Boys Basketball: Gonzaga recruit Braden Huff, Glenbard West ‘D’ dominant in turning away Rolling Meadows in Tosh semifinal

ELMHURST – Rolling Meadows coach Kevin Katovich uttered a statement that other coaches who have encountered Glenbard West can empathize with.

“Tonight was the first game we felt small,” Katovich said. “They’re so long. It’s on a high school court and they’re college-size players.”

Glenbard West’s starting lineup that averages 6-foot-7, anchored by 6-11 Gonzaga recruit Braden Huff, is indeed unheard of at the high school level. That length, coupled with its hard-to-prepare for 1-3-1 zone, can make for uncomfortable nights for opposing shooters.

On Thursday, it helped the Hilltoppers overcome uncharacteristically cold shooting.

Glenbard West held Rolling Meadows to 31% shooting, and Huff scored 18 of his 25 points in the second half of the No. 1-ranked Hilltoppers’ 58-40 win in the semifinals of the Jack Tosh Holiday Classic.

The Hilltoppers, in their tournament debut, will face West Suburban Silver rival Lyons in the championship at 2 p.m. Friday. Glenbard West beat Lyons 71-34 on Dec. 3.

“I think our defense stepped up big for us tonight,” said Huff, who also had nine rebounds to lead a commanding 43-19 edge on the boards. “We feel we have some really good shooters and obviously some nights they don’t fall and we have to find other ways to win.”'

Bobby Durkin added 12 points and 10 rebounds and Paxton Warden eight points and 10 rebounds for Glenbard West (13-0).

The Hilltoppers themselves shot just 38% (19-for-50), and made only 5-of-20 shots from beyond the 3-point arc. But they offset that by holding Rolling Meadows (12-2) to 6-for-30 shooting from the 3-point line.

Rolling Meadows star Cameron Christie, one of the state’s top juniors who had averaged 23 points in the first three tournament games, was held to 13 on 5-for-17 shooting.

“Our length is disruptive,” Glenbard West coach Jason Opoka said, “and we did a really nice job of matching their shooters, making it difficult and funneling them into positions where they felt uncomfortable.”

Christie made two deep 3-pointers in the first quarter, helping Rolling Meadows get out to a 13-12 lead.

But he went scoreless for the entire second quarter and the first six minutes of the third quarter. Orlando Thomas scored a team-high 15 points for Rolling Meadows, but on 5-for-15 shooting, as the Mustangs managed a combined 11 points over the middle two quarters.

“We didn’t shoot the ball very well tonight and some of that is Glenbard West, obviously their length and some of that is we didn’t make shots we normally do,” Katovich said. “They’re a good team, that’s what they do. They take away what you want to do.”'

Similar to its quarterfinal win over Leo, it took a bit for Glenbard West to shake free of its opponent.

The teams were tied 17-17 midway through the second quarter, but a Huff basket started a 9-2 run to end the half.

Thomas’ second 3-pointer had Rolling Meadows within 28-22 with 5:52 left in the third quarter, but Durkin hit a pull-up 3-pointer to spark a 14-2 run that spanned the end of the third quarter and start of the fourth.

The way Glenbard West guards, that was ballgame.

“We did a nice job on the glass and I felt like we attacked their pressure with success in the second half,” Opoka said.

Huff, who almost never forces the action and had just six shot attempts in the first half, scored six points during the run and had 12 more in the fourth quarter. He finished things off with his only 3-pointer of the night.

“He’s super unselfish,” Opoka said. “Everything he gets is in the flow of the game. It’s a sneaky 20, and he’s so talented. He doesn’t care if he scores 20 or he scores 10, he just wants to get the ‘W’ at the end of the day.”

“This tournament, it’s been good competition,” said Huff, who shot 8-for-13 from the floor. “Teams are playing well, and we’re getting everybody’s best shot. The group of guys, we feel when we play together we can get it done.”