Defensive effort powers Redhawks

Daily Herald Correspondent

Naperville Central turned in its second straight defensive gem Monday in the opening round of the Wheeling Hardwood Classic boys basketball tournament, beating Maine West 58-39, the second win in a row in which the Redhawks held their opponent to fewer than 40 points.

Last Friday, Central held Naperville North to 32 in conference play and didn't let up against the Warriors.

"I thought we played really good defense," said Naperville Central coach Pete Kramer. "This was the first game in a while where we played straight-up man-to-man the whole game."

The Redhawks (9-1) allowed 9, 8 and 9 points in the first three quarters, building a 41-26 lead.

"The coaches stress defensive rebounds, keeping (our opponents) off the glass," said center Matt Neufeld (9 points, 7 rebounds and 2 blocked shots). "We wanted to keep the ball out of the lane and force them to make tougher shots."

West (1-10) had a chance to make it a two-possession game late in the third quarter while trailing 32-24.

"We were at the free throw line in the third quarter with a chance to cut it to 6," said Maine West coach Erik McNeill. "Instead, we're down by 15. That put the game away."

After those missed free throws, with 3:41 left in the third, Central scored 9 straight points. A basket and a 3 by Joe Rickert (7 points) and baskets by Neufeld and Nick Linne sparked the Redhawks.

Drew Crawford led a balanced Central starting five with 14 points, 10 rebounds, 5 assists and 3 blocks, followed by Neufeld, Linne (8 points), David Mallett (6) and Danny Ondik (6 points, 4 assists and 3 steals).

Alex Seiler scored all of team-high 8 points in the second quarter. Alex Samuelson scored 7, and Yozi Cuevas added 6 for the Warriors.

"I thought we ran our offense well, much better than in the past," McNeill said. "That gave us some confidence."