Redwings catch Wheaton Academy

It's rare to label a Saturday nonconference boys basketball game as a must win, but Benet did just that.

The Redwings played like it, too.

Rallying from a 15-point second-half deficit, Benet clawed its way to a 61-60 victory over host Wheaton Academy in West Chicago.

Joe Meyerhoff's go-ahead basket with 38 seconds left gave the Redwings the 1-point margin. A missed Benet free throw with six seconds left led to the Warriors' desperation shot at the buzzer, but it went off the mark.

The Redwings (10-9) claimed their fifth win in seven games -- a key factor heading into Wednesday's sectional seeding meeting.

"Everyone knew we needed to get this win going into the sectional meeting," said Benet senior Chris Blaney. "This was a must win for us. Now we know we can come back from a big deficit if we have to."

Wheaton Academy (14-6) led 53-38 after Paul Werkema's inside basket with 2:05 left in the third quarter. Benet began a fierce rally at that point behind a pressure defense that broke the Warriors' offensive rhythm.

A 15-0 run featured 3-pointers by Brian Gaughan and Emmett Carrier. After a pair of Meyerhoff free throws cut the gap to 53-51 early in the fourth quarter, the Redwings tied the game when Alex Gasick stole the inbounds pass and scored.

Gaughan and Blaney scored on consecutive possessions to put the Redwings ahead 57-54, but four trips to the free-throw line allowed Wheaton Academy to build a 60-57 lead with 2:36 left.

Blaney scored again, and then assisted on Meyerhoff's bucket to put Benet on top 61-60. The teams combined for six straight missed free throws to set up the Warriors' last-second miss.

Benet held Wheaton Academy without a field goal for the final 10:05 of the game.

"I'm really proud of the way the kids competed," said Warriors coach Paul Ferguson. "I give a lot of credit to Benet. They really picked up their defense."

A barrage of first-half 3-pointers -- 4 by Jason Roy and 3 by Ben Euler -- pushed the Warriors to a 16-point first-half lead. But after hitting 14 of 23 first-half shots, they made only 5 of 14 second-half attempts.

Euler scored 17 points before fouling out in the final seconds. Roy added 16 points and Quinn Gorski 11 points. Gaughan tallied a game-high 19 points while Blaney poured in 16 points.

"We're just thankful to come out of here with a win," said Redwings coach Marty Gaughan.

-- Kevin Schmit

Glenbard West 47, Elk Grove 44:ŒGlenbard West coach Tim Hoder saw his team like night and day.

"In some spots our effort was good," he said. "In others it was like we were taking the night off."

The Hilltoppers were "on" enough in the final five minutes to outscore host Elk Grove 7-2 and leave with a 47-44 triumph in the nonconference game.

John Shurna, a 6-foot-8 Northwestern University recruit, returned from illness that forced him out of Tuesday's game against Driscoll.

Hoder played the senior forward about 16 minutes, but he did plenty of damage off the bench with 21 points and 10 rebounds.

Senior Billy Hubly led the Grenadiers with 16 points while junior Matt Martinski added 15.

Elk Grove (2-21) built a 20-12 lead in the second quarter, thanks to a 13-0 run that included two buckets from J.J. Lastovich, two from Martinski and two from Hubly, including a 3-pointer.

The Grenadiers led 38-33 with 2:07 left in the third quarter when the visitors went on a 12-2 run to take a 45-40 advantage with 1:43 left in the game.

"You can't score 2 points in the first six minutes of the fourth quarter," said Grenadiers coach Anthony Furman. "You've got to come out and make something happen at the start of the quarter.

"Second-chance rebounds kept them in the game. And we did not run the same possessions in the second half that we had in the first.

"We got impatient and had too many one-pass shots. (The Hilltoppers) did a great job being patient and waiting in their offense."

The Grenadiers got a steal from Lastovich with 35 seconds left and converted it into a layup by Hubly to close within 47-44 with 28 seconds left.

The Grenadiers had it down to a one-possession game, missing a 3-pointer with 10 seconds left and the Hilltoppers grabbed the rebound and ran out the clock.

Joe Baxter, Tim Furlong and Robert Hult also gave the hosts offensive points.

"As a team we're growing with every game," Furman said. "We'll learn from this and get ready for Larkin Tuesday and then the state tournament."

-- John Leusch

Wheaton North 74, West Chicago 55:ŒJohn Bagge's 21 points powered the visiting Falcons (16-5, 8-2) to a DuPage Valley Conference win that keeps Wheaton North in a first-place tie atop the standings. Kristian Rosenberger and Chris Bradley each knocked down a trio of 3-pointers. Clark Hudmon and Tyler Wrzesinski scored 13 points apiece for West Chicago (1-20, 0-10).

West Carroll 73, Lisle 47:ŒThe host Lions (8-18) received a team-high 14 points from Marcus Wilson in their nonconference loss.

Girls basketball

Hinsdale South 48, Willowbrook 40:ŒChloe Harris scored 13 points, grabbed 8 rebounds and blocked 3 shots in a West Suburban Gold victory for the Hornets (20-7, 9-2). Joanna Giampoli added 9 points, 12 rebounds and 2 blocks for Hinsdale South, which made 25 of 34 free throws in the second half at Villa Park. Taylor Nelson led Willowbrook (11-14, 5-6) with 12 points before fouling out, and Collette Williams added 11. Mary Flood grabbed 10 rebounds.

Immaculate Conception 42, Aurora Central Catholic 31:ŒIn a game rescheduled from Friday night to Saturday afternoon, the Knights used a 12-3 third quarter to outlast Aurora Central in the Suburban Catholic Conference. Junior Katie Heidorn led the way with 9 points.

St. Edward 46, Immaculate Conception 39:ŒMary Kate Manion scored 18 points and senior Erin Hayes added 10 for the Knights in a senior night loss Saturday evening in the Suburban Catholic Conference.

Driscoll 63, Richmond-Burton 37:ŒCourtney Lindfors scored 19 points, Taylor Reaber 15 and Allie Divito 13 for the Highlanders (21-5) in a nonconference victory.

Naperville North 48, West Chicago 44:ŒKaelyn Witkowski scored 13 points as one of 10 Huskies (5-20, 4-8) to score in a DuPage Valley Conference victory. Katie Staiton had 13 points and Jessica Baids 11 for the Wildcats.

Naperville Central 53, Glenbard North 37:ŒKelley Hendrick scored 17 points and Catherine Tanck added 11 for the Redhawks in the DuPage Valley Conference.

Hinsdale Central 42, York 34:ŒGuard Toni Kokenis posted 20 points for the Red Devils (26-1) in a West Suburban Silver victory in Hinsdale. Junior Courtney Owens' 14 points paced York.

Glenbard West 48, Lyons Twp. 47:ŒSophomores Abbey White and Abby Hastings each scored 16 points in Glenbard West's West Suburban Silver victory in LaGrange. Kara Stack added 7 points.