Last time the Libertyville Varsity Basketball team stepped off the hardwood after a game against Warren, they suffered a 68-44 loss towards the end of last season. This time around, it was the Libertyville who had the Blue Devils praying for mercy; the Cats improved their record to 5-0 with a convincing 55-35 win in their conference opener last night.
With just one more win, the Wildcats will match the total number of victories from all of last season. Some of the younger players that saw extended playing time last season have developed into more seasoned varsity veterans that know what it takes to play at a high level.
“We took our lumps last season because we went young, but now we have a lot of seniors with experience,” said head coach Scott Bogumil.
One of this year’s returning starters is junior Joe Borcia, who earned All-Conference Honorable Mention in his sophomore season. Borcia has established himself as a prolific scorer so far in the young season. He led the Wildcats with 24 points last night against a pesky Warren zone defense.
“Once some of the shooters started hitting their shots they had to respect it, so I got some single teams and had an opportunity to make my move,” Borcia said.
The 6’10” junior also anchors a stifling defense at the other end of the floor. The Wildcats used their size (nine players on the roster are listed at over 6’5”) to overwhelm the Blue Devils, holding them to just 10 points in the first half.
“Our defense was terrible over Thanksgiving (tournament)…our coaches got on us about that a lot this week, and we finally had a good game defensively,” Borcia commented.
Senior Steve Braun shined on the defensive end; the 6’6” forward shut down Eric Gillespie, Warren’s top offensive threat. Braun also came up with a big block in the first half that electrified a substantial crowd.
“It was great to see a lot of support from the students,” Bogumil said. “Hopefully we’ll have even double that for the game next week against Stevenson.”
The matchup next week will prove to be a tough one; the Patriots are fresh off a State runner-up campaign last season and off to an undefeated start. The game will be held at LHS on Wednesday, December 11.
