Fast-starting Wheaton North wins at Hoffman Estates

Wheaton North used a fast start to roll past Hoffman Estates 55-44 to claim the title in the inaugural Hawk Thanksgiving tournament in Hoffman Estates on Wednesday.

Wheaton North scored the game's first 11 points. The Falcons (2-0) forced 3 turrnovers while their man-to-man defense kept Hoffman away from the basket as the Hawks missed their first 5 shots.

"We came out in the first quarter and set the tone," Wheaton North coach Dave Brackman said. "We played great defensive and that helped us on the offensive end."

The Falcons, who knocked off West Chicago on Monday, were also impressive on the offensive end of the court. Wheaton North was led by Nick Traversa, who had 15 points, 7 of which came in the first quarter.

"We wanted to get out in transition," Traversa said. "We didn't let their pressure get to us. We stayed on the attack and finished our layups."

Hoffman Estates finally began to recover and was able to pull to within 4 at 13-9 with 1:09 left in the first quarter. But Kar Reng came off the bench to hit a basket and a 3-pointer as the Falcons opened up an 18-9 advantage after the first quarter and never looked back.

"We were not happy with our defense Monday night," Brackman said, "But we played much better tonight and we had four guys in double figures."

The Falcons also put the clamps on Hoffman's Jorden Thornton, who had 30 points in the Hawks' overtime victory on Tuesday against West Chicago. Wheaton North held Thornton, who got into early foul trouble, to just 5 points.

Wheaton North led 34-16 at the half when the Hawks finally found the intensity they were missing in the first half.

Hoffman Estates (1-1) began to pressure the ball, as the Hawks forced 13 second-half turnovers. But the hole they had dug themselves was too deep and never were able to get closer than 10.

"I thought our shot selection was good, but those 11 early points hurt us," Hoffman Estates coach Luke Yanule said. "But I liked our intensity at the end. Thee was just 2½ quarters that we didn't like."

Wheaton North got balanced scoring despite playing without point guard Nick Jordan, who was sidelined with an injury. Besides Traversa, Luke Anthony finished with 13 points, Reng had 11 and Rowan McGowen had 10 points.

"We played very good team basketball," said Anthony, who was in early foul trouble. "We moved the ball around real well and got everyone involved in the offense."

Hoffman Estates was led by Brandon Hall, who had 16 points, including 4 three-pointers. Hall also pulled down 11 rebounds. Dante Cleveland had 11 points, 7 of which came in the fourth quarter, while Robert Jacobs came off the bench to score 6 points.

Both coaches said that there were lessons to be learned by their teams heading into the meat of their seasons.

"This was a good start for us," Brackman said. "We know have a couple days. We know we have to handle pressure, so it gives us something to work on."

"We live to fight," Yanule said. We are a young team. We have to learn that we don't have to be down 13 to find the intensity we need."