Wheaton North's Anthony reaches milestone at Glenbard West
Luke Anthony hoped to reach the milestone at home, but planning for 1,000 points isn't easy.
After Wheaton North's senior guard nearly reached it Friday in Bill Neibch Gymnasium, Anthony settled for the first quarter of Saturday's 51-37 nonconference victory over Glenbard West in Glen Ellyn.
Converting a three-point play and then knocking down a 3-pointer, Anthony notched point No. 1,001 less than three minutes into the game. Anthony's game-high 18 points means he's sitting on 1,013.
"Obviously, huge credit to the coaches and the team," he said. "I wouldn't be here without them. I wish I got it (Friday) in front of the home crowd, but I'm still really pumped about it."
Glenbard West sophomore Evan Taylor scored 8 of his 11 points in the first quarter as the Hilltoppers held a brief 9-8 first-quarter lead. Wheaton North (16-6), however, soon grabbed control with an 8-0 run. Even with Anthony and Rowan McGowen battling foul trouble, the Falcons pushed the margin to double figures.
Matt Brcka scored 8 of his 10 points in the second quarter for Wheaton North, which held Glenbard West (9-13) to 6-of-23 first-half shooting.
"I thought our kids played hard, but we have to find ways to be more efficient on offense," said Glenbard West coach Tim Hoder. "We just have a lot of things to clean up. We have to finish better."
Glenbard West used a 14-4 run to pull within 38-34 early in the fourth quarter, right about the time Anthony went to the bench with his fourth foul. McGowen answered with a three-point play and Jack Bennett, who scored 13 points, added a pair of buckets for the Falcons.
Glenbard West, which received 9 points from Connor Mullins, made only one field goal in the final five minutes.
"We played very well (Friday) night but we made a point today of not having a letdown," Falcons coach Dave Brackmann said of his team's 65-47 win over Metea Valley. "For the most part we pretty much controlled this game. We were able to finish it out in the end."
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