Timing is everything.
Metea Valley picked the ideal time to play its best basketball, winning seven straight heading into the Class 4A regionals that begin next week.
The Mustangs gained confidence, although mixed results, when playing in the Wheaton Warrenville South MLK Tournament.
“I thought we started playing at the level that I thought we could,” Metea coach Bob Vozza said. “We went 2-2, but those were good losses to Benet and Notre Dame and then we started getting more confidence and our defense got better.”
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During the winning streak, Metea (15-12) is averaging 67.4 points while holding opponents to only 50.3. The Mustangs have won all but one game by double digits, and that was a 58-49 win over Waubonsie Valley to start the streak.
“We’ve gotten a pretty good third-quarter push, and we’re playing solid defense and smart at the end of games,” Vozza said. “We’re protecting leads, hitting free throws and getting nice runs at the right time.”
Defense has been the key, as usual.
“It’s a staple that we’ve brought to the program for six years now,” Vozza said. “The guys have bought into it and have made things happen. They may be tired of practicing it but their seeing the rewards.”
While Ron Edwards and Mark Konkle have been Metea’s most consistent scorers, junior newcomer Dei’Ron Delarosa appears to have found his groove. He scored 23 points against Naperville Central.
“With him being new to the program and the school he had to get to know us and we had to get to know him,” Vozza said. “He’s progressing and you can see he’s playing with confidence. On the offensive end he’s a big player for us because he helps spread things out.”
The Mustangs wrap up their regular season Wednesday with a home game against Glenbard East before going next Tuesday to the Proviso West Regional to play Addison Trail.
Familiarity
Naperville North hosts Glenbard North on Wednesday in its regular-season finale and then plays the Panthers again next Tuesday in a 4A West Aurora Regional quarterfinal.
“It’s not going to change anything from us,” Huskies coach Jeff Powers said. “We’re starting to play better and we’ll talk about focus in practice and what has to continue. We don’t want to go down a step and not be prepared for next week.”
The Huskies have won six of eight and now have sophomore Mitch Lewis back in the mix. Lewis completed a four-game disciplinary suspension.
“He played in the JV game on Saturday and had a really good game,” Powers said. “I’m real proud of our kids. We had a great second half against Wheaton Warrenville South and Wheaton North, and we beat Fremd who is a sixth or seventh seed, so it’s been a good two weeks for us.”
Third times
Waubonsie Valley and East Aurora face each other for the third time next Monday in a 4A West Aurora Regional quarterfinal. The winner will play Wheaton North
East Aurora won 55-50 in December, but the Warriors earned revenge in mid-January, getting 18 points from Chris Karkazis in a 64-57 overtime victory.
Neuqua Valley plays East Aurora for a third time Friday night in Aurora. Having already won the Upstate Eight Valley and with seeding completed, the game doesn’t mean much, other than prep work for next week’s regionals.
The Wildcats won 92-72 in the East Aurora Holiday Tournament at the end of December. They also won 96-55 on Jan. 27 in Naperville as Connor Raridon scored a school-record 40 points.
Chris R. Walker is a freelance writer.