Hinsdale South still has Willowbrook's number
Willowbrook's boys basketball team has only two losses.
No one knows that more than Hinsdale South.
The Hornets broke out the kryptonite for the second time this season and remains the lone team to beat Willowbrook after Friday's 62-50 West Suburban Gold victory in Villa Park.
The Warriors (21-2, 7-2) technically remain a half-game ahead of Hinsdale South (14-9, 6-2) for the Gold lead, but both teams can share the title if they win their remaining league games. The Hornets snapped Willowbrook's 14-game winning streak - a streak that began after losing 69-57 at Hinsdale South on Dec. 16.
"We just come in and we don't really care about their record. We're coming to get a 'W'," said Hornets junior Zion Griffin, who scored 18 of his game-high 23 points in the second half. "We couldn't worry about the crowd or anything. We just had to play our game."
Hinsdale South held a commanding 44-29 lead after three quarters but Willowbrook found a spark by scoring 5 points in the first 13 seconds of the fourth quarter, including the first of three three-point plays by Iman Reynolds, who led his team with 18 points. The third three-point play narrowed the deficit to 50-45 with 4:41 left, but Griffin - who made all five of his fourth-quarter shot attempts - answered with a pair of buckets to extend the lead again.
Willowbrook's aggressive pressure defense was feast or famine. It created points but it also led to layups for the Hornets, who pushed the lead to 11 points with a layup by Karol Lipiszko.
"Getting down to this team, because they kind of match us speed-wise, it's not as easy for us to overcome," said Willowbrook coach Chris Perkins. "Obviously, we want to win, but it's not the end of the world. All of our goals are still in front of us."
In front of a packed house, Lipiszko got Hinsdale South off to a great start by knocking down four second-quarter 3-pointers as the Hornets built a double-digit lead. With the Warriors focused on slowing Lipiszko, who finished with 19 points, Griffin took advantage in the paint in the second half.
Ethan Schuemer scored 16 points and pulled down 14 rebounds for Willowbrook, while Nick Perry scored 10 points for the Hornets.
"We just keep finding ways to win," said Hornets coach Brett Moore. "We've got two losses, but we think we can get even better."
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