West Aurora upsets Crete-Monee
West Aurora took a punch Saturday at the Naperville North Shootout and delivered an even bigger blow in return.
Playing one of the top Class 3A teams in Crete-Monee, the Blackhawks overcame a 14-0 run in the third quarter with a 15-2 finishing kick for an impressive 52-44 victory over the state's No. 11 ranked Warriors (11-3).
West Aurora (9-6) bounced back from its first DVC loss Friday night against Glenbard East with a win coach Gordie Kerkman hopes can ignite a second-half run.
“This has happened to us before this year and we haven't pulled it together,” Kerkman said of Crete's big third-quarter burst. “Fortunately for us we were able to pull it together after that terrible start in the third quarter. We shook it off in fourth quarter, came back and got ourselves a big win.”
West Aurora turned the ball over on four straight possessions in the third quarter. DePaul recruit James Crockett scored 8 of his 19 points in the quarter for the Warriors, who erased the Blackhawks' 28-20 halftime lead to go up 37-34 heading to the fourth quarter.
Neither team scored for the first four minutes of the fourth quarter. Blackhawks junior Juwan Starks finally put points on the board hitting a 3-pointer under pressure to tie the game at 37 with 3:21 remaining.
West Aurora freshman Jontrell Walker, who hadn't scored in the game, came up with a key steal and perfect pass to Brandon Hayes for a layup and 39-37 lead. Starks scored 6 of West Aurora's next 8 points including a steal he took the other way for a basket. He also had a rebound putback that stretched the lead to 47-39 with a minute left while Crete Monee made just 2 of 10 shots in the fourth quarter.
Starks finished with 18 points and 4 steals despite missing much of the first half in foul trouble. Seniors Hayes (10 points, 6 rebounds), Jonathan Dennison (10 points, 11 rebounds) and Kyle Pilmer (8 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists) all helped the Blackhawks get back on track after a 61-53 loss to Glenbard East Friday.
“We knew we were going to have a hard weekend all week,” Pilmer said. “Coach was pushing us and telling us that if we practice lazy, if we play lazy, then we are going to get beat. We didn't want to go 0-2. It feels good to at least win one.”
West Aurora outrebounded Crete 38-25 against two Division I frontcourt players, Crockett and Greg Mays (Wisconsin-Green Bay). The Warriors also struggled at the free-throw line, making 6 of 15.
While encouraged by the win, Kerkman isn't sure yet just what it will mean.
“I cannot tell a thing about these guys,” Kerkman said. “I mean it should, it should give them some confidence. I really felt we were better players than what we've been playing. They are good kids, great to work with, but I just didn't feel they were getting as much out of themselves or I was getting as much out as we should be.”