Glenbard West junior guard Lily Hubbuch is always ready to pounce, as a succession of Mundelein ballhandlers found out on Friday.

Time and again, a Mustang guard dribbled slowly up the court against Hubbuch, surveying the Glenbard West defense. Then Hubbuch would punch the ball loose, retrieve it and start a fast break.

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Glenbard West’s Katie Meehan (2) is fouled by Mundelein’s Gabby MacApinlac during a Grow the Game Showcase game on January 2, 2026 at Glenbard West High School in Glen Ellyn. (Jon Cunningham for Shaw Local Ne)

“I think just defensively I’m always being on the ball and guarding one of their better players,” Hubbuch said. “Even if my shots aren’t dropping, I think I use defense to keep our intensity up, like be a spark when we aren’t getting anything offensively.

“Usually, it picks up the whole team, gets us fast breaks.”

That was the case against Mundelein. Hubbuch wreaked havoc all over the court, finishing with eight points, six assists, five steals and five rebounds as the host Hilltoppers beat the Mustangs 63-39 at the sixth annual Grow the Game Showcase.

“Lily is committed,” Glenbard West coach Kristi Faulkner said. “Every day she comes to the gym and she gives her all 100%.

“She’s really consistent with that and she’s got quick hands, she uses her feet well and she makes impacts, as we see with the stat line. But she does a lot of little things, things you don’t always get recognized for but make a huge impact overall in the game.”

Hubbuch and fellow guards Nina Hendricksen and Katie Meehan set the tone at the head of Glenbard West’s full-court press in the first quarter.

Their efforts, which produced 12 steals, were vital because the Mustangs (11-6) were resilient behind the play of senior Casey Vyverrman. The Western Michigan recruit had a team-high 15 points and six assists but shot just 5 of 22, missing nine straight shots in the second half.

“They’re a really good team,” Faulkner said. “(Vyverman) is a fantastic player.

“We’ve seen her for a couple years and she can score from anywhere, so I think collectively we did a nice job with rebounding, especially offensive boards in the first half and then being consistent with effort.”

The effort began to bear fruit in the second quarter. Junior forward Ellie Noble sank a 3-pointer to break a 19-all tie. Vyverman scored to pull Mundelein within 23-21 with 4:06 left in the first half, but the Hilltoppers scored the next nine points, part of a larger 31-8 run that stretched into the fourth quarter.

Noble, who had a game-high 23 points to go with six rebounds, two assists and two blocks, made a steal and went coast-to-coast for a layup, then fed Hubbuch for a fast-break layup.

Hubbuch then scored on a drive off a pass from Sophia Evans to make it 32-21.

“She’s an amazing player,” Noble said of Hubbuch. “(Her play) was really important.

“It really helped us all get in the game and feed off her energy that she brought.”

The Hilltoppers used that energy to turn the lights out on the Mustangs in the third quarter. During one sequence, Hubbuch assisted Noble on a layup, forced and over-and-back call on the Mustangs, then fed Meehan for a 3-pointer.

Meehan, who finished with nine points and seven rebounds, including six offensive boards, then made two free throws. Noble followed with a layup, and then Hubbuch made another steal and drained a 3-pointer.

The fourth quarter began with Hubbuch getting another steal and assisting the first of two layups by Lily Pones which capped a streak of 16 straight points and pushed the lead to 54-29.

“We were working really well as a team getting steals and then looking ahead for those passes,” Hubbuch said. “Everybody is flying up the court. I think that’s what really helped us out today.”

Hendricksen added eight points, seven rebounds and four steals for the Hilltoppers (16-1), who have won nine straight and are off to their best start since the 1978-79 team won its first 26 games before losing in the supersectional.

“It means a lot to us,” Hubbuch said. “A lot of us are young but we’ve been playing together since fifth grade in feeder, so I think that chemistry that we have is really what’s helping us. We’ve been looking forward to this and we’re competing well.”