Free-throw streak lifts Naperville North

Jacquie Discipio has watched the Naperville North girls basketball team find plenty of ways to lose close games this season.

Maybe that's why the Huskies coach was all smiles as she watched one fourth-quarter free throw after another splash through the net Thursday night.

Shannon Bushman scored a game-high 20 points, freshman Kayla Sharples added 18, and Naperville North beat West Aurora 67-53 in Naperville. The Huskies exorcised a few demons along the way, hitting 18 fourth-quarter free throws including their last 14 in a row to hold off the hard-charging Blackhawks.

"Clearly our free throws are what pushed use through at the end," Discipio said. "We've had a ton of close games, and a ton of games we've lost by free throws.

"It's nice to finally see what we're practicing go into action."

Naperville North (12-12, 4-8 DuPage Valley Conference) looked like it might run away from West Aurora (12-11, 5-7) early, riding the hot shooting of Bushman and the speed of point guard Zoe Swift to 32-19 lead at halftime.

But the Blackhawks whittled the lead to single digits in the third quarter and kept pushing in the fourth, cutting the deficit to 49-44 on a three-point play by Dazmine Chaney at the 6:32 mark. The Huskies led by eight after a basket by Sharples and two free throws from Swift, but West Aurora got a 3-pointer from Alexis Nelson at the 3:30 mark and pulled within 53-49.

Naperville North turned the ball over with a wild baseline pass on its next possession, leading to a pullup jumper by West Aurora's Alexis Nelson that cut the lead to two points.

That was as close as West Aurora would get as Naperville North scored eight straight points all on free throws to ice the game up 61-51 with 1:18 to play.

"We knew they were going to go on a couple runs," Bushman said. "We hoped it wouldn't get as close as it did, but it did. I think we did a great job of ... pushing through that."

Bushman went 5 for 6 from the free-throw line in the fourth as Sharples and Swift who was 10 for 12 from the line in the game combined to go a perfect 10 for 10. The Huskies converted 28 of 35 attempts as a team; West Aurora only shot 20 free throws total.

"We gave the game to them," West Aurora coach Connie Siljendahl said. "We didn't move the ball, didn't get it inside."

West Aurora struggled early as two quick fouls forced post threat Elizabeth Skaggs to the bench. She finished the game with eight points, all of which came in one third-quarter burst.

Nelson led the Blackhawks with 14 points, and Abriya Zeitz added 11.

Swift scored 12 points for Naperville North, helping the Huskies to that first-half lead by pushing the tempo and routinely beating West Aurora's defense in transition to create easy scoring chances.

"We were just loose and playing basketball," Discipio said. "That's when we're best and hardest to beat."

Naperville North has won two straight after a six-game slide.