St. Edward downs Westminster to go to 4-0

St. Edward boys basketball coach Keith Chuipek knew his team needed to shoot some free throws Saturday night to have a chance at winning the 3rd annual Westminster Christian Thanksgiving Tournament.

The only problem was the Green Wave had such a big lead the host Warriors weren't going to foul.

St. Edward cruised past Westminster Christian, 43-27, to finish the tournament 4-0, the same record as Immaculate Conception. The teams did not play each other. The first tiebreaker was free-throw percentage. St. Edward shot 58 percent. Immaculate Conception shot 61 percent to claim the title.

"We knew we were a percentage point down (coming into the game)," said Chuipek, who saw his team go 3-for-4 from the foul line. "We knew at the end we lost. That's OK. Two teams from the (Suburban Christian Conference) go 4-0. Maybe we'll play for the trophy in January when we meet."

St. Edward accomplished its main goal of the week, finishing unbeaten, and did so Saturday in impressive fashion, especially early.

The Green Wave held the Warriors (2-2) to only 4 points in the first half and led 25-4 at halftime. St. Edward went 5-for-7 from behind the 3-point arc in the first half. Mike Ellis, an all-tournament selection hit three 3-pointers and Andrew Waterman added a pair.

"We came out ready," said Ellis, a junior who finished with a game-high 17 points. "In the past we haven't played really good defense. We wanted to show Westminster we could play that this year."

The poor start has been a theme for the Warriors in their four games at the tournament. They were able to overcome it in the first two games and rallied Friday night against Immaculate Conception before falling on a late 3-pointer. But there was no rally against St. Edward.

Westminster went just 2-for-13 from the field and committed 8 turnovers in the first half.

"To play this way on our own floor, when we can't come out at the start of game with some fire, is unacceptable," said Warriors coach Bruce Firchua, who said his team will be putting in extra work next week, including a practice at 5:30 a.m. Monday.

Ian Dutcher, an all-tournament pick, led the Warriors with 9 points. Mark Graziano added 7 points, all in the fourth quarter.