Close yet controlled win for Bucs over Harlem

By Bob Kopp
BDR Sports Correspondent
MACHESNEY PARK – Despite the hosts taking a quick 6-0 lead in the opening seconds behind sharpshooting senior Brock Soter’s bomb beyond the arc and a three-point play by junior Brenton Shaw who may start attracting as much attention on winter nights as he does in the fall, the Bucs just as quickly took the lead behind the hot hand of “Highlight Film” junior Nate Horton’s nine of his evening’s 17 points to end the quarter 20-10 on the way to a 61-57 win that wasn’t really as close as the final score.
Box scores can be deceiving when it comes to individual and team statistics juxtaposed to important roles played by any team as balanced and deep as the Bucs. Wednesday, Jan. 28 was a case in point as the Bucs bolted to double-digit leads in every quarter yet ended each quarter with slim margins after the first – 31-28, 44-37, and the final 61-57.
Kudos to Shaw who led all scorers with 23 points. There may not be a more explosively quick point in the NIC-10. Considering 6’5″ Allen White III, who chipped in for 17 points, is also only a junior, the Huskies look like a developing force in the conference.
Doing the math, Harlem could be a major force in their senior year if a supporting cast develops and one of the two largest schools in the NIC-10 finally gets some stability on the bench behind first year head coach Scott Lemke who has his hoopsters looking better weekly and appears to be the answer to their long drought.
Shaw and junior Austin Revolinski, who shared scoring honors with Horton at 17 points, were fun to watch as both always have their motors turned on, cannot be stopped when in full gear, and provide an inspiration to teammates by playing every second of every minute of every quarter of every game. I have never seen either of them ever take one play off; and that’s one of the big reasons why scouts at the next level are looking at these multiple-sports stars with seriousness akin to breaking the 10th commandment.
The calm demeanor of head coach Aaron Pearson and top assistant Nate Lister that has worn into Belvidere basketball was displayed poignantly in the last minute of the game as the Huskies inched unnecessarily close again.
Junior Will Morris hit two of his five points at 1:07 followed by seniors Eric Munoz and Deante Barnes who added points from the charity stripe to seal the deal.
Barnes totaled three points, Munoz collected all of his six from the foul line, and juniors Austin Brockmann (three), Xavier Dent (three), and Joey Hernandez (five) completed the scoring for the Bucs.