West can't keep pace with Huntley

Huntley's girls basketball team knocked down shots when it had to, took control of the boards in the second half and capitalized on 30 West Aurora turnovers, beating the host Blackhawks 55-45 Monday night.

The Warhawk Thanksgiving tournament opener wasn't much to look at, as both teams hit their share of rough spots. But the Red Raiders were able to overcome theirs, and managed to play some of their best basketball down the stretch.

"We didn't play smart in certain segments of the game tonight," Huntley coach Steve Raethz said. "But I'm proud of the way our girls tightened things up defensively and fought back in the second half."

The Red Raiders (1-1) led by 7 after one quarter, but the Blackhawks rallied to take a 24-21 lead at the break, thanks in large part to Kyra Watson's 8 first-half points, all of which were scored in the second quarter.

Still, the Blackhawks looked like a team in search of their rhythm, helped by Huntley's 5 of 21 shooting from the free-throw line in the first half.

"We had a lack of focus, and we weren't being patient," Watson said.

If they lacked focus in the opening half, the Blackhawks were missing just about everything else in the third quarter. The Blackhawks did not emerge from the locker room until after the warning buzzer, and didn't find their way back into the game until the fourth quarter.

"We seemed out of sorts, and tired," West Aurora coach Connie Siljendahl said. "We looked rusty, but I don't know what we were thinking out there."

As the fourth quarter began, Huntley held a 32-27 lead and Daisy Jara, who led the Red Raiders with 14 points and 10 rebounds, was determined to keep West Aurora from wrestling away control of the game.

"We needed to tighten it up and just play our game like we do in practice," Jara said.

Turning up the heat inside, the Red Raiders dared West Aurora to score from the perimeter, and the shots just wouldn't drop.

"We had our chances to hit some threes, but we didn't have our feet set," Siljendahl said. "We played like an inexperienced team."

Thanks to its full court press, West Aurora (1-1) got as close as 46-43 with just over a minute to go, but Katie Bergquist (5 steals) helped her teammates keep their composure, and Huntley refused to wilt during an intense final minute.

"We're used to that kind of pressure, we couldn't let ourselves get intimidated," Bergquist said.

The Red Raiders found their touch at the line in the closing minutes, hitting 9 of 15 free throws in the fourth quarter.