Advantage, West Aurora.
With first place in the DuPage Valley Conference at stake, Naperville Central and West Aurora staged a game filled with peaks and valleys before the Blackhawks held off a furious fourth-quarter rally by the Redhawks for a 53-51 triumph Tuesday night in Aurora.
Trailing 37-21 with 3 minutes 21 seconds left in the third quarter, the Redhawks (11-9, 6-1), sparked by reserve guard Tara Utrata, went on a 22-3 surge to pull within 43-40 with 4:07 remaining.
But the Blackhawks (17-3, 7-0), off to their best start since a 2nd-place state finish in 1990, hung on and took over sole possession of first place in the DVC, thanks to some clutch free throw shooting by guard Cindy McGinnis.
McGinnis, who finished with 10 points, nailed all six of her fourth-quarter free throws.
The win left Blackhawks coach Mark Proctor a little winded afterward.
It was almost like a tennis match out there,” Proctor said. “It was like one player had the advantage with the serve before the momentum started changing toward the other side.”
At the outset, it appeared the Blackhawks might be in for a long night.
Naperville, fueled by torrid three-point shooting from Michelle Olson (game-high 19 points) and Rebecca Traen (nine points), grabbed a 17-7 lead after one quarter.
After a strategic defensive change, the Blackhawks came out smoking in the second quarter, scoring 11 unanswered points to take an 18-17 lead as Emily Fuller (10 points, 10 rebounds) dropped in a layup.
West Aurora led 24-19 at halftime after outscoring Naperville 17-2 in the second quarter.
“We weren’t defending their perimeter players very well in the first quarter,” Proctor said. “But we definitely turned it around defensively in the second quarter. And we started rebounding better.”
That may be an understatement of sorts. Led by 6-foot-4-inch sophomore center Jackie Shook (17 points, 16 rebounds), the Blackhawks enjoyed a 46-27 edge on the boards. Jordan Garrison added 10 points and seven rebounds for the winners.
Naperville, which hit just 5 of 21 of its shots during the middle two quarters, did throw a late scare into the Blackhawks.
“We had some opportunities to win, but we didn’t play quite as well as we would have liked,” said Redhawks coach Andy Nussbaum. “West Aurora is a very good team. They took control of the game in the second quarter and played much better defense.
“We simply can’t fail to play offense for 10 to 12 minutes and expect to beat a team like West Aurora. But I’m real proud of the way my kids came back. We played hard and didn’t quit.”
“They scrapped us right down to the wire,” Proctor admitted. “Their ability to hit those three’s (the Redhawks were 5 of 15 for the game) picked them up.”
At the midway point of the conference season, West Aurora currently holds a one-game advantage over the Redhawks. The two teams will meet again on Feb. 7 in Naperville.
“Getting through the first round of the DVC schedule at 7-0 is an advantage,” Proctor said. “But it doesn’t guarantee you a whole lot.
We still have to go to Wheaton Warrenville South and Naperville Central.
“But I’d rather be in our position right now.”
