Lake Zurich doesn’t have an undefeated record or a big-name star. What the Bears do have is a group of players ready to do all the little things necessary to win and a promising 6-8 junior that can tilt close games in their favor.
Anton Strelnikov is the big man. He’s a returning starter from last season and is a name to keep an eye on over the next two years.
Strelnikov had 19 points and 11 rebounds in Lake Zurich’s 71-60 win against visiting Waukegan on Thursday.
“He loves basketball,” Bears coach Terry Coughlin said. “He’s 6-8 right now and we are hoping he grows a couple inches. Six-ten would be great. But he loves to play and he always wants to improve. He gets better and better every day.”
Strelnikov has a sweet stroke on his free throws, which is rare for a young big man.
“He’s always in the gym,” Coughlin said. “He scored 31 against New Trier.”
The Bears played two very good teams close the first week of the season (New Trier and Loyola). Earlier this week they picked up a nice overtime win against Prospect.
“We went into Prospect and played to our standards,” senior Nick Popovic said. “That game hyped us up so we knew coming into our first home game we had to get a win.”
Popovic scored 14 points. Junior Connor Strauss added 11 points and seven rebounds and senior Ryan Carroll scored 11.
“We lost those close games [last week] because we were inexperienced,” Carroll said. “But we’re growing more comfortable in these close, tight games.”
Lake Zurich (4-2, 1-0 North Suburban) out-rebounded Waukegan 39-22.
“We have all these wings guys but it still isn’t size,” Bulldogs coach Ron Ashlaw said. “We are trying to get back to creating action up the floor so those things don’t mean as much. We have the athletes to do it but right now we don’t have the mindset to do it. And we have to do it all game long.”
Both teams are talented and both are still learning how to win. For Lake Zurich, it is figuring out how to close out tight games. Carroll, Popovic and Strelnikov all started on last season’s 15-14 team and it wouldn’t be a stretch at all to see that record improve by 10 wins this season.
Waukegan (2-3, 0-1) played well in bursts. Nehemia Dunn led the Bulldogs with 25 points, four rebounds and three blocks. The senior was a big scorer last year as well. Sophomore Simereon Carter added nine points and six rebounds and Joey Worthington, a transfer from St. Rita, added eight points.
Waukegan never led. The Bulldogs trailed by six at halftime and 12 after three quarters. But they never really went away. Carter’s three-point play with 1:35 left cut Lake Zurich’s lead to eight.
“It’s a process,” Ashlaw said. “That’s a cliche but it is true. We have a lot of young kids out there and some getting their first varsity runs. But we have a good collection of guys and it is just about getting them glued together now.”
