Lincoln-Way East’s Matt Hudik patiently waited for his turn. Now, he’s a big-time shooter. ‘That’s huge for us.’

Early in his first season on the varsity, junior guard Matt Hudik struggled to get a lot of playing time for Lincoln-Way East.

Hudik’s strong shooting, however, has earned him more and more chances as the season has gone on. And he’s now a huge factor off the bench.

“At first it was hard not getting a lot of minutes, but that has grown,” Hudik said. “I feel like the guys trust me more with my shot and they get me the ball when I’m open more.

“The confidence is there and I’m feeling good about my shot.”

Hudik had plenty to feel good about Friday night.

He scored 11 points, including five biggies in the fourth quarter that sparked a rally, as the host Griffins edged Homewood-Flossmoor for a 60-55 SouthWest Suburban Blue victory.

Kyle Olagbegi led Lincoln-Way East (23-4, 6-2) with 18 points and seven rebounds. BJ Powell finished with 15 points and six rebounds, while George Bellevue contributed 10 points and 13 rebounds.

Carson Brownfield had 23 points and seven rebounds for H-F (17-12, 3-4). Jahlil Birchette added 13 points, Jayden Tyler scored seven points and Vincent Davis totaled six points and 11 rebounds.

Hudik hit two 3-pointers in the second quarter, and then came through in a major way down the stretch.

H-F, which trailed by 10 points early in the second quarter, chipped away at the deficit and closed the third quarter on a 9-0 run to take a 44-39 lead.

After Mac Hagemaster opened the scoring in the fourth for the Griffins, Hudik was fouled on a 3-point attempt and buried all three free throws to tie the game 44-44.

“To be honest, I was pretty nervous,” Hudik said. “But I just tried to relax and focus and I was able to knock those down.”

Then, with just over two minutes left and the Griffins leading 50-48 following Olagbegi’s dunk, Hudik passed up a look at a 3-pointer and hit a running jumper in the lane to stretch the lead to four.

“I was going to shoot it, but then I pump faked and delayed the shot,” Hudik said. “I thought the kid was going to step up but he didn’t, so I just shot it.

“It really felt great to step up for my team.”

Lincoln-Way East coach Rich Kolimas has watched Hudik develop into an important part of his team.

“Matt Hudik has stepped up,” Kolimas said. “He was a big part of the sophomore team last year. It takes a while to get acclimated to varsity, but he’s a really confident shooter and he’s a really smart player.

“He did a nice job in this game.”

H-F pulled within 55-53 on Caleb Chavers’ 3-pointer with 53 seconds to go, but Powell and Olagbegi combined to make five free throws to seal the win.

It was another near miss for the Vikings, who have had several close losses to top teams, including Hillcrest, Bolingbrook and Hyde Park.

“I’m tired of just being right there,” H-F coach Jamere Dismukes said. “It’s frustrating now. The whole year we’ve shown we can play with anybody we step out on the floor against. Our losses have all been fights.

“We talk about how it comes down to our inexperience, but at this point in the season, you have to win these games or we’re going to be going home in the playoffs.”

The Griffins, meanwhile, have another player they know they can count on heading into the postseason.

“I’m proud of Matt,” Olagbegi said of Hudik. “He was a big-time player on the sophomore team. He hit a lot of threes every game.

“Now, he’s on varsity hitting big-time shots for us. That’s huge for us.”

Steve Millar is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.