Extra Points: Oak Lawn Trying to Get in Rhythm Before Playoffs

Before Monday, Oak Lawn was on a roll in the month of February, having won four straight. However, the Spartans ran into the Rich East Rockets and

“Fundamentally with the ball, we were not good tonight,” said Oak Lawn coach Scott Atkins, whose team committed 17 turnovers. “We’ve been making headway the whole season with that, and we lost our poise with the ball tonight.”

Atkins said ball fakes and not making decisions too quickly will help as the team tries to make Monday night only a minor speed bump in a successful month.

“We just have to stay on our feet and ball fake and throw some more bounce passes,” he said. “We’re just trying to rush our decisions too much.”

Oak Lawn has two more chances to shore up its ball-handling before beginning the playoffs next Monday against Argo at the St. Rita Regional. The Spartans host Evergreen Park on Wednesday and Shepard on Friday, which will be Senior Night. With no health issues to report, the team should be in good shape entering the playoffs, playing well in the month of February—the most important month for any Illinois high school basketball team to be peaking.

“I think it’s fun for the (players). They want to be playing right now,” Atkins said. “We get a chance to play ourselves back into a rhythm before the state playoffs.”

The Sophomore Score: Rich East defeated Oak Lawn 66-60 Monday. Martin Einikis led Oak Lawn with 21 points.