Defense helps Neuqua Valley rout Waubonsie Valley
Without fail, each time Neuqua Valley and Waubonsie Valley meet on a basketball court Neuqua coach Todd Sutton says he expects a close contest decided down the stretch.
That didn't happen Friday.
Neuqua Valley stormed Waubonsie's packed gym in Aurora and won the Indian Prairie District rivalry game 65-38, narrowing the Warriors' lead in the series to 12-10.
Neuqua Valley (13-1, 3-0 Upstate Eight Conference) made 24 of 48 shots while limiting the Warriors to 15 of 57.
"It was excellent, and the effort we put out on defense was the best effort of the year," Sutton said. "Obviously, it was the rivalry. You're pretty pumped to play your rival, and (the Wildcats) brought a lot of emotion. They were in very good position."
Waubonsie Valley (5-11, 2-3) shot 2 of 21 in the first half, 0 for 9 in the second quarter.
"As a team we switched defenses, and we did a really good job in transition," said Neuqua forward Dwayne Evans, whose 14 points led five other Wildcats - Rahjan Muhammad, Kareem Amedu, Sam Johnson, Jim Stocki and Blair Mgbada - with at least 8 points.
"The first two quarters, what'd (the Warriors) have, like 11 points? Just a really solid effort," said Evans, who added 9 rebounds and 4 blocked shots.
Waubonsie trailed 29-10 at halftime. Warriors coach Steve Weemer's game plan was to slow the tempo and limit Neuqua's second-chance opportunities.
"We did OK for awhile, but then we missed some shots early," he said. "And they made some shots early so they fed off that energy and our guys got deflated."
Neuqua point guard Muhammad hit two quick 3-pointers, sandwiching a basket by center Amedu for an early 8-0 lead.
"Every year it's a very high-intensity game. I think it definitely sparked the team," Muhammad said of those early shots.
Waubonsie came back from a 23-5 deficit to reach double figures on a Jelani Johnson free throw with 23 seconds left in the first half.
The Warriors played more carefree in the second half, matching Neuqua's 13 second-half field goals. Tyler Perkins scored all of his team-high 10 points in the second half, and Johnson, Mark Szott and first-time starter Josh Lynn provided game-long efforts, but Neuqua Valley was not going to collapse.
Waubonsie senior guard Alex Edmondson listed a couple reasons.
"They had a lot of blocked shots on us. They were just stronger on the boards," he said.