Scout’s Season Ends With Heartbreaker

A three-point shot fell short in the closing seconds as the Lake Forest High School basketball team’s season came to an end with a 59-56 loss to Mundelein in the championship game of the Lake Zurich Regional.

In a back and forth final quarter that started with the teams even at 45, Carter Bass gave the Scouts a 56-55 lead with 1:22 to go before the Mustangs’ Sean O’Brien put his team up, 57-56, with a minute remaining on the clock.

Earlier: Scouts Overwhelm Hersey in Regional Semifinal

After a missed trip down court by Lake Forest, Mundelein took a three-point lead that turned out to be the final score when Robert Kenar was fouled with 11.1 ticks left on the clock and made a pair of free throws.

After each team took a time out, Lake Forest set up a final play with 6.4 seconds remaining to tie the game with a three-point shot. Evan Boudreaux got the inbound pass but his attempt hit the rim and bounced out ending the Scouts season with a 20-8 record.

“That’s what we were trying to do (on the final play),” Lake Forest Coach Phil LaScala said. “We had a couple of options,” he added referring to who would take the last shot.

Lake Forest led most of the way from a Bass field goal in the early seconds—the team's biggest margin was nine points—until O’Brien gave Mundelein its first edge, 53-51, with 4:53 left in the fourth quarter. “We had some mental breakdowns and we couldn’t adjust to them,” LaScala said. “I give them (Mundelein) a lot of credit.”

Boudreaux led four Scouts in double figures with 17 points. Bass chipped in 13, Ben Simpson had 11 and Sam Downey 10. This was the last game for Simpson, Bass and Downey. A sophomore, Boudreaux returns for two more seasons.

“This was a good senior group,” LaScala said. “They did a strong job of leadership. It was a lot of fun coaching them.”

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