Wheaton North outlasts West Chicago
West Chicago and Wheaton North have each had its fair share of tough losses early this season, so it was fitting that their DuPage Valley Conference tilt went right down to the final possession.
Once Justin Mundt's 3-pointer bounced off the rim, the Falcons celebrated a 51-48 road victory on Friday night.
"We just kind of stuck with things," Wheaton North coach Jim Nazos said. "We were down eight points at one point and we just plugged away. We're figuring out how to win close games, so this was a good one for us to get."
The turning point came from the midway through the second half when the Falcons pieced together a 15-2 run to turn a 38-30 deficit into a 45-40 advantage.
"In the second half we stepped it up defensively," said Wheaton North senior guard Sam Otto, who scored 12 of his 14 points in the final 16 minutes. "We kept them away from the basket and they started missing some shots."
Otto gave the Falcons (2-4, 1-1) the lead for good when teammate Jaylen Howze forced a turnover and pushed the ball up the floor to Otto, who scored while being fouled. Otto's free throw gave the Falcons a 41-40 advantage with 6 minutes, 50 seconds remaining. Wheaton North never trailed again.
Turnovers played a role in the outcome as the Falcons forced the Wildcats (2-4, 0-2) to commit 11 of their 15 miscues in the second half.
"We didn't take care of the ball," West Chicago coach Kevin Baldus said. "We're at the point now where we are still learning how to finish games and win games and not taking care of the ball really cost us there at the end. We made some crucial mistakes at key moments."
One big error occurred out of a West Chicago timeout with 1:20 left when the Wildcats threw the ball away. The Wildcats had more turnovers, than made baskets in the fourth quarter.
Wheaton North senior guard Ryan Jordan led all scorers with 19 points while 6-foot-11 junior center Andrew Zelis came off the bench and tallied 10 points while collecting 8 rebounds.
The Wildcats were balanced with Josh Gimre leading the way with 11 points. Tyler Schoenwolf and Dylan Hedmark each tallied 10 points with Mundt chipping in 8.
"We're not a one-man pony like we were last year," Baldus said. "Anyone we put out on the floor can score in double figures, which is a nice for us and it takes some pressure off Justin."
Nazos was impressed with the Wildcats.
"They are a really good team," Nazos said. "I don't think everyone in the area knows about them. They handle the ball real well, they are unselfish, they hit open shots they are going to be difficult to play, so this was a good one for us to get."