Skeete has another big night for Waubonsie Valley

Marcus Skeete rose to rebound his missed shot in the first minute Tuesday and got credit for a tip-in that appeared to go off an Oswego player.

He didn't need the help.

Skeete, Waubonsie Valley's 6-foot-5 senior forward, matched a 40-year-old single-game program scoring record with 41 points earlier this year. He threatened it Tuesday.

Skeete scored 27 of his 35 points in an incredibly efficient first half. The Warriors broke out to a 24-point first-half lead and went on to beat Oswego 62-55 in a matchup of potential top-five seeds in next month's sectional.

Skeete scored 15 in the first quarter, simply overpowering an Oswego team with just one starter, 6-foot-8 Connor McCance, taller than 6-3.

"They got a big boy in the middle, but besides that they kind of got a height disadvantage," said Skeete, who shot 14 for 19 and also had 13 rebounds and 2 blocks. "I knew I could get some rebounds, putbacks, all of that down low."

Kobe Adams scored 23 points, 15 coming in the second quarter, and Jack Kahoun 14 points for Oswego (18-5). Kahoun, who scored 12 of his 14 in the fourth quarter, eclipsed 1,000 varsity points with two free throws early in the fourth quarter.

Kahoun, a four-year varsity player, appreciated the moment.

"I remember sitting there, 6 years old, old Oswego gym, looking up at that 1,000-point board, super cool," Kahoun said. "Some great players have gone through Oswego. Just to have my name up there, it feels awesome. I couldn't do it without my teammates and coaches, it's really nice."

"That's a heck of a high school achievement," said Oswego assistant Matt Borrowman, coaching the team with coach Chad Pohlmann home sick. "He's been a great four-year player for us."

Oswego didn't have much else to celebrate, though.

Waubonsie (22-3), coming off a surprise loss to Naperville North Friday, shot a blistering 75% in the first quarter. Skeete made seven straight field goals after missing his first shot and scored 9 of Waubonsie's points during an 18-0 run for a 22-4 lead. It was 26-6 by the quarter turn, 30-6 a minute into the second.

"Our first quarter was about as bad as it gets," Borrowman said. "We just weren't ready to go. It started on the way over. Our bus ride, albeit a very short one, was lacking focus. And it carried over. I want to give them credit too. They're well oiled and Skeete got going early."

Indeed, Oswego has done well in slowing down elite scorers like Neuqua Valley's John Poulakidas and Romeoville's Destin Whitaker this season. But the Panthers had no answer for Skeete, who was overpowering on drives and rebounds at the rim when he wasn't scoring in transition.

"He's a power player," Borrowman said. "The thing about him, too, he's a little better than area players that are very talented is he rebounds. That's really where he gets you. You put a small guy on him, he can beat you up on the glass."

Oswego struggled mightily at both ends early, shooting just 2 for 13 with six turnovers in the first quarter. Adams got it going from there, scoring 15 points in the second quarter on a series of drives to the basket, but it was still 42-25 at half.

"Kobe does that," Borrowman said. "He goes on those scoring binges where he gets into a rhythm and he's almost impossible to stop when he gets going."

Skeete knows it, smiling when asked about the one-on-one dual.

"Kobe is my boy, a really good player," Skeete said. "He's good at attacking. It was fun playing against him today."

Ben Schwieger added 12 points, 8 in the first half, for Waubonsie. The Warriors led 49-33 after three quarters and held off Oswego's late charge, which Waubonsie coach Jason Mead could have done without.

"We played really well in the first quarter, we looked for gaps and we got to the rim a lot," Mead said. "Defensively we did a nice job of staying in front and forcing tough ones. We built enough of a lead that we couldn't give it away even if we tried, which we did."

Joey Niesman added 9 points for Oswego, all in the second half. Skeete, the lone returning starter off last year's regional champ, recognized the importance of this one.

"This was one we circled on the calendar at the beginning of the year," Skeete said. "We knew we had to come at them with a good mentality because they're a good team."