Naperville North built a mountain that was too high for Metea Valley to climb.
The Huskies surrendered most of their big early lead, but visiting Metea Valley could never quite get over the top. North held off the Mustangs early in the fourth quarter and hung on for a 74-68 DuPage Valley victory.
The win guaranteed that Naperville North (15-3, 8-1) maintained at least a tie in the conference loss column with Lake Park.
Mitch Lewis, a 6-foot-6 junior forward, made his first start since breaking a finger at a Christmas tournament. He wasted no time in making his presence felt with four first-quarter baskets on drives and posts. Lewis finished with a game-high 21 points.
His frontcourt mate, 6-6 sophomore Chris Johnson, also had eight points in the first quarter.
When Chris Sullivan converted a Mustangs turnover into a fast-break basket, coach Bob Vozza had seen enough and called timeout, with Metea trailing 34-14 just 10 minutes into the game.
Vozza told his team to employ half-court traps to create turnovers and boost its energy level, and the strategy paid immediate dividends.
The Mustangs (9-13, 4-6) scored the final 12 points of the half to close within 34-26. Montrel Oliver (12 points) scored on a 3-pointer and a drive to finish the half.
“Coach (Jeff Powers) called timeout, and the guys were just looking at each other wondering what was going on,” Lewis said of Metea’s speedy comeback.
“I’m proud of the effort and the way we clawed and scratched,” Vozza said. “I don’t know why they caught us off guard. We knew they are playing with a lot of confidence and that they really attack people.”
Metea Valley wasn’t done slicing into the lead. Senior guard Matt Helwig opened the third quarter with a 3-pointer and a pair of free throws. Helwig led the Mustangs with 16 points, with four 3-pointers.
The Mustangs got within three points twice early in the fourth quarter. But Tyler Carlson hit a 3-pointer from the corner to ignite a 12-4 spurt that finally gave North some breathing room.
Oliver hit a pair of 3-pointers and Helwig another in the final two minutes for Metea Valley, but the Huskies drained enough free throws down the stretch to put the game on ice.
“We played defense and knocked down some shots in crunch time,” said Camaron Hardy, who had seven of his 18 points in the fourth quarter.
“I had to sit Camaron, so he came in with a bit of an edge and played his tail off, made a lot of things happen,” Powers said.
“Give coach Vozza and his staff credit for keeping his kids in the game. They’ve had a number of close losses this season.”
The Huskies got 12 points on second-chance opportunities late in the third quarter and early in the fourth. Metea missed numerous shots near the basket in the second half after mounting its comeback.
“We have to get after it from the beginning and not get into those holes,” Vozza said.
After missing 14 of its first 19 shots, Metea rallied to finish 23 for 52. The Huskies were 27 for 57, outscoring the Mustangs 48-30 from inside the arc.
Tristan Schlosser came off the bench to score 12 of his 14 points in the second half for Metea. Johnson had 13 points and 10 rebounds for Naperville North.
Bob Reynolds is a freelance reporter for the Naperville Sun.
