Boys basketball: January 2008 Archives

It must sting a little.

Naperville Central’s double-overtime win against West Aurora on Friday in Naperville started and ended with Central junior Drew Crawford.

In one hour, Naperville North will try to win an unprecedented third game in a row this season.

The Sun caught North's second straight win courtside on Tuesday at Plainfield Central and learned a little bit about why the 7-12 Huskies are seeing results.

“I think what I’ve seen from our guys the last couple weeks is we’re having just as good a time getting an assist as we are getting a bucket with each other," coach Mark Lindo said. "When you start to edge toward that mentality, you start to feel like you’ve maybe turned a corner.”

The ending was predictable, which didn’t make it any less satisfying or exciting for Naperville Central.

The Redhawks are wired this way, still composed facing a one-point deficit with two seconds remaining in a game that would either extend or erase their hopes of contending for a DuPage Valley Conference title.

After consecutive close games in the Upstate Eight Conference, Waubonsie Valley finally created some breathing room in a nonconference clash with Dundee Crown on Friday at home.

In the moment, it appeared as if Waubonsie Valley had lost control. Its fans stormed the court, briefly turning it into a mosh pit. Warriors boys basketball coach Steve Weemer located Neuqua Valley center Dan Pawelski and helped escort him from the fray. The scoreboard signaled 62-59, though Waubonsie’s box score would later read 61-59, the confusion centering on whether Jelani Johnson’s buzzer-beater was launched beyond the 3-point line.

But stepping outside of Waubonsie’s gym, you eventually realized the Warriors control their destiny – at least for now – in the Upstate Eight Conference race. Before the season began, Weemer doubted that a team would sweep through the conference undefeated. With Friday night’s comeback win, Waubonsie stood atop the UEC at 5-0, followed by Neuqua (4-1), Bartlett (4-1) and Elgin (3-1).

This could get more complicated tonight, as Neuqua hosts Bartlett, while Waubonsie visits rebuilding Lake Park. The questions moving forward: If Johnson’s long jumper from the right wing had fallen short, or bounced off the rim, which team wins the game in overtime? More tellingly, which team ultimately wins the conference? Can a team absorb one or two conference losses and still win the title, as Weemer predicted in the preseason?