Memorable end for Paul, Warren

The first 17 minutes Saturday night were forgettable defensively for Warren.

The first 30 minutes were forgettable for offensively for junior Brandon Paul.

But the Blue Devils allowed only 16 points the last 15 minutes and Paul scored 8 of his 13 points in the final 1:33 of a 50-47 nonconference boys basketball victory at Hoffman Estates.

Paul was contained by Casey Terry and missed his first 8 shots. But out of a timeout in a 41-41 tie, the 6-foot-2 junior and Illinois recruit banked in a leaning 10-footer with 1:33 left to put Warren (15-9) ahead to stay in its fifth straight victory.

"I knew once I got the ball I had to make something happen," Paul said after finishing 3-for-12 from the field.

Paul also hit 6 of 8 free throws in the final 40 seconds. But after a miss with two seconds left, a three-quarter court heave by Hoffman (14-12) junior Tom Dombrowski hit the front rim and dropped to the floor.

"It should have never even come down to that," Dombrowski said. "I felt like it was going to go in but you can't rely on that."

And unreliable 3-for-13 free-throw shooting cost the Hawks as Warren finished 18-for-24.

"Basically in a game like this, that's the game," said Hoffman coach Bill Wandro. "And some of the misses came at a time we really needed points."

Hoffman only missed 8 of its first 21 shots to take a 31-25 lead on Casey Terry's baseline jumper 54 seconds into the second half. Luke Mead (21 points) hit three 3s and Steve Anderson had 8 of his 9 points on second-quarter layups.

"We were playing really lackadaisical and giving them layup after layup," Paul said.

"We were really flat and we weren't mentally sharp at the beginning," said Warren coach Chuck Ramsey. "We got away from doing the things we've been doing lately and have been successful for us."

But Eric Williams came in and forced Mead to miss his first 8 second-half shots. Dombrowski's hustling rebound basket was Hoffman's only points in a 12-minute stretch where it missed 16 of 17 shots and 5 free throws.

"We weren't too aggressive taking it to the basket," Dombrowski said. "We thought we were we'd start holding the ball and you can't play that way."

Mead's steal and 4-point play started a rally from a 39-33 deficit to a tie at 41-41 on Chris Hall's layup at 1:55. But Warren's Jason Poliquin (12 points) added a free throw in the Paul-dominated finish.