Central on marks vs. South

Junior guard lifts Wildcats to title in WJOL Classic

JOLIET -- Junior guard Derek Marks was the difference for Plainfield Central as the Wildcats beat Plainfield South 55-51 Friday to win the WJOL Thanksgiving Classic at the University of St. Francis Rec Center.

Central (3-0) led the Cougars 21-20 at halftime of a game that didn't start well for either team. South (2-1) committed 13 turnovers in the half while the Wildcats shot 8-of-29 (28 percent).

Marks came out aggressively on both ends to spark Central. After a Winston Williams layup made it 23-20, Marks hit 4-of-6 from the foul line to make it 27-20. The free throws came as a result of Marks taking the ball to the basket to draw contact.

South sophomore Ed Presniakovas, who scored a game-high 15 points, scored an offensive rebound. But Central then ran off seven straight points, four points by guard Jon Dubose and a 3-pointer by Nick Merklein, to make it 34-22. Marks set up four of those points with a steal and an assist and a defensive rebound and outlet pass to Dubose, who converted the layup.

The Wildcats led 36-25 after three quarters.

"I think Central brought a lot more intensity in the third quarter," Cougars coach Ken Bublitz said. "I didn't feel like we matched it."

Central coach Steve Lamberti was pleased with the way his team competed.

"I said it Monday and I said it Wednesday, we know if we compete, we're fine," he said. "We come out and expect the other guys to lay down, but we have to compete. In the third quarter, we stepped it up a little bit and finished a little stronger."

Marks credited his team's defense for Central opening the third-quarter lead. "That whole run started with defense and that set up everything," he said.

South got within 38-32 on a Presniakovas 3-pointer with 6:11 left, but the Wildcats pushed it back to 42-32 with 5:15 to play.

Marks fouled out with 2:54 left and South made a comeback, outscoring the Wildcats 15-7 from then on. "That's a credit to South. They don't give up and they compete," Lamberti said.

Bublitz was happy to see South still had some fight left.

"We played with urgency and cranked it up another notch," he said. "We forced some turnovers, and we were able to cash those in.

"He (Marks) certainly did a great job getting to the rim. He got to the rim. He got to the free throw line. He was very effective throughout the second half, no question. He's a great player. When he wasn't able to finish because of foul trouble, that changes their situation. We were fortunate to take advantage."

Marks finished with 12 points to lead Central. Wiliams finished with 10 points. Marks, Williams and Presniakovas made the all-tournament team, with Williams garnering MVP honors.

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