Waubonsie too far behind to come back against Mustangs

Waubonsie Valley outscored Downers Grove South by 22 points in the second half ... and lost.

That's how good the Mustangs were in the opening half of Saturday's nonconference boys basketball game in Downers Grove.

Looking invincible at times while winning its eighth straight game, Downers South never trailed in a 72-67 win over the Warriors.

In fact the final score represented the smallest margin since the Mustangs (13-4) opened the game on a 10-0 run. By halftime they led 47-20, building the gap as big as 49-20 early in the third quarter.

"That was one of the best first halves we've played all year," said Mustangs coach Paul Runyon. "Forty-seven points in the first half? It was ridiculous. It was like a totally different team for them in the second half. They were much more aggressive."

That's an understatement.

Warriors coach Steve Weemer benched his starters for the bulk of the first half, but Jelani Johnson bounced back to score 18 of his 20 points in the second half, including 12 in the fourth quarter.

Ryan Lippman came off the bench to knock down six 3-pointers and finish with 20 points while fellow sub Geremie Savoy pitched in with 15 points.

Kendrick Clayton's 50-footer at the third-quarter buzzer made it 55-36 and Waubonsie Valley (9-8) pulled within single digits on Johnson's bucket in the final minute. Lippman's 3-pointer at the fourth-quarter buzzer accounted for the final.

If in the first half Waubonsie Valley had played with anything close to the intensity it showed late in the game, the outcome might have been much different.

"We are a team that's played well for halves a lot this year, and we've got to figure out a way to play for 32 minutes," Weemer said. "That was on the bottom of our scouting report tonight. We need to play for 32 minutes, and we still didn't.

"I was proud of our guys, we did have a great comeback," he said. "We had a good effort in the second half."

Downers South hit eight of its nine 3-pointers in the first half, sparked by three apiece by Alex Gorniak, who finished with 20 points, and Malcolm Herron, who tallied a game-high 24. The Mustangs made 16 of 23 first-half shots, including 8-of-12 3-point shooting.

"We had a good talk before the game, and that really got us going," Herron said. "It was just good shooting today, I guess."