t wait for Friday,” LaCosse said. “It’s going to be a packed house. It’s going to be insane. I won’t be able to sleep on Thursday night. We’re going to have to be on top of our game to beat them. We’re going to play hard. They’re going to know that we’re in the game, that’s …

In this Article:

Naperville North High School

Friday, February 11, 2011

Boys Basketball: Central Tops Cross-town Rival North

Naperville Central 51, Naperville North 42. Redhawks ride hot hand of senior David Niggins to upset Huskies.

The Hot Read: After Naperville North cut Naperville Central’s lead to one point in the third quarter, Central senior David Niggins took over to help the Redhawks hang on for the win over their cross-town rivals. Niggins scored 12 of Central’s next 14 points from that moment, helping stretch the lead to as much as 11 points late in the quarter. Patch’s MVP: Niggins not only tied teammate Mike Schremp for game-high honors with 16 points, he did it while shooting 7 of 9 from the field. Key stats: Central got off only 23 shots from the field in the win, but hit 15 of them. In the fourth quarter, the Redhawks went 11 of 13 from the free-throw line while the Huskies were forced to foul. North only grabbed 15 rebounds in the loss and both Jovonn …

Thursday, February 10, 2011

Analysis: LaCosse Having A Blast On The Hardwood

Though the Naperville North senior is committed to play football at Illinois next year, Matt LaCosse is making the most of his final basketball games.

As high school sports and major college recruiting have evolved over the years, there is a perception that a high school athlete has to focus on only one sport to eventually land a scholarship. Particularly at larger schools like Naperville North, the notion of the local kid playing three sports a year often goes by the wayside. North senior Matt LaCosse is doing his best to change that trend. All anybody needs to see was the emotion and joy LaCosse exhibited at the end of Wednesday’s 52-51 DuPage Valley Conference win over West Aurora to realize that the University of Illinois football recruit is having a blast on the hardwood and competing in games, as opposed to sweating in obscurity in the weight room “I’m not all about the …

Wednesday, February 9, 2011

Boys Basketball: Griffin's Free Throw Helps Huskies Past West Aurora

Naperville North 52, West Aurora 51. North senior Jovonn Griffin hits a free throw with 1.7 seconds left to lift the Huskies in DVC play.

The Hot Read: After West Aurora junior Juwan Starks tied the game at 51-51 with 3:53 left in the fourth on a three-pointer, both teams went scoreless until there were 1.7 seconds left. That’s when Naperville North senior Jovonn Griffin hit the front end of a one-and-one, after being fouled along the sideline away from the basket, to give North the win and a share of second place in the DuPage Valley Conference. Patch’s MVP: Starks led all scorers with 20 points on 8-of-14 shooting from the field. He was held to six points in the second half, however, coming on a pair of fourth-quarter three-pointers. Key stats: The game was won at the free throw line for North. The Huskies hit 17-of-22 in the game, hitting 17 straight after missing their …

Friday, January 21, 2011

Huskies Respond To LaCosse's Pep Talk and Beat West Chicago, 55-32

Naperville North senior addresses his team, saying he doesn't want to be "just average" anymore.

Naperville North senior Matt LaCosse has been back long enough from his knee injury that he felt the need to address his team Friday. “Matt stepped up,” North coach Jeff Powers said. “He wanted to talk to the guys today, and he told them that he’s sick of being average. Let’s get this team better than average. He put it on his shoulders a little bit tonight. He is a true leader.” The Huskies responded and took care of business against West Chicago in DuPage Valley Conference play Friday, 55-32. On paper, it’s a game that North (9-8 overall, 5-2 DVC) should have been able to win against the 4-12 Wildcats, who fell to 0-7 in DVC play. And the Huskies approached the game as such. “The good teams put teams that they’re supposed to beat away,” …

Sunday, January 16, 2011

Boys Basketball: Huskies Fall Short vs. Stevenson

North balls behind 20-2, but forces Patriots to hit two free throws with 1.8 seconds left for a 37-36 win.

Coming off a big win over Wheaton North Friday and headlining its own six-game Naperville North Shootout, the Huskies appeared primed to come out strong. That wound up being far from the truth against Stevenson, which is coached by 1987 Naperville North alum Pat Ambrose. Stevenson jumped out to a 20-2 lead, but needed a pair of Kevin Earl free throws with 1.8 seconds left to hand North a 37-36 non-conference loss. “I was very disappointed with how we came out in the first half,” North senior Matt LaCosse said. “Give them credit. They kicked our butts in the first half. We just had to be more physical.” North (8-8) did manage to put together a 10-0 run in the second quarter to cut the Patriots’ lead to 22-12 at the half despite the rough …

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