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Willowbrook's reward for passing test? Another test

Faced with an upcoming weekend that looks similar to the last one, Willowbrook's boys basketball team is jumping out of the frying pan and back into the frying pan.

The Warriors (18-1, 5-1 West Suburban Gold) notched a key conference win over Downers Grove South last Friday and followed up with Saturday's rivalry win over Glenbard East in the When Sides Collide Shootout. The same kind of challenge awaits this weekend against Proviso East and Addison Trail.

"Now we've got to get ready for another big conference game and another big rivalry game," said Warriors coach Chris Perkins. "We made it through this challenge, but it's on to the next one."

Thanks to Proviso East's win over Hinsdale South last Friday, Willowbrook moved into sole possession of first place in the Gold. The Warriors on Friday must beat those same streaking Pirates, whom they beat 59-53 in early December, in Maywood to maintain their top spot.

On Saturday, Willowbrook faces another road test at District 88 rival Addison Trail. Even though the Warriors rolled to a 74-51 win in December, the matchup is traditionally a struggle for both sides.

Since suffering its lone Gold loss to Hinsdale South on Dec. 16, Willowbrook has won 11 straight games, including championships at the Glenbard West holiday tournament and the Sterling Martin Luther King Jr. Day tournament.

"These are always tough weekends," Perkins said. "Sometimes after that first game you might be a little flat, and it's something we have to be aware of."

Lions roaring:

For the first time since the Interstate Eight Conference Tournament debuted in 2005-06 Lisle will play for the title, 7 p.m. Friday against Plano at Coal City.

"We told the kids we treat the conference tournament as a rehearsal for the regional. So far it's gone well," said Lions coach Mark LaScala.

Winner of 10 straight games, No. 5 seed Lisle (14-8, 5-2) got 18 points from Josh Jamison, 15 by Mark McGrath and 14 from Trevor Stitt in Tuesday's 65-59 win over Manteno to reach the final against No. 2 Plano.

The Lions opened with an easy win over Wilmington then beat No. 4 seed Peotone in a 53-51 thriller Jan. 21. With 3.8 seconds remaining McGrath made a free throw to tie the score, Bryan O'Connell stole Peotone's inbounds pass and on a third-chance putback Jamison scored at the buzzer.

"It was highly improbable," LaScala said.

Judged by Plano's 64-44 win over Lisle on Dec. 22, and the uniform height advantage owned by Reapers such as 6-foot-7 Jermaine Boyd, Lisle's chances Friday may too be a long shot. One can't measure heart, though.

"Size-wise, we don't match up at all, but I think we're a different team than when we played them last," said LaScala, who hopes to keep the score in the 50s.

"We'll have a plan," he said. "We'll see how the plan works."

Alum spurs improvement:

Fenton has shown program-wide improvement under Chaz Taft, the 1996 Fenton graduate in his first year as Bison coach. The varsity has won three straight games, which it didn't do last season.

"I just think it's starting to click with them all," Taft said. "I think they're doing a great job of playing with each other and just playing hard."

Junior point guard Andrew Hill, senior guard Javy Sanchez and three-year starting swingman Bryan Larsen are reducing turnovers that previously sabotaged good starts. Between Larsen's 12.8 points and contributions from Sanchez, forward Nick Schaub and senior forward Tyler Santagata, averaging 11.3 points and 5 rebounds, Fenton (6-13, 0-6 Metro Suburban Blue) gets balanced scoring.

Larsen brings a high basketball IQ.

"When I'm coaching another player on the team, he does a great job of listening to that and doing that," Taft said. "That's what separates him from not just our guys but from other guys on other teams."

Starting the week Fenton's sophomores were 8-9, the freshmen 7-12. In 2015-16 the freshmen didn't win a game, Taft said.

"I'm happy with the way we're competing, I'm happy with the way they come to practice and are working hard every day, not just from a varsity standpoint but from the sophomores and freshmen. It's fun," he said.

Getting closer:

Metea Valley senior forward Jeremy Hunter scored a personal-high 33 points in a 66-47 win over Glenbard North on Jan. 20. Hunter made 14 of 15 2-point shots. Coming off a 27-point game in a win over Glenbard East, Hunter nearly matched Kenny Obendorf's program-record 34 points.

Winning its fourth straight game Tuesday, Metea (8-13, 4-5 DuPage Valley Conference) has trended up.

"I think it's a combination of trusting teammates (and) believing in our system and also their role on the team, they're kind of embracing that," said coach Matt Walpole. "Also I think they're starting to understand how hard they have to work day in and day out to win in this conference."

Point guard Jayden Reed - a football cornerback just offered by Central Michigan - and Payton Thorne each assisted on 6 of Hunter's baskets against Glenbard North.

"Jayden Reed continues to provide the leadership for our kids," Walpole said. "He's the best teammate I've ever coached."

Slashing senior forward Ashton Creal averages 11.3 points, and the Mustangs recently returned 10-point scorer Ethan Helwig from injury.

"I think a goal for us right now is to make a good run at the second round in conference. We ended up 3-5 in the first round and we want to improve on that," Walpole said.

Halfway home:

Hinsdale Central (11-7, 6-0 West Suburban Silver) wrapped up the first half of conference play last weekend with home wins over two teams pegged as preseason favorites - Downers Grove North and Oak Park.

The Red Devils are a bit of a surprise, especially after sweeping the six other Silver teams in the first round. Following upcoming home games against Proviso West and Lyons Twp., Hinsdale Central closes league play with four straight on the road in hopes of winning its third Silver title in five years.

"We obviously have to continue to play at a high level," said Red Devils coach Nick Latorre. "Four road games the second time through won't be easy."

Backcourt mates Jack Hoiberg and Chris Eck, respectively averaging 14.6 and 12.2 points, have led the Red Devils in recent games but they've seen contributions deep into their rotation. Unlike past seasons when they've enjoyed dominant post players carrying the load, this year's team is succeeding with five additional players averaging between 5 and 9 points a game.

The Red Devils are starting to distance themselves from the .500 mark after starting the season with three losses.

"It allowed us to find out what we needed to do to be competitive," Latorre said. "We needed to improve our defensive effort and be more efficient on offense, and I think we're starting to do that."

Follow Dave on Twitter @doberhelman1

Follow Kevin on Twitter @kevin_schmit

  Willowbrook's Matys Masas and his teammates play Proviso East and Addison Trail this weekend. Mark Black/mblack@dailyherald.com
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