The Lake Forest Scouts basketball team–players and coaches alike–are still doing some soul searching. Aside from their Thanksgiving and winter holiday tournaments, the Scouts have only earned one win on the year. Assistant coach Austin Scott knows this frustration as well as anyone: “We’re still looking for our team identity, which begins and ends with how we finish games. Hopefully Friday night will be different.” As many know, that’s the story for the boys basketball team this season. And tonight presents another opportunity for the Scouts to end that reputation for now.

Zion-Benton is another solid North Suburban Conference opponent. There are no breaks in this conference, making things difficult for a Scouts team attempting to gain some momentum. The Zee-Bees are coming off a loss to Waukegan on Wednesday night, making for a much quicker turnaround than LF’s week of rest since last Friday’s defeat at the hands of Lake Zurich. When Coach Scott was asked about the talent level of tonight’s opponent, he responded: “They present a lot of athleticism.” That’s a common theme for Zion in year’s past, creating a split 2-2 record against the Scouts over the past two seasons. Tonight’s the first matchup between the two teams this season, and a road win against a favorable Zee-Bee team would go along way for Coach LaScala’s bunch.

The Scouts are on a five-game losing streak in regular season play, with their last win coming against the Lions of St. Viator on December 1. In their recent losses, the Scouts haven’t shot the ball particularly well and haven’t seen a lot of consistent production from their starting five. Forward Ben Gibson seems to get his constant double digit points, but Lake Forest lacks a complete game and consistent scoring from their other key guys. The importance of this game is no secret. The Scouts know they need to win, and know what needs to be done. It’s all just a matter of finishing at this point.

Take a break from finals studying tonight and travel out to Zion-Benton at 7:00 to watch your Scouts take on the Zee-Bee’s in an important NSC matchup.