Naperville begins to rumble this time of year. Not only is there a new semester to look forward to, but there is also the promise of two crosstown basketball games, bringing together rivals Naperville North and Naperville Central in a battle for the so-called “king of the court.”

The first of these two games took place Friday night, Jan. 15, and there was even more on the line this time around. The Huskies and Redhawks sat tied atop the conference standings, both holding 3-1 records. The Huskies, who are currently 14th in state, were also gunning to take down their rivals with a huge win.

The rugged style of knit-and-grit basketball that fans have become accustomed to in crosstown games intensified in this particular match up. The defense was smothering on both ends, with a 26-18 Huskie lead heading into halftime.

At the half, no individual player had reached double figures yet in scoring, and by the end of the game only three players did. Central guard Mathew Meier led all scoring with 18 points, while NNHS juniors Winston Elston and Mitch Lewis had 11 and 10 points respectively.

Defense was a key factor for the Huskies, according to NNHS Head Coach Jeff Powers.

 “[Central] did a really nice job of slowing the game down and making it hard on us offensively,” Powers said. “But because our defense was so great, we were able to grind it out.”

Lewis echoed similar sentiments, stating their defense to be the reason the team has been so successful this year.

The intensity picked up even more to start the second half. Central played stifling defense as well and held big time scorers for the Huskies–starters Tyler Carlson and Chris Johnson–to a combined 1-point. They also held North to no field goals in the fourth quarter. The Redhawks continuously pounded away at the lead and eventually got within three on a 3-pointer by Meier with 2:28 to go in the game, but that was the closest they would get; NNHS closed out the victory with clutch free throw shooting and a 40-36 final score.