Willowbrook shoots past Northridge Prep
The best way to start a basketball game? Don't miss.
Willowbrook's Kevin Miller did just that in the first quarter on Monday, knocking down his first four 3-point attempts while helping the Warriors roll to a 59-41 victory over Northridge Prep in the opening round of the Glenbard West Holiday Classic in Glen Ellyn.
Miller wound up with a game-high 21 points on seven of the team's 12 overall 3-pointers.
"We came out strong," Miller said. "We needed this win because we lost the last couple of games and it kind of got to us. We always want to come out with a hard hit. The better we come out in the beginning, the more we can build off it."
Northridge Prep (3-5) pulled within 6-5 in the opening minutes before Willowbrook (3-5) answered with a decisive 21-5 run lasting to the midway point of the second quarter. After that Northridge Prep never came closer than 12 points away and trailed by as many as 29 points early in the fourth quarter.
"I was nervous because we had a shootaround this morning and we weren't shooting the ball that well," said Willowbrook coach Chris Perkins. "I'm hoping we got the rust out of the way with that. Kevin got going right away and the rest of the guys did a nice job finding him and feeding off it."
Freshman Matas Masys continued the perimeter barrage with a trio of third-quarter 3s and scored 12 points on four 3-pointers. Six-foot-four sophomore Ethan Schuemer was extremely active in the post, finishing with 11 points, 13 rebounds and 4 blocked shots.
Northridge Prep used a 15-4 run in the game's final five minutes to make the margin much closer. Patrick Hunt scored 11 of his 15 points in the first half for the Knights.
Willowbrook will try to keep its tournament momentum going in Tuesday's second-round game against the host Hilltoppers, who are heavily favored to emerge atop the Green Pool standings.
"We feed off each other very well," Miller said. "Once we all get going and feeling it, every guy feeds off it."
Hoffman Estates 67, Leyden 51:
Behind Jorden Thornton's game-high 23 points, the Hawks (4-7) opened with a win in the White Pool of the Glenbard West Holiday Classic.
A 32-15 lead at the half powered Hoffman Estates to a comfortable gap throughout the second half. Thornton hit three of his five 3-pointers and scored 12 of his points in the third quarter.
Brandon Hall added 11 points while Marshall Davis and Konrad Kieruzal each had 10 points. DeAndre Williams led Leyden (3-6) with 12 points. JoQuil Meeks scored 9 of his 11 points in the third quarter.
Hoffman Estates faces Wheaton Academy in second-round tournament play on Tuesday while Leyden plays Glenbard North.
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