WW South stifles Bolingbrook
Wheaton Warrenville South's boys basketball team made 52 percent of its shots, had three players reach double-figure scoring and committed only 10 turnovers.
All of that paled in comparison to what the Tigers did defensively against Bolingbrook.
Stifling the Raiders into three quarters of single-digit scoring, WW South cruised into the Class 4A Willowbrook regional final with Wednesday's 60-32 victory in Villa Park.
Aside from the 28 points the Tigers (20-7) allowed against West Chicago a couple of weeks ago, Wednesday's game represented the fewest points WW South has allowed this season. Considered the No. 8 Tigers achieved the performance against the Neuqua Valley sectional's explosive ninth seed, it's safe to assume this was their best defensive effort of the season.
"I think it's one of our best (games), especially defensively," said Tigers senior guard Will Dolatowski, who scored a game-high 20 points and grabbed 8 rebounds. "They have a ton of talent, and to hold then to 30 points was great. And offensively I thought we executed our motion very well."
Bolingbrook (13-13) took its only lead of 7-6 early in the first quarter, and it was all downhill from there. After making 5 of 12 shots from the field in the opening period, the Raiders made only 7 shots the rest of the game, including one make in the fourth quarter.
"We got good looks, especially in the first half," said Bolingbrook coach Rob Brost. "We just didn't convert. Consequently, they came down and got some open looks, and they made theirs. That took the heart out of us right at the beginning."
WW South hit 7 of its 11 3-pointers in the first half, and also converted a trio of free throws when Travis Kern was fouled while shooting beyond the arc.
A 28-13 lead narrowed to 29-17 by halftime, but the Tigers scored the first 7 points of the second half to extend the advantage. Bolingbrook didn't reach 20 points until 2 minutes, 45 seconds remained in the third quarter.
Greg McAndrew scored 10 points for the Tigers, while Bolingbrook's Devon Hodges scored 8 of his points in the first half.
"Holding a team to 32 points is awesome," said Tigers guard Reilly O'Toole, who scored 13 points. "We were up by 12 at the half, and we knew we had to come out strong in those first three minutes of the second half. We came out fast and just kept battling."
They'll need an even better effort in Friday's final against DuPage Valley Conference rival Glenbard East (25-1), the top seed at Neuqua Valley. The Tigers lost twice to the Rams in the regular season.
"We need to play close to perfect," said Tigers coach Mike Healy. "I hope we give a great effort, and we'll see what happens."