HINSDALE CENTRAL HOLIDAY CLASSIC

HC SQUARED:  Building a New Tradition of Basketball at Its Best
 

2017 GAME 16 RECAP: Lincoln Park 76, St. Charles East 73

Box Score

HINSDALE, Ill. – Lincoln Park secured the final spot in the semifinals of the Hinsdale Central Holiday Classic by holding off a furious rally from St. Charles East to score a 76-73 victory over the Saints.

With the score even at 6-6-, Lincoln Park (9-3) ripped off the next 11 points to open up an early double-digit advantage. St. Charles East (8-4) rallied back from the deficit, closing to within five after the first quarter and taking a 26-25 lead early in the second quarter. The Lions managed to reclaim the lead and carried a 35-32 advantage into the locker room at halftime.

The Lions extended their lead to six (53-47) after three quarters before pulling away for a 16-point lead in the fourth quarter with just two minutes left to play. The Saints came roaring back, ripping of a 16-3 run over the next 90 seconds to pull to within three points. After Lincoln Park split a pair of free throws, Mark Musial buried a three-pointer to pull St. Charles East to within one with 24 seconds left. Lincoln Park missed a pair of free throws, giving St. Charles East one last chance to win the contest, but the Saints threw the ball away on an inbounds play with three seconds left. Lincoln Park’s Ismail Habib hit two free throws in the closing seconds make the final score 76-73.

Terrence Shannon and Chris Roberts combined to score 45 of Lincoln Park’s 76 points. Shannon scored a team-leading 23 points to go with six rebounds while shooting 9-of-15 from the floor. Roberts shot 11-of-15 points to total 22 points to go along with four assists and three steals. Habib added 10 points for the Lions. Lincoln Park shot 64.4 percent (29-of-45) from the floor, including 50.0 percent (7-of-14) from downtown.

St. Charles East shot 63.0 percent from the field, including 70.6 percent (12-of-17) from long distance. Justin Hardy led all scorers with a game-high 25 points, shooting 10-of-15 from the field while also dishing out five assists. Mark Musial came off the bench to net 18 points, hitting 6-of-8 attempts from three-point range. Zach Robinson added nine points for the Saints in the loss.

St. Charles East will face Rockford Auburn in tomorrow’s fifth-place bracket at 5:15 p.m. Lincoln Park earned a trip to tomorrow’s 8:30 p.m. semifinal where the Lions will face the defending tournament champion, Bolingbrook.