Boys Basketball

Wheaton North comes out ready vs. WW South

Posted February 14, 2020 12:00 am

Kevin Schmit

Follow @kevin_schmit

Patrick Kunzer/pkunzer@dailyherald.comWheaton Warrenville South's Yonatan Algawerash moves the ball in varsity boys basketball at Neibch Gymnasium on the campus of Wheaton North Friday.

By halftime Wheaton North already had scored more points than in its entire first meeting with Wheaton Warrenville South.

A good sign.

The Falcons had it going on both ends of the court in Friday's 47-30 DuKane Conference boys basketball victory over visiting Wheaton Warrenville South to avenge a loss to the Tigers in December.

An 18-18 tie turned into a 10-point Wheaton North lead early in the third quarter. An 8-0 run to start the fourth put the outcome to rest.

"Last game we came out timid, and this game we made sure we had a ton of confidence," said Falcons junior Ben Bonga, who led all scorers with 15 points. "We were on our heels last time and we wanted to put them on their heels. We executed our game plan all the way around."

It was a much different look than the first cross-town game when WW South (17-10, 5-6) won 25-22. After Tigers sophomore Tyler Fawcett scored the game's first 6 points, Wheaton North (13-12, 4-7) settled in to take an 11-10 lead at the end of the quarter.

By halftime the Falcons knocked down five 3-pointers including back-to-back 3s by Garrett Horner and Emanuel Wilson to close the second quarter. Bonga scored twice out of halftime to cap a 10-0 run.

"We didn't get enough shots up the first time because we turned the ball over so much," said Falcons coach Dave Brackmann. "We really stressed getting into our halfcourt offense and getting it in to Bonga, and then it opens it up for the shooters. Tons of guys stepped up tonight."

A Ben Bastian 3-pointer helped the Tigers narrow the gap to 36-26 heading to the fourth quarter, but Wheaton North unleashed its decisive run to pull away. The Falcons held WW South scoreless for more than six minutes at one point.

Horner scored 9 points for Wheaton North while Zach Lorentsen had 8 points. Fawcett led the Tigers with 14 points and Bastian added 9 points.

"They played harder than we did and did a great job executing," said Tigers coach Mike Healy. "We didn't make many shots but we also weren't making many plays on the defensive end."

Twitter: @kevin_schmit

Patrick Kunzer/pkunzer@dailyherald.comWheaton Warrenville South's Ben Bastian, left, looks past Wheaton North's Ben Bonga in varsity boys basketball at Neibch Gymnasium on the campus of Wheaton North Friday.

Patrick Kunzer/pkunzer@dailyherald.comWheaton Warrenville South's Tyler Fawcett, right, shoots as Wheaton North's Emanuel Wilson defends in varsity boys basketball at Neibch Gymnasium on the campus of Wheaton North Friday.

Patrick Kunzer/pkunzer@dailyherald.comWheaton North's Garrett Horner drains an outside shot against Wheaton Warrenville South in varsity boys basketball at Neibch Gymnasium on the campus of Wheaton North Friday.

Patrick Kunzer/pkunzer@dailyherald.comWheaton North's Garrett Horner gets revved up after draining an outside shot against Wheaton Warrenville South in varsity boys basketball at Neibch Gymnasium on the campus of Wheaton North Friday.

Patrick Kunzer/pkunzer@dailyherald.comWheaton North's Sam Cascella navigates through Wheaton Warrenville South traffic in varsity boys basketball at Neibch Gymnasium on the campus of Wheaton North Friday.

Patrick Kunzer/pkunzer@dailyherald.comWheaton Warrenville South's Jason Haw, left, guards Wheaton North's Ben Bonga in varsity boys basketball at Neibch Gymnasium on the campus of Wheaton North Friday.

Patrick Kunzer/pkunzer@dailyherald.comWheaton Warrenville South's Parker Brown looks for an option in varsity boys basketball at Neibch Gymnasium on the campus of Wheaton North Friday.

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