Boys basketball: Whiting remains perfect

GARY — What does Whiting coach Derrick Milenkoff credit his squad’s red hot 5-0 (2-0 in the Greater South Shore Conference) start to?

Preparation, preparation and more preparation.

The Oilers struggled early on the road against a feisty Calumet (0-3, 0-2) squad, but behind a collective team effort, they stayed unbeaten with a 54-48 GSSC victory.

“First off, Calumet and coach (Matt) Justin came out and played a heck of a ball game,” Milenkoff said. “Our coaches did a great job scouting. I don’t care what our record is or the opponents’ because when the game starts both teams are 0-0.”

The Warriors and Oilers matched each other basket for basket in the first half, entering halftime tied at 19-19 with the Oilers yet to grab a lead.

The second half was all Oilers and they took their first lead on a slick drive to the basket for a layup by Nick Filipek, who finished with 12 points and four rebounds.

After a shaky first half in which Gio Cruz was 1 of 10 from the field for just three points, the senior settled in and ran the show in the second half with 11 more points to go with six assists, six steals and five rebounds.

“Gio is a really intense and confident player,” Milenkoff said. “Even when he missed a few 3-pointers in the first quarter, he kept shooting without hesitation.”

A couple of Cruz’s assists found the hands of Matt Filipek in the third quarter when the Oilers made their run. Filipek drilled two 3-pointers, helping the Oilers outscore the Warriors 18-11 in the quarter.

The Warriors desperately heaved up threes in the fourth quarter with big shots coming from Duke Bush. He knocked down a trio of 3-pointers to pull his team within striking distance, but it just wasn’t enough.

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