Wheaton Academy works the glass to beat W. Chicago

The most visible number Wheaton Academy recorded on Tuesday was 70: the number of points the Warriors scored in a 70-46 win over West Chicago.

But of a number of important numbers, 37 might be even better. That was the number of shots West Chicago attempted in the game. A killer trio of strong defense, a number of Wildcats turnovers and tough Warriors rebounding helped create the eventual final score in this nonconference boys basketball game.

"The biggest thing we did tonight was that we did a really good job controlling the defensive glass," Wheaton Academy coach Paul Ferguson said. "We limited (West Chicago) to 3 offensive rebounds. We got our running game going and forced them into turnovers. We got some offense out of our defense."

Wheaton Academy (10-2) got its offense rolling as well, though West Chicago (1-15) was still competitive into the late third quarter.

"We have a lot of things that we need to work on," West Chicago coach Kevin Gimre said. "But I was happy with the kids' effort on the floor. Skills and X's and O's, we continue to work on those. But in terms of their effort, it was a much better day."

Wheaton Academy's Benjamin Euler helped take over the game for awhile in the second quarter. After missing his only 2 shots of the first quarter, Euler did not miss in a 16-point second quarter. Importantly, he got 8 of those points through free throws.

"He was getting some open looks and knocked them down," Ferguson said. "He started shooting the ball well, and they started putting pressure on him. He did a nice job adjusting and going to the hoop."

Euler finished with a game-high 19 points.

Chad Driscoll got hot in the third quarter as West Chicago tried to stay close. Driscoll scored 9 of his team-best 15 points in that quarter. At the midpoint of the quarter, West Chicago only trailed 40-31. But a pair of scoring bursts helped put the Warriors ahead by 16 entering the final quarter.

"We had a lot of energy tonight, especially in the second half," Ferguson said. "It's a big week. We have Walther Lutheran on Friday and Wheaton South on Saturday. I thought my guys responded."

West Chicago continued to play well in spots. Tony Quarto hit a trio of 3-pointers. The Wildcats executed back-door cuts frequently in the game. But with only 37 shots, defeating a team that made 25 shots of its own was always going to be difficult.

"We did play well in spurts," Gimre said. "We're just trying to find that time when we can play a consistent 32 minutes. We're looking to limit those mistakes and stay in a game the entire way."