Pressure starts Glenbard East comeback
If there was a quintessential example of how to beat yourself, the Naperville Central boys basketball team played it Friday night against No. 2 Glenbard East.
The Redhawks' David Niggins came out firing and his team took a 10-point lead before too many turnovers doomed Naperville Central in a 67-55 loss in Naperville.
“They started pressing us and we couldn't break that pressure,” Niggins said about the third quarter. “They were forcing turnovers, steals left and right. Our effort from first half to the second half lowered a bit.”
The easy transition baskets allowed Rams forward Johnny Hill, held scoreless in the first half, to find a shooting rhythm and maintain it through the second half to break open the 33-33 tie at halftime and finish with 19 points.
“We took their best shot in the first half,” Glenbard East coach Scott Miller said. “For our guys we need to adjust to how the game was called and I thought we did a better job of that in the second half. Jon jumpstarted us offensively.”
Defensively, the Rams (8-0, 3-0 DuPage Valley Conference) went to a zone in an effort to stop Niggins, who had 18 in the first half as Naperville Central (3-6, 0-3) went on a 13-0 run to retake a second-quarter lead.
Niggins still had 22 points and 10 rebounds and freshman Nick Czarnowski had 15 points and 10 rebounds, but the 20 turnovers the Redhawks committed kept the Rams in the game when they were only 2-of-12 shooting from 3-point range in the first half.
“We beat ourselves,” Niggins said. “We had a chance to beat the No. 7 team in the state. We just need to finish.”
Naperville Central's guard play has improved drastically in the last three weeks, however, leading Niggins to believe they will be fine later in the season. Rams point guard Zach Miller picked up most of his 9 assists in Glenbard East's 22-point third quarter, while Steve Kinney had 10 points and Dante Bailey and Kevin Priebe each scored 9. While Hill led the box score, nine Rams scored 3 or more points and chipped in when the Illinois State commit needed them.
“My teammates really stepped up and played harder,” Hill said. “We had a lot of guys come off the bench and do some good things. It wasn't all me. It was my teammates, and I really thank them for that.”