Turnovers send Wildcats to loss against Fayetteville
Lead Summary
By
Stephen Forsha-sforsha@gmail.com
MOWRYSTOWN — Half-court turnovers doomed the Whiteoak Wildcats in the first half, putting them in a situation they just couldn't battle out of, falling to the Fayetteville Rockets, 61-38 at Whiteoak High School.
The Wildcats (0-3, 1-5) lost the Southern Hills Athletic Conference game due in large part to the Rockets' half-court defense as WHS committed 21 turnovers, most coming during the first two quarters.
"We did a good job against their full-court defense, but when they were in half-court, things got smaller and we didn't take care of the ball," WHS head coach Tom Wessner said. "We didn't shoot well when we took 3-pointers, and when we don't get the rebounds on those, that is basically like a turnover."
Following the first quarter, WHS trailed 16-9, though early in the quarter it was just a 5-4 Rockets lead with WHS gaining points from Nick Wardlow and Jason Jones.
With WHS trailing by seven points in the first, Brandon Ashbaugh brought the hosts a little closer with a put-back bucket, and the final three WHS points for WHS in the first came off a free throw and a jumper by Tristen Nicely, leaving WHS trailing by seven points.
The second quarter wasn't kind to WHS as they were held to three points, while the Rockets scored 15 for a 31-12 halftime lead by the visitors.
The Rockets opened the quarter with a 9-0 run, including a three-point play from Max Iles, who was tied for the game-high lead in scoring with 14 points.
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Also scoring 14 points were D.J. Iles of FHS and Tyler Williams for the Wildcats. Williams also added six rebounds.
As for the WHS second frame, Kyle Adams and Williams were confined for the scoring.
WHS was held to single digit scoring in the third with Kyle Marler, Williams and Nicely combining for six points. Nicely ended the game with nine points and five rebounds.
The Wildcats began the fourth trailing by a 46-18 advantage, but the young team ended on a strong note by outscoring FHS, 20-15. Williams added 10 points in the fourth frame.
Also in the fourth for WHS, Justin Emery, Ashbaugh, Marler and Nicely contributed to the scoring.
"We have three sophomores who have no varsity experience except for the games we've played this season, and it takes a while to get into the flow of the varsity game," Wessner said. "We played better in the second half.
"The young guys did good things, and we are seeing the progress. It is slower than we had hoped, but we'll keep moving forward."
WHS will play again on Tuesday, Dec. 17 when they host Manchester.
The Wildcats (0-3, 1-5) lost the Southern Hills Athletic Conference game due in large part to the Rockets' half-court defense as WHS committed 21 turnovers, most coming during the first two quarters.
"We did a good job against their full-court defense, but when they were in half-court, things got smaller and we didn't take care of the ball," WHS head coach Tom Wessner said. "We didn't shoot well when we took 3-pointers, and when we don't get the rebounds on those, that is basically like a turnover."
Following the first quarter, WHS trailed 16-9, though early in the quarter it was just a 5-4 Rockets lead with WHS gaining points from Nick Wardlow and Jason Jones.
With WHS trailing by seven points in the first, Brandon Ashbaugh brought the hosts a little closer with a put-back bucket, and the final three WHS points for WHS in the first came off a free throw and a jumper by Tristen Nicely, leaving WHS trailing by seven points.
The second quarter wasn't kind to WHS as they were held to three points, while the Rockets scored 15 for a 31-12 halftime lead by the visitors.
The Rockets opened the quarter with a 9-0 run, including a three-point play from Max Iles, who was tied for the game-high lead in scoring with 14 points.
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Also scoring 14 points were D.J. Iles of FHS and Tyler Williams for the Wildcats. Williams also added six rebounds.
As for the WHS second frame, Kyle Adams and Williams were confined for the scoring.
WHS was held to single digit scoring in the third with Kyle Marler, Williams and Nicely combining for six points. Nicely ended the game with nine points and five rebounds.
The Wildcats began the fourth trailing by a 46-18 advantage, but the young team ended on a strong note by outscoring FHS, 20-15. Williams added 10 points in the fourth frame.
Also in the fourth for WHS, Justin Emery, Ashbaugh, Marler and Nicely contributed to the scoring.
"We have three sophomores who have no varsity experience except for the games we've played this season, and it takes a while to get into the flow of the varsity game," Wessner said. "We played better in the second half.
"The young guys did good things, and we are seeing the progress. It is slower than we had hoped, but we'll keep moving forward."
WHS will play again on Tuesday, Dec. 17 when they host Manchester.