(Sugar Grove, IL) – Waubonsee Community College's men's basketball team opened its 2023-2024 season with an 88-82 win over Illinois Valley Community College. The Chiefs (1-0) and the Eagles (1-2) battled back and forth throughout the contest which featured five ties and 14 lead changes. In the end Waubonsee's depth and ball movement prevailed as the Chiefs owned a 29-10 advantage in scoring from their bench and tallied 25 assists on 35 made baskets for the game.
Waubonsee's Donovan Brown drilled a three-pointer from the right wing on the Chiefs' first possession to get things going. Dylan Fuzak nailed another triple on the next trip down the court as Waubonsee snagged a quick 6-2 lead. A David Robinson trey from the left corner five minutes into the game extended the lead to 13-5. A minute later the Eagles' Roko Jurasovic, a 6'9" freshman from Split, Croatia, scored down low to highlight a quick 6-0 run. However, Robinson answered with a two-handed slam off a nice feed from Duane Doss to electrify the home crowd. Fernando Perez then completed a three-point play to make it 20-14 eight minutes into the contest.
Illinois Valley rallied to get within a point at 20-19 midway through the first half. A long three by Marrion Wells suddenly put the Eagles in front 22-20 to cap off an 8-0 run. Two minutes later a turn around eight-foot jumper by Perez knotted the score at 24. The game went back and forth from that point as the lead changed hands several times as the teams' traded baskets. Illinois Valley clung to a 35-34 lead with five minutes left in the half before Donovan Taylor put the Chiefs back in front with a three-pointer from the left corner.
A short jumper in the lane by Nahcere Abdur-Rasheed and an acrobatic lay-up in traffic by Doss suddenly put the Chiefs ahead 45-38 with two minutes left until halftime. A high-flying two-handed slam by Roderick Watson-Pearcsey highlighted a quick response by the Eagles as they pulled within three with a minute to go. A pair of free throws and a strong drive and basket by Qu'ama Hobbs just before the buzzer then gave Illinois Valley a 46-45 lead at the break.
Waubonsee scored two quick baskets to begin the second to pull ahead before the Eagles regained the lead. Once more the teams traded baskets over the next four minutes of play with the Chiefs holding a slim 56-55 lead six minutes into the second half. A smooth three-pointer from the right wing by Zachariah Hayslett gave Waubonsee a 61-57 lead with 12 minutes left in the game. A big triple from the right corner by Taylor extended the Chiefs lead to 66-58 halfway through the second half.
A fastbreak lay-in by Brown made it 69-60 in favor of the Chiefs and prompted Illinois Valley head coach Chris Herman to call timeout. The Eagles responded with a 6-0 run over the next minute of play to get back within striking distance. Moments later Fuzak connected on a long three-pointer to build the lead back up to eight points. Back-to-back lay-ins by Perez got the Chiefs lead back to double digits at 78-68 with five minutes to go. Robinson then converted a pair of free throws to give Waubonsee its biggest lead of the night.
After another timeout the Eagles quickly clawed their way back to within six with a 6-0 run. Again, the teams traded baskets as the Chiefs clung to a six-point lead with 1:45 remaining. A running one-hander off the glass by Hobbs cut the deficit to 84-80 with 1:09 to go and Waubonsee head coach Lance Robinson called timeout. After the halt in play a short basket by Perez made it a six-point game once more. Illinois Valley answered with a basket at the other end before Robinson's putback basket from close range with 0:20 left put the game away.
Brown paced Waubonsee with 18 points, three assists and five rebounds. Perez finished with 15 points and four assists, while Robinson added 15 points to go along with four steals and five boards. Taylor gave the Chiefs four players in double digits with 10 points and six rebounds, while Doss handed out seven assists and grabbed nine rebounds. The Eagles' Watson-Pearcsey led all scorers with 27 points and hauled down nine boards. The Chiefs are in action again this Thursday, November 9 when they host Benedictine University's Junior Varsity beginning at 7:00 p.m. Robinson's crew also hosts the College of DuPage on Saturday, November 11 with a 3:00 p.m. tipoff.