Wheaton Academy tops Lisle 54-34
The key for Wheaton Academy against Lisle was making its shots, not just for the purpose of putting points on the board but also giving the Warriors a chance to set up their full-court pressure.
Making shots is exactly what Wheaton Academy did as the Warriors went on to beat Lisle 54-34 in a nonconference boys basketball game Tuesday night in Lisle.
After shooting a cool 7 of 20 in the first half, the Warriors (4-1) went 11 of 22 in the second half, giving them time to set up the defense.
"We came out with good intensity in the first half," Wheaton Academy coach Paul Ferguson said. "Even though we came out OK, we were even better in the second half. In the first half our shots didn't really fall. We had quite a few fall in the second and we were able to cause some turnovers after setting up our pressure after makes."
In the first half the Lions turned the ball over nine times, but that number ballooned to 16 in the second half. For the game the Warriors scored 33 points off of turnovers.
"We knew that Lisle was a pretty disciplined team," Wheaton Academy guard Eric Albaugh said. "We had a good scouting report on them and we knew we could pressure them. Ball pressure was so key for us tonight because that was how we forced a majority of the turnovers."
The first half was tight with the biggest lead by either team at 5 points. The Warriors went into the break with a 19-15 lead as the two teams combined to shoot 32 percent from the floor.
The Warriors made a few offensive adjustments and came out firing in the third quarter and shot 6 of 11, outscoring the Lions 16-8 in the decisive third quarter. One of the adjustments they made was being more patient on the offensive end of the court, making the extra pass to get open looks.
That patience paid off.
Every time it seemed Lisle (0-6) was going to make a run, the Warriors responded by getting themselves a basket. That frustrated Lisle coach Mark LaScala.
"When are you trailing a team, you can't trade baskets with them," LaScala said. "You just can't do that. They are a good offensive team and they can score. Also, once they applied pressure on us, we sort of crumbled. They are too good of shooters to fall behind and try to play catch up."
Ben Euler led all scorers with 16 points, including two 3-pointers. Albaugh chipped in with 12 points, while Jared Cochrun scored 9 points in the win.
Mike Gortowski had a double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds before fouling out in the fourth quarter. Andrew Rapciak hit three 3-pointers en route to his 10 points in the loss.