Warriors' fortunes change quickly

East Aurora's Mike Turner eyes the basket in front of Waubonsie Valley's Steve Strickland on Saturday.
Corey R. Minkanic / For the Beacon News.

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Blinking wasn't forbidden Saturday at East High, but it wasn't advised. Not if you wanted to bear witness to the frantic up-and-down action.

Fortunes can change quickly on the basketball court as Waubonsie Valley proved in the fourth quarter of its 72-65 win over East Aurora. It avenged a 67-62 decision in an earlier, non-conference meeting between the two teams.

What's gotten into them?

A week ago the Tomcats had their sights set on running the table to claim the Upstate Eight Conference title and the Warriors were down in the dumps after a bad loss to Elmhurst York at Loyola University.

"We just came together," said Waubonsie Valley senior guard Jonny Strauss, trying to explain the key run in the game.

East had taken a 50-45 lead when sophomore guard Ryan Boatright (17 points) made his seventh steal of the game and dunked the ball with 7:16 left in the fourth quarter. What happened next was simply jaw-dropping.

Waubonsie Valley held the Tomcats scoreless for four minutes and one second and ran off 17 -- seventeen! -- straight points to take a 62-50 lead.

"We've had it in us all year and we did something we knew we could do and what's expected of us," said Strauss.

"That's why this year has been so frustrating, because we know we've had it in us but we just couldn't get it done. We won when we were freshmen and when we were sophomores."

This win lifts the Warriors back above .500 to 12-11. They're 4-3 in the UEC.

This on a night they turned the ball over 23 times. East senior guard Jamar Shepard, who would lead his team with 21 points, had six steals.

Waubonsie Valley, though, got 18 points from 6-foot-5 Jelani Johnson and 13 from 6-5 Roy McElroy. The Warriors shot well, hitting 26-of-47 from the floor compared to 23-of-57 for the Tomcats, and were bullish on the boards.

With McElroy pulling down 10 and Johnson nine, they claimed a 36-24 edge.

"That played a big part in it," said East coach Wendell Jeffries, whose team lost its second league game in as many nights to fall to 5-2, one game behind Neuqua Valley. The fourth seed in the 22-team Oswego East Sectional is 16-7 overall.

East has four remaining league games, including one with one-loss St. Charles North. Neuqua Valley has two dates with bottom feeders.

And the Tomcats were again playing good Will hunting.

Will Brown, who had 25 points in Friday night's loss to Bartlett, was again MIA due to a "violation of team rules" according to Jeffries.

Early on, with Tramell Weathersby (8 points) having an off night, Shepard picked up the slack.

"I think he's refocused and he's working hard in practice and after practice on his shot," said Jeffries. "He's also had a little more energy defensively for us too. He's playing more like the all-conference player he was last year."

Weemer, who was missing Geremie Savoy (14 points in the last meeting), just hopes his team can keep it going.

"Finally in the third and fourth quarter we started handling their pressure better," he said. "We knew to throw it over the top. We kept telling them to look ahead. You've gotta keep attacking. You can't hold the ball."

The implication was obvious: Or they'll eat you up.

Weemer's Warriors are the 12th seed in the same sectional and play No. 21 Wheaton North for a shot at No. 5 Plainfield North. After Saturday, regional title thoughts aren't farfetched at all.

Boys Basketball: Waubonsie Valley 72, East Aurora 65