Monday, February 7, 2011
Mustangs seniors Matt Hroma, Anthony Hopkins and John Lithio make the most of their starts in Friday's rout of Willowbrook in West Suburban Gold boys basketball game.
The schedule-maker could not have been more kind to Downers Grove South when it came to the school’s senior celebration. The night’s opponent, Willowbrook, entered the West Suburban Gold boys basketball game with only one win on the season, and the Mustangs made quick work of the visitors for their 12th straight win, a 69-26 victory Friday night in Downers Grove. For senior reserves Matt Hroma, Anthony Hopkins and John Lithio, the game was an opportunity to get more minutes than usual.
The triumvirate made the most of their rare starts. “We just wanted to come out and play hard,” said Hroma, one of 13 players to tally in the scoring column for the Mustangs, with four points.
“I just like to help my team in any way I can. It was a really …
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Downers Grove South High School
1436 Norfolk St, Downers Grove, IL
/articles/downers-south-makes-it-a-senior-night-to-remember
1296870
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Tuesday, January 25, 2011
Lithuanian natives Jurgutis, Riauka join forces to lead Downers South's boys basketball team in a nine-game winning streak.
Downers Grove South’s high-flying guards Jerron Wilbut and Jamall Millison draw most of the attention from opponents and the media. But if you’re looking for an underlying reason why the Mustangs are 16-3 and riding a nine-game winning streak, don’t forget about their Lithuanian connection. Seniors Ziggy Riauka, a 6-8 center, and Danielius Jurgutis, 6-0 point guard, are in their first—and last—season playing together, but the Lithuanian natives have known each other since third grade and have played regularly in the off-season on the playground and for club teams. Downers South coach Jay Baum didn’t have to travel overseas to find them. Both emigrated when they were little—Jurgutis when he was 3, and Riauka at 8. But Jurgutis, who played …
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Downers Grove South High School
1436 Norfolk St, Downers Grove, IL
/articles/teamwork-not-foreign-to-these-mustangs
308583
/locations/3160892
Tuesday, December 28, 2010
Downers Grove South shoots 79 percent in the second half of a 77-60 rout of R-B to reach York semifinals.
Thanks to the play of its forwards, Downers Grove South is moving forward at York. Kevin Honn, Ziggy Riauka and John Lithio combined for 42 points—and missed just three of 24 shots from the floor—to propel the Mustangs to an easy 77-60 win over Riverside-Brookfield on Tuesday night in the quarterfinal round of the Jack Tosh Holiday Classic. The Mustangs will play in the tournament semifinal Wednesday night at 7:15 p.m. at York High School. In a tournament filled with squeakers and surprises in the first two rounds, the Mustangs have dominated their first two opponents at York. While Monday's pasting of Glenbard South was expected, R-B came in with a 7-1 record and a passable reputation in the area. The Mustangs' reputation was of a …
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Downers Grove South High School
1436 Norfolk St, Downers Grove, IL
/articles/mustangs-performance-matching-expectations
1296870
/locations/2891312
Friday, November 26, 2010
Pressure defense, Armstead's 17 points power top-ranked Class 2A team past Mustangs in pool play finale at St. Charles East tournament.
Downers Grove South faced yet another roadblock on its way to a potential championship berth at the St. Charles East Thanksgiving boys basketball tournament. And Hales Franciscan, the consensus top-ranked Class 2A team in the state, had too much size, speed and athleticism over the closing five minutes for the Mustangs. "It all boils down to one thing," Downers South coach Jay Baum said after the Mustangs concluded pool play with a 59-47 loss to the Spartans on Friday afternoon. "Their best players played better than our best players. This is a big step back for us." Turnovers were the central culprit to the Mustangs first defeat on the season after two wins. Hales' tenacious defense harassed the Mustangs into 27 turnovers, and South had …
41.76969
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Downers Grove South High School
1436 Norfolk St, Downers Grove, IL
/articles/downers-south-boys-fall-to-hales-franciscan
1296870
/locations/2550937
Monday, November 22, 2010
John Lithio and Danielius Jurgutis combined for 44 points to lead the Mustangs' boys basketball team past highly regarded East Aurora 67-54 in first-round action of the St. Charles East Thanksgiving Invitational.
Downers Grove South more than met its challenge on the opening night of its boys basketball season. Pitted against East Aurora and all-state guard Ryan Boatright, a Connecticut recruit, the Mustangs employed tenacious switching defenses and an opportunistic offense to record a 67-54 victory over the Tomcats Monday night in first-round action of the St. Charles East Thanksgiving Invitational. "We just wanted to give Boatright different looks," said South guard Danielius Jurgutis, a senior transfer from St. Joseph. "We confused him." Boatright opened the game with consecutive 3-pointers, but South countered with a patterned offense that produced an inordinate number of inside scores. Jurgutis had 13 points by the intermission as the Mustangs…
41.76969
-88.01816
Downers Grove South High School
1436 Norfolk St, Downers Grove, IL
/articles/downers-south-stuns-east-aurora
1296870
/locations/2514769