Naperville North finds key to success

For Naperville North to be successful this season, its defense and rebounding must be constant.

That's exactly what happened Monday at Plainfield Central. Naperville North (7-3), after leading just 22-18 halftime, turned on the defense in a big way, outscoring the Wildcats 22-6 in the second half and shutting them out in the final quarter to win big 44-24.

It was a tune-up for Friday's championship girls basketball game in the Naperville North/Benet Christmas Tournament.

"It's going to be a huge challenge, but we're excited for it," Huskies coach Jason Dycus said. "(Benet is) balanced. They are hard to defend inside and out, and Kathleen Doyle is one of the premier guards in the state. I think the key is how you handle their pressure."

Naperville North had to deal with Plainfield Central (3-6) first, however, and the Wildcats battled the Huskies equally in the first half. The teams were tied at 7 after the first eight minutes. Plainfield Central led 18-14 with 2:22 until halftime with the help of team-high scorer Hennessey Handy scored 7 of her 11 points in the second period.

The Huskies, though, closed the first half in a big way with Laurel Pereira driving through the lane untouched for three unanswered layups. She scored a game-high 17 points.

Naperville North methodically pulled away with the game in the third quarter. When Plainfield Central coach Greg Bayer called a timeout with 2:21 remaining in the third and the Huskies up 30-21, Cece Pope had a team-high 6 points for the quarter. She finished with 14 and 7 rebounds.

Pope had two free throws to start the final quarter of play to put her team up 34-24 and the Huskies' advantage remained double digits for the remainder of the game.

"As far as the second half, sometimes shots are not going to fall. But you can control the intensity and effort on defense. We came together well as a team," Pereira said.

Dycus was especially happy with the Huskies' result in the fourth quarter.

"Our game plan is to play the best defense we can and share the basketball. To hold Plainfield Central to no points in the fourth quarter is something that we are proud of," he said.

And now the Huskies are on to their biggest game so far of the season.

"The keys will be our intensity and focus the entire game. Benet is going to pressure us the entire game," Pereira said.