East Aurora's depth too much for Waubonsie
The game plan for the Waubonsie Valley boys basketball team was simple in concept facing electric East Aurora: don't let Tomcats guards Ryan Boatright or Letrell “Snoop” Viser beat you.
The Warriors looked up for the challenge, holding down the pair temporarily, but East Aurora's John Williams and Domonique Johnson changed things with some clutch shot-making as the Tomcats gunned their way to an 88-78 Upstate Eight Conference Valley Division victory Friday night.
“The difference in the game was we played some gimmick, junk stuff against them and Johnson and Williams hurt us,” Waubonsie Valley coach Steve Weemer said. “If you take (Boatright and Viser) out, and Johnson and Williams don't shoot so well or miss some shots, we win. You gotta give them credit. Those kids stepped up and made some big shots. And they know that's going to happen and that makes them an excellent basketball team.”
Four players scored in double figures for both teams, trading baskets at a frenetic pace. The Warriors (9-5, 1-2) were content to sit back in a triangle-and-2 defense and give Williams and Johnson open looks. Waubonsie even weathered three East Aurora 3-pointers, but the last one was a hanging buzzer shot by Johnson to close the first quarter, bringing East Aurora within 4 points of Waubonsie.
Jared Brownridge lit up the Tomcats (11-2, 4-0) for 12 points in the opening period on the way to a 20 point night.
“Every game I try to come out with confidence, focus and make every shot and do what I can offensively to help my team,” the sophomore said.
Things shifted dramatically in the second quarter when East Aurora closed the period on a 19-4 run as Viser, who scored 21 points, and Boatright, who had 30, started to heat up.
“We wanted to compete hard and our kids did that,” Weemer said. “It's a game of runs, and when they make a run we have to hold our composure, not panic, and then we need to get a key stop. Unfortunately, they leaked out on us a couple times and we lost our man and they got some easy opportunities in transition and that's what they do best.”
Viser scored 13 in the second period and Boatright turned up his intensity following three misses at the free-throw line, scoring 25 points from then on via three 3s and several jaw-dropping dunks. Johnson finished with 15 points after hitting four of East Aurora's 11 3-pointers, and Williams scored 10 as the Tomcats kept pushing the pedal down.
“We were able to get that because we were patient,” East Aurora coach Wendell Jeffries said. “But it's hard. It's hard for a kid averaging 31 points to get out of the way and let others do that. You could see some of the frustration on Ryan tonight, and I was just telling him to be patient and let John and (Johnson) knock down a couple and bring them out of that defense.”
Tyler Edmondson had one of his best games of the year, scoring 19 and pulling in 11 rebounds for Waubonsie, while Xavier Biles and Bryan Jefferson stepped in to provide offense in replacement of Jakobi Johnson, who was on a recruiting visit. Biles scored 11 points, Jefferson 10.
Both teams must turn around to play tough games today — East Aurora against Neuqua Valley and Waubonsie against Downers Grove South — and each feels good about how they played.
“We're definitely keeping our heads up and looking forward to the next time we play them,” Edmondson said. “There's a lot of good positives, a lot of good things out of this game even though we lost.”