Jeremy McCullum sparks Bolingbrook to Jack Tosh semifinal win over Metamora

ELMHURST — Last season, Bolingbrook lost to Metamora 72-71 in overtime in the championship game of the Jack Tosh Holiday Classic.

Monday night, the two teams met again, this time in the semifinals of the tournament’s 50th edition.

The first half belonged to Metamora, as Bradley recruit Matthew Zobrist scored 11 of his game-high 25 points before intermission, helping the Redbirds build a 31-21 halftime lead.

The second half was a different story. Bolingbrook’s defensive intensity, which usually demoralizes Raider opponents in the early going, reared its head in the second half. Meanwhile, with the Metamora defense focusing on Bolingbrook stars Davion Thompson and JT Pettigrew, it opened up opportunities for other Raider players to step to the fore, and they took advantage to the tune of a 61-47 victory.

Thompson ended up leading the Raiders with 18 points, but it was point guard Trey Brost and reserve forward Jeremy McCullum that provided the offensive spark that coach Rob Brost was looking for in the second half.

Metamora (12-3) held a 34-25 lead nearing the midway point of the third quarter before Bolingbrook’s Kendall Cutler had to leave the game with an injury, prompting McCullum’s entrance. Thompson started the Raider rally with a pair of free throws before freshman Brady Pettigrew grabbed a rebound, raced the length of the floor and finished with a resounding one-handed dunk to pull the Raiders to within 34-29. Thompson was fouled again and made both free throws before he scored in the lane to bring the score to 34-33 and force a Metamora timeout.

Metamora went to Zobrist out of the timeout, and he responded with a short jumper for a 36-33 lead. Trey Brost answered with a 3-pointer from the right wing to tie it at 36. After Metamora’s Brady Jones scored underneath, Brost hit another 3-pointer from nearly the exact same spot on the floor, putting Bolingbrook ahead 39-38. The Raiders never trailed again. Metamora tied it at 40 near the end of the quarter, but McCullum scored from the block to close the third and send the Raiders into the fourth with a 42-40 lead.

“I know I have to be ready when my number is called,” McCullum said. “The coaches prepare us all year and in the offseason. It feels good to get in the game and contribute.

“At halftime, we knew we had to go out there and work harder than we were. Metamora has a really good player in No. 5 [Zobrist], but we have a lot of really good players. It was a whole team effort tonight.”

McCullum was a key figure in the Raiders expanding the lead in the fourth quarter, scoring six points. For the game, McCullum went 5 for 5 from the field and had two rebounds and two steals. Brost, meanwhile, finished with nine points, while JT Pettigrew scored eight to go with 10 rebounds and Brady Pettigrew had 10 points and six boards.

“I challenged the guys at halftime,” Bolingbrook coach Rob Brost said. “It’s the first time I have had to do that all year. We’re whole now, and everyone is healthy, so we don’t have any excuses. We honestly gave a sub-par performance as far as our effort in the first half, but the kids responded in the second half. Once that intensity came around, we played much better.

“Trey hit a couple of big 3’s and he finished with nine points, two steals and no turnovers from the point guard position against a team that played very good defense. Jeremy McCullum came off the bench and gave us a big lift as well.”

The Raiders will play Fenwick in the title game Tuesday at 3 p.m. The Friars beat Lake Zurich 50-37 in the night’s other semifinal.