Down the stretch, Naperville Central had guys step up
It may have been the longest 1 minute and 39 seconds of Naperville Central's collective life.
But life will go on for the Redhawks' boys basketball team after its 68-61 win over Bolingbrook.
With Wednesday's game winding down and Naperville Central nursing a 58-52 lead, all-everything senior Drew Crawford picked up a fifth foul that sent a shock wave through the crowd at the Class 4A Oswego East sectional.
One call - feverishly argued against by Naperville Central coach Pete Kramer - put the Redhawks' season in doubt. They'd have to endure the final 1:39 without the two-time DuPage Valley Conference player of the year and Daily Herald All-Area Captain who's headed to Northwestern.
If ever panic was justified, this was the time.
"A little bit of panic," admitted junior center Matt Neufeld. "But then you realize we've still got great leadership. Drew's a huge part of the team and we all realize that. He's irreplaceable, but we had some key guys step up."
Guy No. 1: Danny Ondik.
The team's unsung senior hero, Ondik's heady point guard play allowed the Redhawks to survive in the face of Bolingbrook's onslaught of full-court pressure and trapping defense.
Sure, there were some missteps. But there's no way Naperville Central wins the game without Ondik directing the offense.
He finished with 17 points and 5 assists, hitting 10 of 12 fourth-quarter free throws and dishing 3 of his assists. One of them came on a beautiful feed to Neufeld in the post with 56 seconds left that put the lead at 62-55.
"We just needed to take care of the ball and stay calm without (Crawford)," Ondik said. "It was a big hit, but we couldn't do anything about it. We had to look past it and deal with what we had."
What they had was a potentially dire situation, given that Ondik and Neufeld both were playing with four fouls.
Everyone who played - from starters Nick Linne and David Mallett to subs Jeremy Pomeroy, Joe Rickert and Andre Cephus - had to pitch in. In addition to knocking down a free throw with 20 seconds left, Rickert grabbed a pair of huge rebounds in the final minute.
They all recognized the urgency of the situation.
Losing Crawford could have led to collapse. Instead, it allowed an entire team to shine in the moment.
"The kids really kept their composure and handled themselves," said Redhawks coach Pete Kramer. "Who would have thought that we would have done that? Everybody stepped up."
All season long in postgame interviews, Crawford's gone out of his way to credit his teammates for their crucial contributions.
While Crawford's 23 points, 12 rebounds, 3 assists and 3 blocks attest to his obvious importance, lingering perceptions that Naperville Central is a one-man team disintegrated with the close of Wednesday's sectional semifinal.
In the final 1:39 against Bolingbrook, Crawford's teammates made the point loud and clear.
kschmit@dailyherald.com