Market surge lifts Willowbrook

The disparity in the teams' athleticism could not be denied as the game unfolded.

"It was like night and day," Marmion coach Rashon Burno said.

The Cadets struck early behind the 3-point wizardry of guard David Brouch, but Willowbrook had too much in reserve in quarterfinal action of the Class 4A Naperville Central boys basketball regional on Monday night. Kyler Market led four Willowbrook players in double figures with 16 points to pace the late-closing Warriors' 66-48 victory in Naperville.

Willowbrook (12-15), the No. 14 seed in the Oswego East sectional complex, advances to meet second-seeded Naperville Central (24-2) Tuesday night. Marmion closed out its season at 13-14.

"We were patient (offensively)," said Market, the Warriors' 6-foot-5 forward. "We came out a little nervous with it being the first game of the playoffs. We were getting the ball to the right guys at the right time."

The Warriors' inside production was necessary in the first half; Willowbrook made 11 of its 14 shots from inside the arc to offset the blistering attack from the Cadets' Brouch. The Marmion senior sharpshooter had five of his six 3-pointers in the opening half in leading all scorers with 20 points.

"We tried to use our athleticism to speed the game up," Willowbrook coach Tim Lavorato said. "We wanted to get the ball inside."

Willowbrook seized control with less than two minutes to play in the opening half; four different players scored in an equal number of possessions to close the half on a 10-0 run that Market capped with a 3-pointer at the second-quarter buzzer for a 35-27 lead at the break. Willowbrook opened the second half by limiting the Cadets to two third-quarter field goals, and the lone Marmion salvo to single digits was answered by an Eric Miller 3-pointer. Marmion would never come closer than 9 points - on a single possession -for the remainder of the game.

With Market dominant on the inside blocks for Willowbrook, guard Phillip Reid discouraged any further Marmion thoughts with his all-around excellent floor game. The senior scored 15 points, and his intangibles carried the day for Willowbrook after the intermission.

In one sequence midway through the fourth quarter, Reid had an offensive rebound and two assists on a 4-point possession that gave Wilowbrook a 56-43 lead.

"We started off a little shaky," Reid said. "As the game progressed, we played much better."

Montrell Flanders (13 points) and Miller (11) closed out the Warriors' double-digit scorers. Nick Scoliere finished with 10 for Marmion.