Naperville Central eliminates the gap
Leaving the Wheaton gym in December, Naperville Central coach Andy Nussbaum wasn't sure if his team could keep pace with Wheaton Warrenville South in the DVC.
Beating the Tigers? That seemed like a stretch.
Well, look at those Redhawks now.
No. 14 Naperville Central turned the tables on a 30-point loss in the teams' first meeting, holding off a late rally by No. 7 WW South for a 52-49 win Thursday in Naperville to forge a tie atop the DuPage Valley Conference.
Nussbaum, understandably, was bounding with energy afterward.
"Dec. 13 is a long, long time ago," said Nussbaum, referring back to the 67-37 loss in Wheaton. "And it isn't like we pulled a rabbit out of our hat. We've been playing really, really well."
Indeed Naperville Central (15-8, 9-1) is 9-2 since Dec. 26, and in both losses the Redhawks led in the fourth quarter.
Thursday wasn't without its anxious moments, either.
Naperville Central led by as many as 9 in the fourth quarter and looked in control up 50-42 with 4:01 left after a Jill D'Amico free throw.
WW South (20-3, 9-1) turned up the heat late, forcing a flurry of Redhawks turnovers and drawing within 50-49 with 1:59 left on two Meghan Waldron free throws.
The Tigers had three possessions for the lead but were called for two critical moving screens in the final 80 seconds. After the second, with 18 ticks left, Naperville Central's Emma Donahue followed a missed shot with a stickback basket. WW South didn't get a 3 off in its last possession, its 10-game win streak snapped.
"It's nice to be able to finish one today," Nussbaum said. "I was getting nervous."
Donahue and fellow 6-footer Victoria Trowbridge were dominating presences at both ends.
Donahue had 18 points and 10 rebounds, and Trowbridge 13 points and 12 boards. They teamed up for 12 points in the third quarter, when Naperville Central shot 9 of 13 from the field for 21 points to turn a two-point halftime deficit into a 44-36 lead.
"That was about the best offensive quarter we've had all year," Nussbaum said.
Defensively, the Redhawks used a zone scheme with Donahue and Trowbridge guarding the basket to upset the flow of WW South's motion offense. Dynamic Tigers point guard Waldron was kept under control, the Redhawks' two "trees" blocked 6 shots and altered several others.
"Our height gives us an advantage," said Drake recruit Donahue. "They know we're big, and they know what we can do. They call me the 'Insurance Policy' sometimes."
Kasey Gassensmith scored 14 points and Waldron 10 points for WW South, held shy of 50 points for only the fourth time this year. Maggie Dansdill added 9 points and 8 rebounds. Unlike the first meeting, the Tigers got little off the offensive boards and a more methodical pace played to Naperville Central's strength in size.
"They outplayed us for a little over three quarters," WW South coach Rob Kroehnke said. "We made a nice run, but we just didn't have enough at the end. They controlled the game today, offensively and defensively, and took us out of what we like to do. They're too good a team to just let them do what they like to do."