After a slow start, the boys basketball team is beginning to play its best basketball this season. On Jan. 9, New Trier defeated Buffalo Grove 59-41.

The game did not start off well for the Trevians. Buffalo Grove shot three of four behind the three point line in the first quarter and jumped to an early 9-3 lead.

Head basketball coach, Scott Fricke, believed the slow start could have been due to having a tough game the night before against Maine South.

“We had an emotional game last night against Maine South, and we didn’t come out with emotion today. We just needed to find our footing,” Fricke said.

Assistant coach Terry Coughlin was also upset with their performance in the first quarter. “We knew who their best shooters were and we let one of them get off 3 of the first 5 threes,” Coughlin said.

Down 10-8 after the first quarter, the Trevians returned to the court with more pep. After Fricke talked to his team, they played with emotion

They went on a 12-2 run at the beginning of the quarter to gain a 22-10 lead halfway through the second. One of the keys to this run was the standout performance from 6’8” freshman Spencer Boehm, and sophomore guard Andrew Kirkpatrick.

The way these two have played this season has really excited the coaches. “It doesn’t happen often that we have both a short term and a long term success plan for players. It’s a great situation to be in” Coughlin said. “If they keep developing, then the sky’s the limit for those two.”

Coughlin has gotten to know Boehm very well this season. As well as being on the team, Boehm is in Coughlin’s KW class and advisory. Coughlin believes that with the natural ability he possesses at such a young age, he can become a star by the time he is a senior.

The rest of the team did an excellent job shutting down Buffalo Grove inside the paint in the second quarter. Fricke and Coughlin knew going into the game that the Bison had two big postmen who they needed to focus on.

“Throughout the game, we tried to make them catch it in areas where they would be unsuccessful,” Coughlin said.

Going into halftime, New Trier led 29-18.

In the second half, it was all New Trier. Junior guard Aaron Peltz was on fire, racking up 14 points on four threes. Kirkpatrick and Boehm each scored 10 points.

On the opposing side, Buffalo Grove struggled. They turned the ball over and went cold from beyond the arc. Unlike the five three pointers that Buffalo Grove had in the first half, they only had two in the second.

With this win, the Trevians have now won their last two games, including a 40-26 win against the number 20 seed in the state, Maine South. After starting the season off 1-3, they have turned things around and reached .500 just over halfway through the season.

Fricke has seen a big change in his team’s performance since the first game of the season. “We are taking care of the ball better, we are executing better, and we are playing a lot better defense,” Fricke said.

This change in play is due to more experience from the younger players, and excellent leadership from the seniors. The team has seven seniors who serve as role models for the rest of the team.

“We have a great group of seniors,” Coughlin said. “David Ashmore is a senior I am so proud of. He doesn’t play a ton, but he helps people excel in their roles. He represents the sacrifice needed to make a great team.”