Anthony leads Wheaton North past Naperville North

Toughness. Wheaton North's Luke Anthony's got it.

Anthony scored 20 points, including 3 clutch free throws in the final 1:36, and kept the Falcons afloat after they staggered out of the gate as Wheaton North stunned host Naperville North 72-67 Friday in the DuPage Valley Conference.

Nothing the 6-foot-3 junior guard does surprises Wheaton North boys basketball coach Dave Brackmann.

"We have a lot of leaders, but Luke stepped up and is doing such a great job on the court, off the court, in practice," Brackmann said. "He does a lot more than just score. He runs the team. He fills up the stat sheet. He's one of those guys who stays calm in big moments. It's great to have him out there."

Anthony almost single-handedly rallied Wheaton North (6-0, 2-0) from an early 15-5 deficit, scoring 5 points in the final 1:43 of the first quarter, including a long 3-pointer. He found Ethan Block to the left of the key for a 3-pointer that tied the game at 21-21 midway through the second quarter.

"We were trying to make a statement," Anthony said. "We were excited for this game. We were the underdogs. Nobody had us winning. It feels great. Our team stuck together. We're a real close team. We encourage each other. We knew we were going to get the 'W.'"

Wheaton North extended the lead to 28-21 with 2:27 remaining in the first half, but Naperville North (5-2, 2-1) went on a 25-12 run over a 7:01 span of the second and third quarters and grabbed a 46-40 lead on E.J. Vaughn's rebound basket.

A 3-pointer from beyond the key to beat the third-quarter buzzer by Wheaton North's Jack Bennett tied the game at 48-48 heading into the final eight minutes.

"Naperville North is a really talented team," Brackmann said. "We didn't start the way we wanted, but this group is great. They don't panic in those situations. They just keep playing. Different guys stepped up at different times, and Luke was able to keep us going, keep us going."

Anthony's basket with 3:52 remaining gave Wheaton North its biggest lead at 59-48. But the Huskies had one more run left in them and closed to within 64-61 with 1:42 left when Jelani McClain split a pair of free throws. But the Falcons held on by making 8 of 10 free throws during the final 67 seconds.

"Props to them," Naperville North's Tyler Carlson said. "They made their free throws. The game came down the stretch and they closed it out on us. It was a game of runs and they were able to get the better runs tonight."

Bennet added 16 points, Rowan McGowen had 14 and Jackson Garner added 10 off the bench for Wheaton North. Carlson led Naperville North with 17 points, all in the first half.

"This whole season when we play against good teams we're not mentally and physically tough enough," Naperville North coach Jeff Powers said. "Until we learn to defend somebody we're going to be in trouble. We lack some toughness."

That's one thing Anthony has plenty of.