Falish, Chambers team up for Warren
The backcourt combination of Jake Falish and Maurice Chambers is quickly becoming a tandem worth watching for the Warren Blue Devils.
Falish has filled it up from behind the arc this season, and he did so again Friday night in a road contest for the Devils at Libertyville. But the emergence of Chambers has been a big reason why the Devils are playing some of their best boys basketball of the season to this point.
Falish hit seven 3s on his way to a game-best 25 points, and Chambers rattled home a pair of long ones and finished with 19 to lift Warren to its fourth straight win and second of the season over Libertyville 57-49.
"Tonight is really what we have been selling these guys and this again was another team effort," Warren coach Ryan Webber said. "Everyone's fingerprints were all over this win again. It's Jake making shots, or Maurice making plays, or Caleb on defense or (Jovan Jokic) making a pass - it's everyone."
Warren (12-12, 5-6) needed all Falish, Chambers and company could deliver as the visitors trailed 35-34 to start the fourth quarter.
A long 3-pointer from Chambers gave the Devils the lead for good. Then an incredibly athletic play from the junior brought the house down.
With Warren clinging to a 39-37 lead, Chambers poked the ball away at midcourt. With a Wildcats defender hanging on him, Chambers took the ball to the net, spun, hung in the air and finished a layup that turned into a 3-point play.
"I was just trying to make a play and help my team win," said Chambers, who finished with 6 steals.
Libertyville (11-12, 4-7) hung close on the long-range shooting of Conor Peterson. He scored 11 of his team-high 15 points in the second half, including a 3 to end the third quarter that gave the Wildcats their last lead.
"I thought there in the third quarter we did a nice job against their ball pressure," said Libertyville coach Scott Bogumil. "We just made some critical errors where we would steal the ball and give it right back, and that hurt us."
While Chambers filled it up in the second half, Falish shook off a rough start to lead the Devils' scoring attack. Falish started just 1-for-6 from 3-point range, and then hit 7 of his next 10. His quick release and ability to shake a screen gave Falish great looks at the basket.
"When a good defensive team like Libertyville is playing us, they did a really good job helping off screens," Falish said. "I have to go shoulder-to-shoulder with the defender and get my shot off quick."
Warren built an 8-point lead to start the third quarter, but a 7-0 run by Libertyville helped the Wildcats erase the deficit. Paul Steinhaus was a big contributor during the run as he finished with 10 points.
Joe Borcia added 7 points and 11 rebounds for Libertyville, and Jovan Jokic had 9 points for Warren.