Waubonsie Valley 64, Barrington 47

In hot pursuit of a strong sectional seeding, the Waubonsie Valley boys basketball team is not about to overlook any opponent.

The Warriors and Jelani Johnson started fast Friday night with a blistering 22-6 first-quarter advantage. The visiting Broncos did slice that deficit with a 12-0 run to open the second quarter to get within 22-18, but the 18-3 Warriors regrouped and finished off Barrington (6-13) 64-47 in nonconference play for their seventh consecutive win.

"I was practicing my shot a lot before the game," said Johnson, who led all scorers with 19 points. "We want a good spot for sectionals."

When asked about the play of his point guard Kevin VandenBerg and fellow guard John Daniels, Johnson replied, "We care about each other and we care about how far we can go."

That's why someone like VandenBerg attempts just 6 shots while dishing off 6 assists, and why Daniels seemed to enjoy watching Johnson grab his lobs toward the basket and convert them into soaring layups.

"Kevin's playing real well right now and he's distributing the ball well," Waubonsie coach Steve Weemer said. "We actually would like him to look to shoot more than he does, but he had two nice pull-ups when we needed them tonight."

Barrington, which was paced by 6-foot-7 Mack Darrow's 17 points and 10 rebounds, trailed 30-20 at the break after the hosts closed out the half with an 8-2 run. With Chris Howard draining a pair of 3s and scoring all 11 of his points in the second half, the Broncos tried to make a game of it. But Johnson had 12 points after the intermission and Daniels and Justin Peaster combined for 27 points in the game and 5 of the team's seven 3-pointers.

Yet it was the Warriors' tough defense that Peaster credited with the team's win. "We have to bring it on defense, and in the first quarter we did and we played real well," said Peaster, who had 2 steals and 6 rebounds to go with his 15 points.

Barrington coach Marty Dello saw his team make big strides even while falling short.

"We scouted them enough to know Waubonsie is a great team and they're well-coached," Dello said. "You can't stop their three guards. But we adjusted to their speed some in the second quarter and our kids played with a lot of poise and composure. It's a huge step in the right direction."

Tyler Castro had 8 points, 3 rebounds and blocked shot off the bench for the Warriors, who used 10 players in the first half and 13 all told.