Boys basketball: Wyatt Carlson’s clutch free throws lift Lincoln-Way West to fourth straight win

NEW LENOX – Junior forward Wyatt Carlson went to the free-throw line with Lincoln-Way West clinging to a two-point lead with 10 seconds left in Monday night’s game.

Carlson, a reserve in his first varsity season, was excited to have the opportunity to make a huge difference for his team, but he tried to downplay the moment in his mind.

“I just tried to think about winning it for the team,” Carlson said, “I was trying not to think about the shots too much. We shoot 100 free throws at practice, so I just tried to go back to that and not think too much about how big of a situation it was.”

Carlson coolly sank both free throws to seal a 51-47 victory for the host Warriors over Tinley Park, extending Lincoln-Way West’s winning streak to four games.

“I told the guys that it wasn’t pretty, but no matter which way you slice it, we’ve won four in a row,” said Tanner Mitchell, who is in his third season as Lincoln-Way West head coach. “We’re sitting at 7-4. You’ve got to be proud of that.

“I don’t know the last time there’s been a four-game winning streak at Lincoln-Way West. It’s the first time since I’ve been here. I know that.”

Senior forward Eli Bach led the Warriors with 16 points and six rebounds. Daniel Reniguntala finished with 15 points and seven rebounds, Jacob Bereza contributed 11 points and six rebounds and Carlson added nine points and six rebounds.

Kendall Webb led Tinley Park (1-7) with 13 points and eight rebounds.

Carlson provided a big boost off the bench for Lincoln-Way West, scoring five points in the third quarter as the Warriors shook off a slow start, turning a 19-19 halftime tie into a 39-31 lead after three quarters.

“I’m just trying to play as hard as I can,” Carlson said. “We have Eli, Bereza, Danny, so I know I don’t have to be the top scorer. I just need to rebound and play hard.”

Carlson has had some ups and downs early in his first varsity season, but Mitchell expects big things from him going forward.

“Wyatt’s going to be a key part to what we do the rest of the season,” Mitchell said. “He’s kind of like our sixth man. He had a really good year as a sophomore, I believe he was the sophomore team’s leading scorer. He played well in the Thanksgiving tournament, had a couple double-figure games early.

“Then he was struggling a bit. We had him play JV the other day, and he had about 15 points in the JV game against Lincoln-Way Central, and I think that got his confidence going, and he rolled it into this game.”

The Warriors led 38-25 late in the third quarter, but Tinley Park stormed back to take a 47-45 lead with less than two minutes left in the game.

Bach knew Lincoln-Way West had to regroup.

“We just had to be smart with the ball on offense,” Bach said. “They made that run, and we weren’t really stopping anything in the fourth quarter, but we were getting good looks when we were beating their press. Danny and Wyatt were doing a good job cutting to the basket and getting good layups.”

Bach tied the game with an inside basket before Bereza had a steal and score with 1:04 remaining to give the Warriors a 49-47 lead.

Carlson’s free throws sealed the win.

Lincoln-Way West pulled it out despite having three starters injured during the game. Max Gabriel took a hard hit to his head and had a bloody nose early in the game and did not return. Bereza and Jacob Willis both left with ankle injuries, Mitchell said, but returned.

Reniguntala, who had a big dunk and several key offensive rebounds, likes the way the Warriors’ roster is coming together.

“I feel like we’ve got a strong senior leadership group, and then the guys off the bench can come in and play their role and do what they do,” Reinguntala said.