Boys Basketball: Central Tops Cross-town Rival North

The Hot Read: After Naperville North cut Naperville Central’s lead to one point in the third quarter, Central senior David Niggins took over to help the Redhawks hang on for the win over their cross-town rivals. Niggins scored 12 of Central’s next 14 points from that moment, helping stretch the lead to as much as 11 points late in the quarter.

Patch’s MVP: Niggins not only tied teammate Mike Schremp for game-high honors with 16 points, he did it while shooting 7 of 9 from the field.

Key stats: Central got off only 23 shots from the field in the win, but hit 15 of them. In the fourth quarter, the Redhawks went 11 of 13 from the free-throw line while the Huskies were forced to foul. North only grabbed 15 rebounds in the loss and both Jovonn Griffin and Jon Mengel fouled out early in the fourth quarter.

Naperville North’s leaders: Griffin (nine points), Matt LaCosse (eight points), Jake DuPre (seven points).

Naperville Central’s leaders: Niggins (16 points, four rebounds), Mike Schremp (16 points, four assists), Nick Czarnowski (six points).

Quotable: “It’s a little disappointing,” said Naperville North coach Jeff Powers, whose team was coming off a big win Wednesday over West Aurora. “My credit goes to (Central coach Pete Kramer) and his kids.

"They did a nice job, [they] had a lot of energy. I thought our kids played hard and physical and worked hard, we just couldn’t throw the ball in the hole. It’s awful hard when we’re not scoring and they are.”

Team records: Naperville North (13-10 overall, 7-4 DuPage Valley Conference). Naperville Central (10-13 overall, 3-8 DuPage Valley Conference).

What’s next: Naperville North's path gets no easier next Friday at 7:30 p.m. when powerful Glenbard East comes to town for Senior Night. Naperville Central will look for a season sweep over Wheaton North next Friday at 7:30 p.m.