'Cats change direction
In case you hadn't noticed yet, these are not your older sibling's Wildcats.
The West Chicago boys basketball team, down on its luck the past several seasons, is beginning to show signs of a team that is ready to contend.
The Wildcats took another step forward Saturday night in West Chicago, defeating Wheaton North 64-44 for their seventh win of the young season.
The Wildcats (7-7, 2-1 DuPage Valley Conference) trailed 28-27 at the half before raising their game to another level. West Chicago outscored the Falcons 37-16 in the second half, thanks in large part to junior center Tyler Griffith. The 6-foot-6 Griffith scored 13 of his 15 points in the final two quarters while throwing in 6 rebounds for good measure. Griffith benefited from a faster offensive pace.
"Coming into the second half we emphasized just playing our game, working hard, pushing the ball up the court, getting transition buckets and running them off the court pretty much," Griffith said. "I enjoy a fast-paced basketball game. I really don't like standing around."
West Chicago's defensive pressure keyed a number of fastbreak opportunities after halftime. The Wildcats forced 7 turnovers in the third quarter, contributing to a 13-2 West Chicago run to close the quarter.
"It was one of those things in the third quarter - we were getting loose balls, we were getting all the rebounds, we were forcing some outside shots," Wildcats coach Kevin Gimre said. "They weren't hitting the shots, and we were taking care of the rebound and going the other way."
West Chicago's fast-paced play continued through the fourth quarter.
Jeff Robinson's layup with 3:12 remaining in the game gave the home team a 60-40 advantage, while also making a statement that the Wildcats will be no one's doormat any longer.
"It feels great. Last year was kind of a disappointment for all of us," Griffith said. "Coming back this year we knew we had a really strong team, and we could do some good things this year."
Senior forward Trey Martin paced the Falcons (4-8, 0-3) with 14 points, but the visitors struggled with the same problems they've dealt with all year, namely turnovers and shot selection.
"That's got to start getting taken care of, or things have to change drastically," Wheaton North coach Jim Nazos said. "We've got to get better; we can't stay in this spot."