Meier keys Naperville Central win vs. Glenbard North

Matthew Meier is playing a different role for Naperville Central this season. Friday in the fourth quarter at Glenbard North, he played the role of "Superman."

Meier rallied Naperville Central from a 36-33 deficit early in the fourth quarter by scoring 18 of his team's 20 points in the final 7:13 to lead the Redhawks to a 53-48 victory in the DuPage Valley Conference opener for both teams.

Meier finished with 25 points, making all 11 of his free-throw attempts, including 9 of 9 in the fourth quarter.

"I knew I had to get to the free-throw line and make some plays because we were struggling to score," the 6-foot-2 senior said. "I knew the game would depend on me. I knew I had to make some plays."

Meier's three-point play with 2:09 remaining in the fourth quarter, his third three-point play over the final 5:26, gave the Redhawks the lead for good at 49-46.

"Matthew makes us go," Naperville Central coach Pete Kramer said. "He's playing a little different role this season. He's playing more of the point, so he has the ball in his hands a lot more and he's getting used to doing that. Before, he was always playing away from the ball.

"He's doing a great job. He can score in a lot of ways and he makes his teammates better."

Naperville Central (4-1, 1-0) led 18-9 with 4:04 remaining in the second quarter, but Glenbard North (0-5, 0-1) closed the first half on an 11-0 run capped by Nick LaVere's baseline drive with 1.5 seconds remaining. LaVere led Glenbard North with 22 points.

"Nick had a really good ballgame," Glenbard North coach Joe Larson said. "He shot it well from 3, and he also can put it on the floor and get to the basket, too. The other thing about Nick is he plays both ends of the floor. He's a really good defensive player. It was a really good game by him."

LaVere scored to open the second half to extend the Panthers' lead to 22-18 before James Kendrick ended the visitors' nearly five-minute scoring drought with a 3-pointer from the left corner.

"Kendrick gave us some life," Kramer said. "He hit some big 3s."

Glenbard North led 34-33 heading into the final eight minutes before Meier donned his blue and red cape.

"Every game in the DVC is tough," Meier said. "Glenbard North beat us two years ago twice. They're a good team. They hit some big shots and got a lot of offensive rebounds. They're a young team. They're going to be good for the next couple of years. So this is one we knew we had to have."