Carey, West Aurora take out Waubonsie Valley
When Tyler Perkins drove hard to the basket for a score to even things up at the buzzer of the first quarter, Waubonsie Valley had reason to believe its season might not end on Monday.
But when West Aurora (12-15) put together back-to-back great quarters, it was the Blackhawks who lived to play another day, while the Warriors saw a tough season come to a close with a 50-38 setback in first-round action of the 4A Waubonsie Valley regional.
The Blackhawks connected on 7 of 8 shots in the second quarter while taking a 27-18 lead at the intermission. Tyrone Carey then drained a pair of 3s while tallying 8 points in a 16-5 run in the third quarter that all but sealed West Aurora's victory and a date with Naperville North, the No. 4 sectional seed, Tuesday in Aurora.
"Coach gave us a speech and he told us we had to play hard," said Carey, who scored a game-high 17 points Monday for the No. 13-seeded Blackhawks. "He told us he was happy with our second quarter, but he told us to keep being patient in the third quarter."
After shooting 4-for-12 in the opening quarter, the Blackhawks caught fire in the second quarter and not only missed just one shot from the floor, but went 3-for-3 from beyond the arc with D.J. Vaughn sinking two and Carey adding one.
"We started to shoot the ball better and we forced some turnovers," West Aurora coach Gordie Kerkman said after the Warriors had 7 giveaways in the second quarter. "I also thought our defense was pretty good."
No. 20 seed Waubonsie Valley (9-18) struggled to find consistency on offense and that, combined with the Blackhawks' hot shooting, spelled doom. Perkins, one of four departing seniors, scored 9 points and added 5 rebounds, while freshman Jared Brownridge paced the hosts with 10 points all in the fourth quarter.
"They got us on our heels for a seven- or eight-minute span and that was the ballgame," Warriors coach Steve Weemer said. "But I'm still proud of my guys. They didn't quit. Our season's over but I thought our seniors showed great character."
The Blackhawks led by as many as 22 at 43-21, but Waubonsie showed some fight with a 9-0 run that included 5 points by Brownridge, a basket by Perkins and 2 free throws by Tyler Edmondson.
For the Blackhawks, who dropped a pair of games to Naperville North during the regular season, Vaughn finished with 15 points and 2 steals and Brandon Hayes and Juwan Starks each scored 7 points.