Thornwood’s Tyler Wooten helps his new team get revenge on Rich Township. And on the bench? ‘I’m ready to go.’

In the fall, junior guard Tyler Wooten transferred to Thornwood from Rich Township. In December, he lost to his old teammates in Richton Park.

So, Wooten could not wait for the Raptors to come visit his new home Tuesday night.

“There’s a little bit of mixed feelings,” Wooten said. “They’re all my guys over there on Rich Township, but obviously we want to win the game so bad. That’s what we did.

“I’ve definitely got some bragging rights now.”

Bragging rights, indeed. Wooten scored nine points as part of a balanced attack for host Thornwood, which held on for a 59-55 Southland Conference win in South Holland.

Tristan Taylor scored 11 points to lead the Thunderbirds (16-10, 7-3), who won their fifth straight game. Michael Robinson and Brett Hardy added 10 points apiece.

Freshman guard Jamson Coulter poured in 29 points to lead Rich Township (15-10, 4-5). Samar Bures added 16 points and eight rebounds, while Victor Brown contributed six points and 10 rebounds.

Wooten played with the Raptors all summer and was a new face on the team when he arrived at Thornwood in the fall. But he quickly fit in.

“As soon as I came in, there was a family feel and everybody brought me in,” Wooten said. “I feel like I take attention off all our other scorers and options.

“I can score the ball. I bring defense and rebounding. I feel like I bring a lot.”

Thornwood coach Deoplus Williams is sure glad to have him.

“Tyler is a quiet leader,” Williams said. “He gives us that reassurance that when things get tough, we can count on him to come through with a big play.

“He’s like a chess piece out there because we put him out there in certain spots and they have to guard him. That opens things up for us.”

Coulter had a huge second half for the Raptors, pouring in 21 points. He had the ball with his team down 57-55 in the final seconds when Robinson came up with a steal for the biggest play of the game.

Hardy then hit two free throws with four seconds left to seal the win.

“I just saw my teammate getting screened, so I attacked it,” Robinson said. “We should have been doing that the whole game, but I made a play at the end.

“It felt good. Everybody supported me. It was a team win.”

Thornwood certainly wins as a team. Williams uses 10 players as essential equals, giving them all significant playing time.

That means starters like Wooten know they will spend long stretches on the bench. They have embraced it, though.

“Everyone can give us something, even when we’re not in the game,” Wooten said. “We have a whole second group, and they close the games out for us. They’ve been doing it consistently the last few games.

“When I’m not in, I’m encouraging my teammates, cheering them on, letting coaches know certain things I see. Then when my time comes, I’m ready to go.”

Williams feels depth is a major strength.

“We basically have two starting groups,” Williams said. “We played like that all fall. I trust all those guys. The coaches have been giving me a lot of confidence to move guys around and find where they fit.

“We have a lot of new guys and we’re trying to find that chemistry and we’re finding it at the right time at the end of the season.”

With back-to-back big wins over Bloom and the Raptors, Thornwood seems to be building momentum.

“We told the guys that it’s not how you start, it’s how you finish,” Williams said. “Hopefully, we can keep this going into the playoffs.”

Steve Millar is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.