Downers Grove North pulls away from Willowbrook
The best athletes for Downers Grove North and Willowbrook both left the court within 90 seconds of each other due to injuries in the third quarter Wednesday night.
Willowbrook senior guard Scott Tumilty was knocked out with a bloody nose following a collision with Downers North senior guard Sema'j Henderson, who himself left with a leg cramp shortly after.
Henderson returned but Tumilty did not. That proved decisive as Downers North pulled away late for a 60-46 victory at the Class 4A Downers Grove South regional semifinals.
The result sets up a much-anticipated regional final between the fifth-seeded Trojans (21-11) and third-seeded Downers Grove South (23-7).
"Unfortunately, (Tumilty) hurt his nose," Henderson said. "Hope he is OK.
'That hurt them bringing the ball up the court, and I guess a little on the defensive end and rebounding."
The loss of the gritty Tumilty was as much a psychological blow as it was a physical one for the 10th-seeded Warriors (17-14), who built a 19-11 lead in the second quarter before running out of gas in the second half.
"That was unfortunate," Willowbrook coach Chris Perkins said. "Obviously, he's a rock on our team so that was a big blow for us."
Tumilty helped hold Henderson relatively in check in the first half, but Henderson scored 10 points after the injury and finished with 21 points, 14 rebounds and 3 assists. He missed only two minutes following the cramp.
The Warriors, however, missed scads of shots after halftime. They went 3 for 16 in the third quarter and that allowed the Trojans to turn a 25-24 halftime deficit into a 40-30 lead.
Willowbrook scored the last 4 points of the third quarter to pull within 40-34, but Colin Reed's 3-pointer early in the fourth quarter triggered a 17-4 Downers North run that put the game out of reach.
"We held them to 24 points in the first half," Perkins said. "We just could not take advantage of our opportunities. We had shots but we weren't knocking them down."
Indeed, Willowbrook guards Everett Stubblefield III and Matas Masys were held to a combined 11 points on 3-for-24 shooting. Charlie Flak and C.J. Harris led the Warriors with 8 points apiece.
"I think we pretty much went over all their screens," Henderson said. "The entire time we knew that they get set shots coming over a screen and getting space set up.
"That was the biggest main focus - don't let them get no 3s off. I think all their 3s looked like they had a hand in their face. We just had a really good effort tonight."
The Warriors tried to press after falling behind, but Henderson and senior Trey Boston repeatedly broke it. Boston had 11 of his 17 points after halftime, while Reed added 11 points and 7 rebounds and Connor Ilyavi chipped in 7 points and 9 boards.
"We got our second wind," Boston said. "Us having five days off and then them playing on Monday (helped). We had to catch our second wind in the second half, so I feel like that's what helped us pull away."