Crawford leads Redhawks to championship

How far can a team with one bona fide superstar and a solid supporting cast go? All the way to a Christmas tournament title.

Naperville Central (12-1) won 62-50 over three-time defending Wheeling tournament champion Loyola Academy, getting 23 points from tournament MVP Drew Crawford and quality contributions up and down the lineup.

"Drew can get to the hoop at will, really, and when he kicks out we have to hit our shots," said Redhawks point guard Danny Ondik, who also made the all-tournament team.

"Every night, whether it's Dave (Mallett), (Nick) Linne, (Matt) Neufeld, me, or anyone else - we've got to step up on any given night."

It was Mallett who stepped up in the first half, scoring 10 of his 12 points including a pair of 3-pointers.

"Dave stepped up and hit some big 3s," Crawford said. "We were finding him because he tends to be hot early on in games. Dave was knocking them down."

For the four-game tournament Crawford averaged 24.5 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists, and 2.8 blocks. It was the first time since 1999 that the Redhawks won the Wheeling title, and Crawford became the first Redhawk since Tyler Turnquist in 1993 to win the MVP of the tournament.

Neufeld pulled down 9 rebounds and battled well against Loyola 6-foot-8 center Rob Wennington all night, and Ondik steered the ship with composure throughout.

"If we don't have (Ondik), we're in trouble," Redhawks coach Pete Kramer said. "He's so solid. He's the unsung hero of this team and does all the dirty work for us."

"My main role is to try not to turn the ball over, play good defense, run the offense and make sure we're in our sets," Ondik said.

The Redhawks led 26-22 at halftime before earning a 20-13 scoring edge in the third quarter to take control. They held an 8- to 10-point lead for much of the fourth and iced the game down the stretch by going 16 for 22 from the free-throw line.

The third quarter was pivotal for Naperville Central, and it was built on execution.

"We were moving the ball really well," Crawford said. "They were double-teaming a lot and we were able to find the open man."

"The boys are really starting to execute, and that's nice to see," Kramer said.

Naperville Central also got quality spot contributions from Joe Rickert, Cam Brate, and Bobby Czarnowski. Linne finished with 8 points in his return from a recent shoulder injury, including six free throws that helped seal the win.