Big third quarter leads Kaneland past Sycamore, coach Ernie Colombe to 300th win

MAPLE PARK – Unique Shaw drained a pair of 3-pointers early in the third quarter, and suddenly Kaneland’s lead over Sycamore, once 10 points, was gone.

But the Knights had an answer, scoring the next 16 points to take control in a 65-46 win over the Spartans in an Interstate 8 Conference battle Wednesday.

“We knew they weren’t going to back down, so we knew we had to respond fast,” said Marshawn Cocroft, who scored a game-high 17. “After that punch we took from them, we were able to fight back. We just kept pushing and pushing and got out on that big old lead.”

It was a key early-season battle between two teams that entered with identical records. The Knights (6-1, 2-0 I-8) ended up leaving with the win, the 300th of coach Ernie Colombe’s career with Kaneland’s boys and girls teams.

But for a while it looked like Sycamore (5-2, 1-1) might delay Colombe’s milestone. Shaw’s back-to-back 3s tied the score at 37 with 5:55 left in the third quarter.

But 20 seconds later, Freddy Hassan had Kaneland back on top with a putback, kicking off a 16-0 run. He finished with 16 points, 16 rebounds and four blocks.

The next seven points for the Knights all came from Sycamore turnovers. The Spartans ended up going 6:07 without points, getting a layup from Shaw to open the fourth to get within 53-39. But they never got any closer.

“We were trying to get good looks,” Sycamore coach Ethan Franklin said. “I felt like they were being, you know, a little bit more physical than what was supposed to be allowed, but they did a good job. They have so much length at the basket that it creates a lot of difficulties for us to get looks that are high percentage. So we were forced to be in a position where we were looking for 3s, and some of them didn’t drop.”

The Knights have been in a lot of close games this season, most recently Saturday against Marmion. They had to erase deficits of nine and 13 points for a 57-49 win.

“We’ve had several halves here where we’ve maybe been down or tied or given up a lead and fought back,” Colombe said. “We’re seeing our guys are pretty resilient. They’re going to keep playing. It’s a game of streaks, and they’re a really good team with a bunch of good shooters. We knew that they were going to hit some shots, and we just wanted to keep working hard and try and slow them down.”

Luke Reinert had 15 points for Kaneland, while Hassan was the only player in the game with more than four rebounds.

Shaw and Isaiah Feuerbach finished with 11 points each to lead the Spartans, with Feuerbach chipping in four rebounds and five steals.

Cocroft said shutting down Feuerbach was a focal point for the Knights. He had three points in the second half, and the Spartans managed only 15 points over the final two periods.

Franklin said he liked how the Spartans battled in the loss despite the third-quarter slump.

“We can’t allow ourselves to dip, whether it’s body language or having any lapses,” Franklin said. “We have to play close to a perfect game to be in a spot to beat these guys with all the problems they present for us.”

Colombe picked up his 101st win with the boys program after winning 199 as head coach of the girls team from 2006-19.

The Knights have had back-to-back 20-win seasons, something they last achieved in 1975-76 and 1976-77. They have never had three straight 20-win seasons, according to IHSA records.

Colombe said the 300 wins is a testament to the players as well as the staff he’s had over the years.

“I know how hard these kids have worked,” Colombe said. “To me, it’s all about the kids we’ve coached and the coaches we’re coaching with. It’s a great group of staff I’ve been blessed to work with that I would call friends. And the players have been outstanding. They just come in and bust their butts.

“This is for them.”