The Naperville North boys’ varsity basketball team dominated DeKalb during their first home game of the season on Friday, December 5th.
The Huskies (5-1) defeated the Barbs (2-2) with a final score of 52-37.
The Huskies opened the game with incredible defense to build an early lead with key defensive contributions from Senior shooting guards Carson Loughlin (1) and Miles Okyne (4). Junior shooting guard Jack Zitko (12) and Senior point guard Max Steele (5) kept up the tempo on offense, sinking a series of three-pointers, which allowed the Huskies to take a short lead (12-7) going into the second quarter.
The Huskie offense managed to catch the Barbs off guard. Efforts from Okyne and Loughlin stretched the Huskie lead until Junior small forward Reid Montanari (23) hammered in a putback dunk following a missed layup, which completely transformed the atmosphere of the game. Zitko was then able to secure a few more points to make the Huskie lead 27-12 at half time. Okyne talked about the energy switch during the second quarter.
“It was just our energy as a team… I think we had around 15 deflections in the first half and in the second quarter alone we had 10 deflections. So, we were just flying around getting stops on defense, which led to offense,” Okyne said.
Dekalb came out strong after the half time break, but it wasn’t enough to stop Okyne and Steele from reaching the basket. Senior center Will Harvey (22) had incredible defense that allowed for Zitko to stretch the Huskie’s lead even further as they entered the fourth quarter.
The Huskies were dominating the court through the final quarter, dictating play and tempo, which allowed for a second Montanari dunk of the night. After a Dekalb timeout, the once demoralized team suddenly ramped up their intensity, pressing the full length of the court. Okyne immediately responded for a layup and-one, keeping the Huskies in the lead to end the game. Okyne remarked on his adaptability during the fourth quarter.
“[We] score…because that’s what’s going to be the loudest and make the biggest difference on the court. We saw they were pressing,[and] we got the ball to whoever we could. Even if it went to Max [Steele], me, or Carson [Loughlin], I feel like we all would’ve done the same thing,” Okyne said.
After a strong performance in his first home game of the season, Montanari mentioned how the players around him had a big role in his contribution.
“Leading up to the game, the whole team was really pumped. [It was the] first home game. So, I would say the team was really lifting me up, making me feel confident to be able to make those plays out there,” Montanari said.
The Naperville North varsity boys’ basketball team will play their next game on Saturday, December 6th at 10:45am against the Stevenson Patriots at Waubonsie Valley High School.
