WW South corners Naperville C.
Even in its most recent losses, Wheaton Warrenville South's boys basketball team felt like it had turned the corner on the season.
Friday provided the proof.
Avenging a loss from the first round of DuPage Valley Conference play, the visiting Tigers edged Naperville Central 50-47.
WW South (8-13, 4-6) led nearly the entire way after bolting to an 8-0 advantage just two minutes into the game. The only time the Tigers trailed was when Austin Pauga nailed a 3-pointer to put Naperville Central (11-9, 3-6) ahead 12-11.
Less than a minute later, though, the start of a 9-3 Tigers run gave them the lead for good midway through the second quarter.
"We've definitely turned the corner," said WW South senior guard Dan Roadman. "The last couple weeks we've been playing a lot different ballgames. Our defense is phenomenal right now."
Stingier defense in the second half allowed the Tigers to consistently hold off Naperville Central. Pauga hit four 3-pointers in the first half and scored all 14 of his points, including 11 in the first quarter.
An aggressive zone defense by WW South thwarted the Redhawks' perimeter game the rest of the way. Although 6-foot-8 sophomore Nick Czarnowski scored 15 of his game-high 20 points in the second half for the Redhawks, only 11 points came from the rest of the team in the final 16 minutes.
"All facets of the game have left us as of right now," said Naperville Central coach Pete Kramer, whose team lost its third straight game. "We're not consistent, and it started after Christmas. We've got to fight through it and find a way."
WW South stretched its lead to 45-36 with 2:15 left in the game on Michael Kramer's 3-pointer, but three times Naperville Central narrowed the gap to 3 points.
The Tigers made 5 of 7 free throws down the stretch to maintain their advantage. Czarnowski scored at the buzzer to account for the final.
Tim Zyburt scored a team-high 16 points, including two of the Tigers' eight 3-pointers, and grabbed 7 rebounds. Kramer added 12 points off the bench.
"As a coach you look over a three-to-five game stretch, and over the last couple of games I thought we played some pretty good basketball," said Tigers coach Bob Szorc. "Sometimes not on the right side of the scoreboard, but some pretty good basketball."