Wheaton Academy opened up tournament play at East Aurora Monday night against Tampa Catholic from Florida strongly. A three-point play 19 seconds into the game by senior guard John Tillery (17 points, 6 assists) characterized the night for Wheaton Academy who made their layups, got rebounds, and played smart against a very fast-paced Crusader basketball team. Tampa Catholic tried to play off of their strength, the three point shot -- in fact they attempted their average per game of 25 shots tonight, but only converted on 9 of those. Wheaton Academy responded with three shooting of their own hitting 10 of 26 for the game.

The Warriors kept a lead that wavered back and forth in the 8-15 point range from the second half on, in part due to Jeremy Parker's season-high 26 points, shooting 65% from the field (11/17) and center Nate Williams, who scored a season-best 21 points tonight in addition to grabbing 11 rebounds (9 offensive). Co-captain Jason VanderVeen dished off 6 assists and provided steady leadership for WA.

The Tampa Catholic Crusaders' run n' gun style of play that they bring from Florida provided an enjoyable basketball game tonight. Coach Euler's Warriors improve to 3-6 on the season and face the home-team East Aurora tomorrow night in the tournament at 8:00 PM.