Willowbrook's boys basketball team knew a zone defense would be looming in the playoffs.
Unfortunately for the Warriors, they still couldn't conquer it.
Lyons Twp. knocked out Willowbrook in the Class 4A York regional quarterfinals with a 67-56 victory Monday in Elmhurst. The 15th-seeded Lions (13-14) play No. 2 York (20-7) in Tuesday's semifinals.
Facing a disciplined 2-3 zone the entire game, Willowbrook (10-17) just couldn't get its perimeter shooting on a roll. After making 1 of 10 first-half 3-point attempts the Warriors set a disappointing tone for the rest of the game.
"They ran zone the whole game, they didn't go man at all," said Warriors coach Chris Perkins. "We practiced the last couple days strictly on zone. We knew they weren't going to go man against us. You can't beat anyone when you only make 6 of 29 3s (for the game)."
Defensively, the Warriors were continually hurt by the Lions' offensive rebounding. Three putbacks in the third quarter alone allowed Lyons Twp. to build its biggest lead of 39-23 after Chris O'Reilly's three-point play.
Mired in massive foul trouble — four Willowbrook starters finished with four fouls — the Warriors struggled to keep the deficit in single digits throughout the second half.
Josh Joiner scored a game-high 17 points for Willowbrook while Tiger Greene added 14 points, Yash Trent 12 points and Chris Poole 11 off the bench. Matt Mrazek led the Lions with a personal-high 16 points.
"It was an ugly win but we're playing (on Tuesday)," Mrazek said. "That's all that matters."
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