Basketball: WW South’s boys, girls sweep pair from Wheaton North

With the home crowd rocking after Wheaton Warrenville South’s 19-point lead had completely evaporated and then some, Luca Carbonaro told his huddled teammates that the game wasn’t over.

Turns out the Tigers' senior was right.

After Zach Rogers hit a game-tying 3-pointer, Carbonaro followed with a steal and three-point play with just over a minute left, helping the visitors to a 53-49 DuKane conference victory over Wheaton North.

Carbonaro also made three free throws in the final 25 seconds, finishing with 18-points to go along with nine rebounds and two blocked shots.

“I told the guys that it was still winnable,” said Carbonaro. “After that, Zach turned and hit the biggest shot I’ve ever seen and then I got a steal, I read it right, and went down and got the and-one. Zach came out and played his rear end off tonight.

“No matter what our records are, this is going to be a close game. Props to them for hitting some big shots. And I have to also give props to our JV team, they’ve been kicking our butts all week (in practice).”

Rogers also shared game-high honors with 18 points for WWS (6-3, 2-1), which has now won four in a row.

“A rivalry game is always hard,” Rogers said. “Anything can happen. That was a big shot at the end but it came with a lot of preparation. It was a huge week of practice and tonight, I was able to find some soft spots (in the defense).”

The Tigers led 26-13 at halftime and built their margin to as many as 19 points in the third quarter. Brady Goken chipped in with nine points.

“I thought we helped them a little bit during their run but they were making big shots and big plays,” said WWS coach Mike Healy. “In the first half, we were making big shots and big plays. And then Zach and Luca made two huge plays at the end. Credit to both teams, a lot of people made plays.

“I feel like we are making strides. We are blessed. We kept 20 kids and we are blessed with a group that competes against our (rotational) guys every day. They make our guys better on a daily basis. I’m happy we won, I’m happy we beat Wheaton North and I feel like there are more strides we can make to get to another level.”

Trailing 39-20, the Falcons (5-4, 2-2) closed the third on a 15-0 spurt, highlighted by a pair of 3s and eight total points from Henry Schlickman. After the Tigers scored the first five of the fourth quarter, Wheaton North responded with a 12-0 run, tying the game on a basket by Sean Pedersen and taking the lead on a three by Schlickman with 1:42 left.

Matthew Beamer topped the hosts with 13 points to go along with six rebounds and four steals and Schlickman had 11 points. Cal McKay and Pedersen both scored seven.

“We just didn’t play with the kind of energy and intensity we needed in the first two quarters and even the beginning of the third,” said Wheaton North coach Dave Brackmann, whose team had won three in a row including a victory over Batavia. “With our backs against the wall, we fought really hard. But that’s the thing we need to do from the beginning of the game.

“I’m really proud of the fact they didn’t roll over, instead they came back and took a three-point lead. It’s a good learning experience for the team, I just wish we could have had the learning experience with a win. We are getting close to being a good team, we are just not quite there yet.”

Girls game

Even when things weren’t going smoothly in the early going Friday, Emily Troia and her Wheaton Warrenville South teammates never lost confidence in each other.

And that belief paid off in the end.

Troia hit a go-ahead 3-pointer with just under two minutes remaining and followed with four straight free throws to lead the visiting Tigers to a come-from-behind 40-37 DuKane Conference win over Wheaton North to spoil a special night for Falcons' senior Sara Abdul.

“I wasn’t shooting it particularly well, but you have to have confidence in yourself,” said Troia, who finished in double figures with 10 points after scoring her team’s final seven. “I just had to shoot it with confidence. As far as the free throws, you just have to calm yourself down and tell yourself you are making them.

“Obviously, we started off a little slow, but part of being confident in ourselves and our team is knowing that if we just continue to play hard and stay calm, we will fight back. You have to play a full 32 minutes.”

Abdul became the all-time leading scorer in the history of the Wheaton North girls program with a 3-pointer late in the first quarter.

That gave her a career total of 1,529 points, eclipsing Claire Hyde. The senior added seven more points in the contest, finishing with 14.

”It’s crazy to break the record. There are so many great players who have played here," said Abdul, whose ultimate goal is to reach 2,000 points. “I’m proud of myself, it means a lot, but I’m more disappointed we couldn’t get the win. We’ve come close in a lot of games, we just have to learn how to finish at the end.”

WWS (7-4, 3-1) trailed by as much as 12 midway through the second quarter before slicing the deficit to 22-16 by halftime.

Shea Carver spurred a 13-4 run in the third, scoring eight of her team-high 12 points during the period. The senior added four steals.

“It was really a back-and-forth game,” said Carver, who played her first three years at Montini. “We kept our composure; we stayed patient, we were strong and confident with the ball and we got the ball to the right person to shoot the free throws.

“You just have to come out and give it all you can and give it 100%.”

Five straight points by Abdul to begin the fourth gave the Falcons (1-8, 0-4) a 31-29 lead and that margin later increased to four.

But the home team was held to one basket the rest of the way, a layup by Brigitte Noyes with seven seconds remaining.

Noyes had nine points and three blocked shots and Adeline Sutton scored six. Brooke Ittersagen chipped in with seven points and five rebounds for the Tigers and Abby Keighron added five points and six rebounds.

“Their (Wheaton North’s) record doesn’t indicate anything (about them),” said WWS coach Kasey Gassensmith, whose team had recently lost to St. Charles North and Glenbard South and plays Maine South on Saturday. “They are a good team and they fight hard. The crosstown is always going to be a battle. I’m extremely proud of our girls' composure. In this type of environment, there are going to be a lot of runs and our thing is to stay level and composed and our girls did that.

“We have a tough schedule, but that gets us ready for the level of play we want to be at.”