WW South hands Naperville Central a rare home loss
Everyone who played for Wheaton Warrenville South contributed in some way to Friday's win over Naperville Central.
Tying it all together, though, was the season debut of junior Reilly O'Toole.
Sparked by the return of their All-Area point guard, the Tigers handed Naperville Central its first home loss in two years with Friday's 54-44 DuPage Valley Conference boys basketball victory.
The experience of four returning starters showed throughout WW South's steady performance, highlighted by the first appearance of the year by O'Toole, who missed the opening five games to heal from the football team's state championship run.
O'Toole scored 16 points, while Will Dolatowski knocked down five of the team's 11 3-pointers en route to a team-high 20 points.
The Tigers (4-2, 1-1) led 39-36 heading to the fourth quarter but quickly extended the advantage to 45-36 when Dolatowski opened the period with back-to-back 3s.
"We knew we couldn't be 0-2 after the first two conference games, so we needed this one," Dolatowski said. "It was pretty helpful with Reilly O'Toole back. We didn't have him last week, and it just gave us a lot of confidence. It's just going to get better from here."
Six lead changes and three ties led up to 7 straight points by O'Toole near the end of the third quarter. The Tigers reclaimed the lead for good at that point, holding it with buckle-down defense in the fourth quarter.
WW South held Naperville Central (6-2, 1-1) scoreless for the opening 4 minutes, 25 seconds of the final quarter. The Redhawks' Bobby Czarnowski scored a game-high 21 points but was held to 2 fourth-quarter points thanks in part to the defensive effort from Tigers guard Ryan Farrar.
David Niggins, who tallied 8 points, scored to pull the Redhawks within 47-42 with 1:45 left. The Tigers, however, nailed 7 of 9 free throws down the stretch to keep their lead.
"They just shot the heck out of the ball," said Redhawks coach Pete Kramer. "We actually outscored them in baskets - we had 18, they had 16 - but when 11 of them are 3-pointers, it's tough to deal with."
Derek Babb scored only 2 fourth-quarter points for the Tigers, but he grabbed 11 rebounds and drew a key fourth-quarter charge. Guard Greg McAndrew, another football player still getting his basketball legs, hit three 3-pointers while scoring 10 points.
"It's just good to see us play well and see the continuity with what we're doing," said Tigers coach Mike Healy. "It was great seeing our guys make plays in big situations."