WW South overtakes West Aurora in 4th quarter
Wheaton Warrenville South picked the most opportune time to take control of their game at West Aurora Thursday night, and locked down a 52-44 win.
When the fourth quarter began, the Blackhawks were up 34-32 in what had been a bruising defense-dominated battle.
But West Aurora didn’t stay on top for long as the Tigers forced 4 turnovers in the first 4 minutes of the quarter, and outscored their hosts 12-4 during that stretch.
“We had a lot of energy and did a lot of things well in that quarter,” Wheaton Warrenville coach Mike Healy said.
The first and fourth quarters served as bookends, as Wheaton Warrenville South dominated both. Led by a pair of 3-pointers from Travis Kern, the Tigers charged out to a 10-2 lead.
But after West Aurora coach Gordie Kerkman called a much-needed timeout, the Blackhawks managed to get into a rhythm, and when Jayquan Lee nailed a 3 just ahead of the buzzer, the quarter ended with the Tigers lead trimmed to 15-12.
West Aurora’s defense, which was a step slow for much of the opening quarter, turned up the heat in the second. With few opportunities inside, the Tigers relied on their long distance shots. But those weren’t falling, and the result was a 1-of-11 shooting performance from the field, and an 18-17 West Aurora lead at the break.
“They probably had the ball more than we did in the second quarter, but our defense wasn’t letting them get what they wanted,” Kerkman said.
The Tigers, however, were not too concerned. In fact, they may have had the Blackhawks exactly where they wanted them.
“I know it looked ugly in that second quarter, but at halftime we were still happy with what we were doing because we were getting shots,” Healy said.
Both teams came out of the break primed for a struggle, and they went toe-to-toe, mirroring each other’s effort. When Brandon Hayes banked in a 3-pointer, giving the Blackhawks a 23-19 lead, Tim Zyburt responded with one of his own.
And so it continued, until Reilly O’Toole fed Jason Schuman underneath for the hoop that knotted it up at 32-32.
It was the first tie since the game was scoreless, but it didn’t last long as Kyle Pilmer matched his opponent with an inside hoop in the closing seconds of the third quarter, giving the Blackhawks a 34-32 lead.
When the final quarter began, it seemed as though it would follow the same script as the third. The teams traded baskets and when Kenny Battle Jr. drove the lane and dropped one in, West Aurora was up 38-34.
But that would be the Blackhawks’ last significant highlight of the game, as the Tigers ran off 10 straight.
“We weren’t getting back on defense and picking up their shooters fast enough,” Kerkman said. “They played harder than we did, and the fourth quarter killed us.”
Kern, who had been relatively quiet since the first quarter, knocked down back-to-back 3s, the second, off a perfectly executed play in transition, felt like a dagger.
“In the flow of the game that was probably the best time to hit that shot,” Kern said.
When they weren’t hitting key shots, the Tigers were keeping the Blackhawks from hitting any, as they forced 6 turnovers in the quarter.
“We were doing an unbelievable job on ball screens, and they turned the ball over a few times trying to force it in,” Healy said.
This was the second time the Tigers (17-9, 10-4 in the DuPage Valley Conference) have defeated West Aurora (14-11, 10-5), a team they may wind up facing in the postseason.
“The last 10 games we’ve been playing with confidence, and playing our best basketball,” O’Toole said. “That’s really important for us going into the playoffs.”