Girls basketball: Ann Stephens’ last-second putback sends Downers Grove North to win at Lyons

LA GRANGE – Magical seasons often include a few memorable buzzer-beating victories.

The Downers Grove North girls basketball team is in the midst of a memorable season.

The Trojans added another highlight-reel victory Tuesday.

Earlier this season, Kaitlyn Parker hit a game-winning 14-footer against York.

Against Lyons, it was Downers Grove North senior forward Ann Stephens’ turn to add to her team’s unforgettable season.

Stephens was the unlikely hero against Lyons in a key West Suburban Conference Silver Division game.

Stephens scored on a putback lay-in with 0.8 seconds left to propel the Trojans to a 36-35 victory over the Lions.

Stephens scored nine points, but her final basket was the most meaningful. Rising up next to teammate Abby Gross, Stephens grabbed an offensive rebound off a missed 14-footer by Parker and beat the clock with a two-handed, 2-foot push shot that swished through the net.

It was the second buzzer-beating win for the Trojans this season.

“I knew if Kaitlyn didn’t make it that I had to get the rebound,” Stephens said. “I heard everyone right as Kaitlyn was shooting that we didn’t have much time left, so I had to get it off as quick as I could. It was a little awkward. It was a great game and I’m very proud of my teammates.”

The Trojans (20-3, 8-1) celebrated the victory by taking a team picture near half court. The victory extended their winning streak to six in a row.

Freshman guard Campbell Thulin drained three 3-pointers for a team-high 15 points and Parker had seven points.

“I’m proud of our kids,” Downers Grove North coach Stephan Bolt. “The kids found a way to win. Ann had to come off the bench and had to play extended minutes. She’s a wonderful kid who will do anything for her teammates, so to see her have that moment here is awesome. It’s funny because right before we got off the bus, I told her to keep shooting good shots because she had missed some layups. Our kids are starting to believe that we’re capable of being a really good basketball team.”

Parker displayed some resiliency by attempting two potential game-winning shots in the final seconds. Lyons star junior forward Nora Ezike blocked Parker’s 15-footer with 21 seconds left, setting up her second attempt that led to Stephens’ game-winner.

“[Nora] got caught up in the screen, so I shot it,” Parker said. “I knew we had everybody rebounding. I saw it happen. Ann was there for me. This win means everything. It felt great to get a win on the road. We’re on a streak right now. I’m proud of us all. We’ve worked really hard and put in a lot of hours.”

Three days after Lyons coach Meghan Hutchens benched 13 players, including four starters, for disciplinary reasons and called up six freshmen and sophomores for Saturday’s game against Sandburg at the Coach Derril Kipp’s Hoopfest at Montini, the Lions welcomed back their complete team.

Six-foot-1 sophomore Emma O’Brien led the team in Saturday’s blowout loss with 10 points, eight rebounds, eight blocks and two assists.

On Monday, the Lions repeated the shortened squad formula in a 62-43 loss to Yorkville at Batavia’s MLK Showdown.

Tuesday’s game was a return to the norm for the Lions. Ezike, who had seven points and eight rebounds in the loss, was playing for the first time after missing eight games.

The Lions jumped out of the gate, scoring the first five points of the game before Downers Grove North countered with an 8-0 run. Lyons responded with 11 straight points, sparked by a pair of 3-pointers from Elin O’Brien to go with 3s from Emma O’Brien (14 points) and two free throws by Avery Mezan.

At halftime, Ezike, who missed the entire Morton College tournament, was a nonfactor with two points and three rebounds. The Lions (13-10, 5-3) led for almost all of the third quarter, but the Trojans battled back with back-to-back 3s from Thulin and Hope Sebek to seize a 32-31 lead.

Two minutes later, Ezike, a high-profile national recruit, drilled a nine-foot turnaround shot in the lane to hand the Lions a 35-34 lead with 1:26 left. The Lions turned the ball over on their final possession after Stephens’ putback.

“I think it was hard coming off a game where we haven’t played in a week but due to our own fault,” Hutchens said of playing without a full squad. “Downers Grove North is a tough team. They play very good defense. We weren’t as disciplined as we talked about being. I thought Emma O’Brien attacked the basket pretty well, so did Avery. I thought our defense was actually pretty tough. We had momentary lapses where we let their shooters shoot. The end goal is to play better at the end. We showed glimpses of that.”