James Wood boys end skid with win over Clarke County

By JERRY HOLSWORTH | Special to The Winchester Star

BERRYVILLE — The James Wood boys’ basketball team jumped ahead early, then held on through three quarters to upend Clarke County on Monday to snap a four-game losing streak.

The Colonels (5-8) used strength in numbers to dominate in the paint against Clarke County big man Isaiah Waters, holding the 6-6 senior to just two points, while Aidan Houser, Noah Sullivan and Samuel Costin combined for 32 points.

“Clarke County is a good team,” Colonels coach Tim Wygant said. “They have a lot of skill from the outside. I thought our guys really answered the call tonight. We played a really tough game against Handley last week, and I think that carried over into the game tonight.”

Wood wasted little time establishing its dominance, jumping out to a 16-4 lead through the first six minutes of play. Sullivan was the Colonels primary weapon, scoring seven of his 11 points for the night in the opening period.

“A lot of our stuff works inside-out,” Wygant said. “Our post players crashed the boards aggressively and we got a lot of easy layups. We didn’t always make them, but we were getting a lot of high percentage shots.”

Houser and Costin also made their presence felt, contributing six points during the quarter. Guard Vincent Lew made things easier for Wood’s three big men, scoring five first-quarter points, including a 3-pointer.

“I was hard playing inside tonight,” Houser said. “Isaiah is really lanky and has long arms. We worked hard on him the whole game. It was really good to come over here and get a win.”

While Wood was clicking on offense, the Eagles had trouble holding onto the ball, committing six turnovers. They also made only four of their 10 field goal attempts, and trailed 21-9 heading into the second quarter.

“We had nine turnovers in the first half and that really killed us,” Eagles coach Brent Emmart said. “We just couldn’t get back after that start we had. Getting down 21-9 really hurt us.”

Clarke County refused to give up cut into Wood’s lead throughout the second period.

Hunter Rogers was the Eagles main offensive weapon, rallying them three 3-pointers and 13 points in the half. With a minute left in the half, the Eagles pulled to within 31-24.

Defense was dominant in the third quarter, with neither side able to make much on the offensive end. Wood shot just 5 of 18 from the field, and the Eagles were 5 of 15 over the same period.

The Colonels were able to keep their distance from Clarke County, holding a 44-35 lead with eight minutes to play.

The final period was a fierce battle in the paint with Wood again using its superior numbers. A pair of 3-pointers by Rogers got the Eagles to within 54-47 with 1:43 left. The Colonels responded by freezing the ball over the final 1:30 to keep the Eagles at bay.

Rogers led all scorers for the night with 24 points, including five 3-ponters. Dakota McCaw also scored in double figures for Clarke County with 11 points.

“We got as close as seven or eight points several times,” Emmart said. “But I really don’t think we ever threatened to take the lead away from them. But we played pretty even after the first quarter. We also didn’t do a very good job in the paint, and we have to work on that.”

Houser led the Colonels with 12 points. Sullivan had 11, Lew netted 10 and Costin added nine.

“Hopefully we can continue to practice hard and see if this can start a winning streak,” Houser said.