WW South, Wheaton North tied atop DuKane Conference
Wheaton Warrenville South's girls basketball players are having fun keeping a close eye on the DuKane Conference race.
Why not? The Tigers are in the thick of it.
"It is so competitive now," said Tigers senior Abby Struebing. "... We're just trying to take every game as we can, just one game at a time. That's the mindset we have. We're just trying to stay positive."
After Saturday afternoon's 49-38 victory at Lake Park, the Tigers (16-8, 8-3) find themselves tied atop the DKC standings with cross-town rival Wheaton North. The Wheaton teams are just half a game ahead of Batavia and two-time defending state champion Geneva (8-4).
Wheaton North defeated Geneva 55-42 Saturday. Nikki Baird led the Falcons with 16 points and 8 rebounds, and Caroline Gaither scored 14 points.
The Tigers and Falcons each have three league games left, finishing against each other next Friday night at WW South in a game rescheduled from last Thursday due to the weather.
"It's going to be a very interesting week," Tigers coach Rob Kroehnke said.
Struebing helped the Tigers take the lead for good in the first half Saturday in Roselle, making her first three 3-point shots. At halftime the Tigers led 27-22.
The Tigers complemented their always stifling defense with good shooting and strong ballhandling. They made 16 of 31 shots in the game, including 6 of 16 on 3-pointers. They turned the ball over just nine times.
"With the loss on Tuesday against Batavia, it was really hard for us," Struebing said. "And we were really focusing on having confidence in our shots because on Tuesday we didn't shoot as well as we're capable of."
Leading 38-33 at the start of the fourth quarter, the Tigers played possession basketball and held the Lancers (18-7, 5-6) scoreless until junior Darrione Rogers drove to the basket with 1:24 to play. That cut the Tigers' lead to 46-35.
"I think their defense was their offense," Lancers coach Brian Rupp said. "They had the ball. That's what they do. They've been doing it forever. They put us in a situation up 5 where he could do that. And I don't want to foul and put them at the free-throw line with six minutes left. That's what he's daring you to do."
"We just tried to keep the ball in our possession, just not turn it over. Keep it away from (Rogers), because she's super dominant on the court," Struebing added.
Rogers led both teams with 22 points, adding 8 rebounds and 3 steals.
Struebing and point guard Mira Emma led WW South with 15 points apiece, the most Struebing has scored for the Tigers in a varsity game.
"Our senior starters played like seniors today. There's no doubt," Kroehnke said.