Prairie Ridge boys basketball coach Brian Frericks had no one to high-five or hug after his team’s third loss in as many days in the Hoops for Healing Classic, and then suddenly he did.

One by one, about 10 former girls basketball players who Frericks coached at Grayslake North a couple of years ago walked up to him on Woodstock North’s court and greeted him with open arms.

Prairie Ridge had just wrapped up the tournament with a 62-43 loss to Grayslake North on Wednesday morning. The smiles on the faces of Frericks’ former players suggested that they didn’t care who won the game.

“It was a surprise,” said Frericks, who got a hug from each player before posing for a group picture with them. “That was a great group of girls. I had a lot of fun working with them, so it was cool to see them.”

Frericks needed something to smile about after his Wolves got beat soundly by Grayslake North (2-1), which never trailed in the two teams’ final game of the tourney, which was co-hosted by Woodstock North and Woodstock.

The Knights got 18 points apiece from four-year varsity forward Uros Mitrovic and sophomore guard William Foley, who shot 9 of 13 from the floor. Senior forward Maurice Jordan added nine points and 16 rebounds and sophomore forward Jared Van Donselaar had seven points and eight rebounds.

“We were proud of them,” Grayslake North coach Josh Feinzimer said. “We knew that Prairie Ridge would come out and be physical and try to bully us around. We’re a young team. I think what I was most proud about was how tough they played and the fight they showed. They didn’t back down.”

Eli Loeding led Prairie Ridge (0-3) with 14 points, seven rebounds and three steals. Luke Vanderwiel added eight points for the Wolves, while Maddon McKim had six points and five rebounds.

“All of us are good players,” Loeding said. “We all know that too. We’re a lot better than we’re showing.”

McKim’s three-point play with two minutes left in the second quarter capped a 10-0 run and cut the Wolves’ deficit to 29-22. But Mitrovic (7-of-11 shooting) drained his second 3-pointer, scored on a move on the baseline and then made a free throw to widen the margin to 35-22.

Loeding’s putback trimmed the Wolves’ deficit to 44-31 late in the third, but the Knights finished the quarter with a 6-0 run to take a 50-31 lead into the fourth.

Prairie Ridge got fourth-quarter 3s from Luca Boscarino and freshman Sebastian Cummins.

“We got a lot of guys who are stepping into new roles, and we’re still trying to figure things out,” said Frericks, whose Wolves were 13-20 last season, which was his first as their coach. “We have a lot of older guys who have been around playing together. It’s just a matter of putting all of the pieces together.”

The Wolves’ motto this season is “Fill Your Cup,” which is on the back of their black warmup T-shirts.

“Everybody brings a different size cup to every single day,” Frericks said. “Whether you’re the last guy on the bench or you’re the best player, what is your cup that you’re bringing and how are you going to fill that cup? I stole [the phrase] from Millikin University. I was at a coaching day, met their coach and liked it.”

Despite the Wolves going winless in the tourney, Loeding isn’t discouraged. The Wolves begin Fox Valley Conference action next week.

“It’s not conference yet, so you can never count yourself out,” Loeding said. “Anything is possible, especially with the kids we have and the determination we can show. It’s just we got to show that we are a lot better than we have shown these past three days.”