Glenbard West ends four-game drought
With the West Suburban Conference scheduling late-season boys basketball crossover matchups, Wednesday night offered an interesting opportunity for both Glenbard West and Addison Trail.
The Hilltoppers entered the night on a four-game losing streak, and Addison Trail had lost in five of its last six. But both teams had been good in flashes, and wins can be a catalyst this time of year. So with plenty to play for, you might have expected a tightly contested game in Glen Ellyn.
That wasn't the case in a 60-42 Hilltoppers win that was all Glenbard West from tip to finish.
"We shot well early and that helped, but it's like I told the kids, this is the exciting part of the season," Glenbard West coach Tim Hoder said. "If you play well now you never know what can happen, and in stretches we played pretty well tonight.
"We kinda pride ourselves and the kids pride themselves that regardless of what happens - the ups and downs throughout the season - we stay together and we keep working hard."
The Hilltoppers got the scoring started in unusual fashion on the night. Forward Justin Pierce hit a deep 3-pointer as he was fouled on the game's first possession, then he made his free throw for the 4-point play. Pierce finished with a team-high 11 points and 7 rebounds.
Heading into the second quarter with a 14-7 lead, Glenbard West (11-15) began to pull away with a 12-2 run started by a thunderous dunk in transition by Kalen Starkey and punctuated by a 3-pointer from Aidan Gould. Starkey and Gould pitched in 10 and 8 points, respectively, for Glenbard West.
From there Addison Trail (15-11) never managed to get any closer than 15 points the rest of the game.
"The last month or so we really haven't defended," Addison Trail coach Brendan Lyons said. "I thought we turned the corner even in some losses last week by keeping teams in the 40s, which is more our style, but when you're scoring 33, 35, 38 points, you're not going to win varsity basketball games."
Taylor White led the Blazers with 12 points. Nicholas Conrad scored 8 fourth-quarter points in the loss, as well.