Boys Basketball: Defense, Kirk help Redhawks eliminate Wheaton North

The Hot Read: On a night when Redhawks’ star David Niggins was blanked for a half and tallied just 6 points on the night, his teammates picked up the slack and enabled to defeat the Falcons a third straight time this year, staying alive in the Glenbard East regional in the process. On a night when points were hard to come by in long stretches of play, Mike Schremp scored 7 points to help NCHS stake a 16-7 lead after one quarter, then Bryce Kirk hit a key 3-pointer in each of the four quarters. Clinging to a 34-32 lead after three quarters, the Redhawks managed to hit enough free throws (nine) in the final quarter to hold off the Falcons.

Patch’s MVP: Naperville Central’s Bryce Kirk (14 points, 2 rebounds, 2 steals). Kirk had a game-high four 3-pointers and shared game-high scoring honors with teammate Mike Schremp.

Key stats:  Wheaton North went to the free-throw line just seven times all night and scored just three points. The Redhawks, meanwhile, went 15-for-23 from the foul line including nine points in the fourth quarter while the Falcons managed to tally eight total points in the final eight minutes of play. Wheaton North had zero turnovers in the third quarter while outscoring NCHS 16-8 to climb right back into the contest, before six giveaways in the final stanza spelled doom. 

Naperville Central’s leaders: David Niggins (6 points, 9 rebounds). Bryce Kirk (14 points, 2 rebounds, 2 steals). Mike Schremp (14 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists). Nick Czarnowski (10 points, 8 rebounds).

Wheaton North leaders: Jeff Schalk (9 points, 7 rebounds). Richard Finley (7 points, 2 rebounds). Nick Barry (7 points, 9 rebounds).

Quoteable: Redhawks’ coach Pete Kramer on his team’s offensive dry spells at times on Monday, and on its will to battle past them: “Our kids didn’t quit. There were times we couldn’t find the ocean but when we needed to we did. I’m just very proud of these guys. They’ve still got fire in them.”

Falcons’ coach Jim Nazos on his team’s constant struggle to overcome a tough first quarter: “Seemed like we were always fighting to get over the top. We couldn’t quite get that basket to put us over the top or get that one more stop when we needed it.”

Team records: Naperville Central 13-14 and went 5-9 in the DuPage Valley Conference. Wheaton North closes out the year at 11-16.

What’s next: Naperville Central, seeded 19th at the East Aurora Sectional, returns to Glenbard East on Tuesday to face No. 3 Glenbard East at 7:30 pm. The host Rams have swept their way through back-to-back DVC titles the last two seasons.