Willowbrook outpaces Addison Trail
Addison Trail went right up and down the court with fast-paced Willowbrook for the first 16 minutes of Friday's District 88 boys basketball showdown.
It was the second 16 minutes that proved problematic for the Blazers.
Willowbrook trailed for much of the night but eventually wore down the host Blazers for a 72-60 victory in a lively West Suburban Gold opener.
Scott Tumilty knocked down 6 of the Warriors' 10 3-pointers while Matas Masys scored all of his game-high 22 points in the second half. It wasn't easy for Willowbrook (4-1, 1-0), but that was expected.
"We had to keep putting the pressure on them and that allowed us to go on a little run in the fourth quarter and take over," said Tumilty, who finished with 20 points. "It was a good atmosphere, similar to those playoff football games. Similar to what we'll see in most of our conference games as well as the playoffs."
Willowbrook trailed for the bulk of the middle quarters including a dizzying second quarter when Addison Trail (5-1, 0-1) outscored the Warriors 24-15. Sam Tumilty hit a game-tying 3-pointer in the final minute of the third quarter, and then Masys knocked down a turnaround go-ahead 3-pointer at the buzzer that seemed to shift the momentum in Willowbrook's favor.
A.J. Carlson tied it at 49 for the Blazers to start the fourth quarter, but Willowbrook took control from there. A 15-3 run matched the Warriors' biggest lead up to that point at 56-49.
"We talked tempo the whole game," said Addison Trail coach Brendon Lyons, who saw J.T. Daniels and K'Vhon Pounds go down with leg cramps in the fourth quarter. "They like to get up and down and that's not really our forte. We can run when we need to, but we did some things that didn't help ourselves in the second half, and at a pace that was more conducive to their style of play."
Addison Trail pulled within 4 points midway through the fourth quarter, but the Warriors kept answering. The Blazers hit 6 of 20 second-half shots while Willowbrook, which managed only 11-of-37 shooting in the middle quarters, made 4 of 8 fourth-quarter shots.
Daniels led Addison Trail with 17 points while Justin Werderitch had 10. Everett Stubblefield scored 18 points for Willowbrook.
"It was a great atmosphere for a first conference game," said Warriors coach Chris Perkins. "This is what high school basketball's all about. Now we just to move forward and try to get better."
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