Raridon shoots Neuqua past Tigers

Plainfield North's Kendall Frank tries to out run Neuqua Valley's Kareem Amedu (left) and Ryan Wagner.
(Michael R. Schmidt/Herald News)

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Derek Raridon had a simple reason.

“We needed somebody to step up and make a shot because our defense until then was pretty poor,” he said.

The 6-5 Neuqua Valley senior forward drilled two critical fourth-quarter three-pointers that powered the No. 8 Wildcats over No. 23 Plainfield North 69-49 in the Class 4A Oswego East Sectional semifinal Tuesday night.

The Upstate Eight Player of the Year, Raridon scored 25 points to lead the Wildcats (30-1) into Friday’s sectional final against the winner of Naperville Central and Bolingbrook semifinal on Wednesday.

With the rest of his team, he watched Plainfield North cut a 20-point halftime deficit to six at the start of the second quarter. Behind the excellent play of junior forward Chris McMath (19 points), the Tigers used a 22-8 burst to close within 49-43 with 6:07 to play.

Raridon drilled three three-pointers to restore the Wildcats' momentum. It was a replay of the second quarter. Raridon scored 15 of his game-high total in the first half. Along with 6-5 Dwayne Evans, Raridon helped break up a tight game.

After Plainfield North scored four unanswered points to assume their final lead at 20-19, Raridon hit two free throws, the start of a seven-point burst that helped Neuqua Valley run off a crucial 12-0 run.

McMath hit two free throws to end the run. Junior center Kareem Amedu (eight points) scored six straight points, part of a quarter closing 11-0 burst. The 23-2 run enabled the Wildcats to run out to a 41-21 lead at the break.

"We did a really good job playing defense in that quarter, taking away easy baskets which led to a lot of good shots and fast break opportunities," Raridon said. "Dwayne's shot-blocking was really key. He played great defense in that quarter and he forced them to miss a lot of layups."

Plainfield North was hobbled both offensively and defensively by the absence of star guard Reggie Lemon. The most valuable player of the Pontiac Holiday tournament, Lemon started the game but was unable to play through a hamstring injury he suffered two games earlier.

Without Lemon, the Tigers (26-5) suffered in transition and handling the ball. Their five second quarter turnovers aided the Neuqua Valley run.

Evans, a 6-5 leaper, contributed 13 points, six rebounds and most importantly six blocks. His intimidation led to Plainfield North missing repeated shots underneath the basket.