West Noble Charges Past Whitko In Sectional Opener
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Anthony Gadson-agadson@timesuniononline.com
SYRACUSE – The West Noble High School boys basketball team entered the opening game of Class 3A Sectional 21 as heavy favorites against Whitko and didn’t disappoint. Jumping out to a 12-0 lead in the first 3:09 of the game, the Chargers (17-5) breezed into the sectional semifinals with a 63-30 win over the Wildcats (1-20) Tuesday at Wawasee High School. “That was definitely not the start we wanted – 12-0,” second-year Whitko coach Scott Wessel said. “But we fought back and got it to 12-4, then we had the ball and turned it over a couple of times in a row. It’s kind of like the story of our season. We get right there, get on the edge of doing something, then we turn it over or miss a shot and things don’t quite go our way.” West Noble will take on the Fairfield Falcons (12-8) Friday at 6 p.m., while Whitko’s one-win season comes to a close. Despite the rough season, Wessel was pleased with the effort put forth by seniors, Dylan Cumberland, Seth Patrick, Danny Zawlocki, Ian Keirn and Tyler Baugher. “They could have packed it in and quit, but they didn’t,” Wessel said. “We really appreciate that. I hope our younger guys use that as an example going forward and want to work harder. They don’t want to go through this again, because I don’t want to go through this again. You just have to work in the offseason. You have to work when coaches aren’t around to get to a place where you want to be.” Outmanned in just about every game it played, Whitko had no counter for West Noble’s size and length. Displaying its balance, West Noble’s starting five players scored at least nine points each, led by senior Brandon Evans’ 11, followed by 10 each from senior Drew Schermerhorn, senior Phil Miller and junior Waylon Richardson, as well as junior Brandon Moser’s nine. For Whitko, it was Cumberland that led the way with 10 points, as well as six rebounds, five assists and two steals, while freshman Nate Walpole tallied eight points, four rebounds, four steals and an assist. From the field, West Noble hit 7 of 10 attempts in the first quarter, compared to Whitko’s 1 of 9, resulting in a 20-4 Wildcats’ deficit after eight minutes. By halftime, West Noble built its lead to 32-10, as Whitko made just 3 of 21 field goal attempts. “I thought if we shot the ball really well and they didn’t shoot well that we’d have a chance, like any other game,” Wessel said. “But that didn’t happen. We did not shoot well and they shot it pretty well.” Knowing the odds his team was facing, which were even greater without sophomore Devon Adkins in the lineup, Wessel couldn’t be too down on his team. “The kids fought, they battled,” he said. “They did what we asked. West Noble’s just a better team than us.”
