Joliet West pulls away from Thornwood late, heads to regional final

JOLIET – Throughout the season, two things have been consistent about the Joliet West boys basketball team.

First, the Tigers have had a tendency to pull away from teams in the second half, which happened in Wednesday’s 72-59 win over Thornwood in a Class 4A Joliet Central Regional semifinal. Second, they’re good about spreading the offense around beyond stars Zion Gross and Ethan Hillsman.

That second thing also was true in the regional semifinal, but, man, did having Gross and Hillsman help a bunch.

Gross was strongest early, but remained a key presence throughout en route to 23 points. Hillsman was critical in the second with four consecutive baskets for West and also was huge down the stretch. His buzzer-beating 3-pointer at the end of the third quarter gave the Tigers a seven-point edge and began an 11-2 run that led into the fourth to allow Joliet West to pull away.

Of course, that was after the game had been within one possession virtually the whole night, including a 42-all tie with just more than two minutest to go in the third.

“It was a dogfight throughout, I won’t even lie,” Hillsman said. “We had to pull it out at the end and really dig deep.”

The game started as a fierce competition with West’s biggest first quarter lead being 16-10 after a pair of free throws by Gross with a minute left. A late 3 by Lester Watson, however, cut the Tigers' edge to just three entering the second. The West edge teetered between three and six much of the second with a 3 by Gross with four seconds left making it 35-28 at halftime.

A 6-2 run by the Thunderbirds in the third quarter cut the deficit to one, and Thornwood tied it at 42 with just over two minutes to go. West answered with a 9-1 run started by a Gross 3.

Jordan Jones brought the Thunderbirds within four after he made a layup with 3 seconds to go, but Hillsman’s 30-foot 3 made it 54-47, and the Tigers pulled away in the fourth.

“We knew it was going to be a challenging game,” Joliet West coach Jeremy Kreiger said. “[Thornwood] was younger, but athletic, quick, could score and get to their spots. For us, it was just about over the course of four quarters trying to wear them down as a collective group.”

While the Tigers are no strangers to playoff basketball, this still was the first playoff game of the year for a team with only three seniors. Were nerves a factor? Hillsman, an out-of-state transfer, didn’t believe so.

Well, not really.

“Last year I was in the state championship, so I’m used to this environment,” he said. “Being at a bigger stage is something I’m familiar with, but I was nervous at the beginning [of the game], I won’t even lie.”

Mickeis Johnson contributed 11 points for the Tigers, while Tristian Saunders chipped in nine. Watson led Thornwood with 15 points, and Mekhi Young added 12.

The regional championship game against Bloom is next at 7 p.m. Friday at Joliet Central. Joliet West (21-9) is the fifth seed in the Rich Township Sectional, while Bloom (19-8) is the fourth seed. The Tigers know what they need to do to get the victory.

“We just have to do our job,” junior Luke Grevengoed said. “We just have to know our role, trust each other and do our thing on the court.”