W. Aurora 55, Wheaton N. 50 (OT)
Playing in Wheaton North's gymnasium is rarely an enjoyable experience for opponents, but there were plenty of smiles in the visiting locker room Friday night.
West Aurora's boys basketball team seized sole possession of first place in the DuPage Valley Conference -- and snagged a critical road victory -- by beating Wheaton North 55-50 in overtime.
"It was very important to get this win," said Blackhawks guard Marquis Stewart. "We're No. 1 in the conference now. We need to take care of business at our house, but if we can take care of it here, we can take care of it at our house."
Winning the battle of DVC unbeatens was no easy task for the Blackhawks (12-2, 6-0). Wheaton North (12-3, 5-1) rallied from a 9-point third-quarter deficit and sent the game to overtime on Tom Fitzpatrick's 3-pointer with 19 seconds left in regulation.
West Aurora, however, dominated the extra period. Tyler Thompson scored 6 of his 16 points including a breakaway dunk that came in the middle of a devastating 10-2 run for the Blackhawks.
More devastating to the Falcons was their poor outside shooting. Normally potent from the perimeter, they missed their first 10 3-point attempts before finally connecting in the final minute of the third quarter.
Wheaton North finished 4 of 21 from 3-point range as the bulk of the points came in the post. Six-foot-seven John Bagge had 17 points and 7 rebounds while the 6-8 Fitzpatrick added 16 points, 7 rebounds and 5 blocks.
"Not shooting well, it happens," said Falcons coach Jim Nazos. "If we want to be a great team we have to learn to overcome bad shooting nights. I thought we were there. Maybe we could have done some things better, but we still got ourselves in a pretty good position."
Wheaton North led 14-10 early in the second quarter before the Blackhawks closed the half on a 12-3 run to take a 22-17 lead. West Aurora twice extended the margin to 9 points, but 3s by Kristian Rosenberger and Fitzpatrick sparked a Falcons rally.
A pair of free throws by Theo Hicks pushed West Aurora's advantage to 41-36, but a Bagge bucket and Fitzpatrick's late 3-pointer -- which followed one of West Aurora's 19 turnovers -- forced overtime.
Stewart, Hicks and Markus Cocroft each scored 8 points in a balanced effort by West Aurora, which outrebounded the Falcons 35-22 led by Thompson's 7 boards.
"We had something to prove tonight," Thompson said. "It feels good to get a win in here. Definitely."