Boys basketball: Freshman Kelly’s 31 points lead Neuqua Valley over Naperville Central
The Neuqua Valley students who made the crosstown trip to Naperville Central wanted the home crowd to know one thing about forward Cole Kelly in the DuPage Valley Conference opener for both teams.
If they hadn’t chanted, “He’s a freshman,” he might easily have been mistaken for an upperclassman.
The 6-foot-6 Kelly indeed is at the start of his prep career, and he torched the Redhawks to give the Wildcats a 60-45 victory.
Neuqua Valley (3-1, 1-0) and Naperville Central (2-4, 0-1) were engaged in a dogfight during the first three quarters, frequently tying the game and exchanging leads.
Everything changed in the fourth quarter when Kelly scored 14 of his 31 points to pace the Wildcats, who outscored the Redhawks, 21-10, to start conference play right.
“Friday nights are different,” said Wildcats coach Todd Sutton. “It's not the Thanksgiving tournament. It's not a Tuesday night boring game somewhere on the road. Conference is different. It's just high level of intensity. Everyone brings it every night, so it's very difficult.”
The Wildcats enjoyed an 11-7 lead after the first quarter. TJ Hillman was responsible for all of the Redhawks’ scoring in that quarter, during which he collected all but two of the nine points he finished with.
That positioned the Redhawks to outscore the Wildcats, 18-13, in the second quarter and take a 25-24 halftime lead.
The third quarter saw Neuqua Valley roar back to take a four-point lead at the end of the frame. That served as a precursor to Kelly and his teammates going for the kill.
When Kelly was removed near the game’s conclusion, he received high-fives from his fellow students sitting right behind the team’s bench.
Senior guard Whitman Charboneau scored 10 points as an example of the Wildcats veterans Kelly holds in high regard.
Another example came when senior guard David Taiwo jumped high to reject a shot out of bounds in the second quarter, which sent the Neuqua Valley students into a frenzy. They celebrated again soon after when Kelly finished a break with a one-handed dunk.
“Those seniors are a big part of my motivation,” Kelly said. “Giving them a good last season, giving them an energetic season.”
Evan Moss led Naperville Central with 13 points, including three 3-pointers. Cooper Page wasn’t far behind with 10 points, six of them coming on two 3s.
“We played three great quarters of basketball,” said Hillman, who was shut out in the second half. “But we gotta play that fourth quarter. We gotta stay mentally strong.”