Strasburg keeps Wood boys' basketball winless

Wood 9th at Champe Cancer Classic

WINCHESTER — Strasburg’s boys basketball team dominated the second quarter to trip James Wood 53-44 at Shirley Gymnasium on Saturday evening.

It was the second victory by the Rams (11-7) over the Colonels (0-17) this season. They topped James Wood 52-45 in Strasburg on Dec. 7. This was their fourth straight win.

“It hurts because it’s one we wanted,” Colonels coach Tim Wygant said. “Overall I think it’s a decent gauge of where we are right now. We’re growing. We’re building and it will come. Just not sure when.”

James Wood is a Class 4 school, playing out of the Northwestern District, while Strasburg is from Class 2’s Bull Run. Wood is Strasburg’s only foe from Class 4.

“It’s something I just told them in there at halftime,” Strasburg coach Larry Fox said. “We want to look at the other team as nameless, faceless. I don’t care if they’re 2A, 4A, or 6A. We just want to play our game, and, if we can play our game, it really doesn’t matter who’s on the other side. We just want to play to our standard.”

James Wood led after the first quarter 12-11 and outscored the Rams 14-9 in the fourth quarter, but it was what happened in the middle that counted.

“We’ve been focusing on trying to play more aggressive defense, because the more aggressive you are, the better your chances for some run-outs and then you can start hitting some shots,” Fox said. “Once you get your shots up, some are going to go in.”

The Colonels turned the ball over 17 times in 32 minutes of play, but miscues in quarter two dug them their hole.

In that period, James Wood committed seven of their 17, many of the unforced variety.

“They got into us in that second quarter and made us turn it over,” Wygant said. “Then they started scoring from outside.”

While the Strasburg defense was turning over James Wood, the Rams’ 3-point militia took aim.

The Rams missed many 3-balls during the game, but the ones they made came at the right time.

“We hit some that were key in that second quarter,” Fox said.

In all, the Rams rang up three of their six made treys in quarter two. That made it a 34-23 Strasburg at the half.

The visitors’ Trevor Sager connected on two 3s in the second eight minutes, while Stephen Kloosterman (game-high 15 points) hit another.

James Wood connected on one 3-pointer during the game.

Strasburg flipped the Colonels’ lead early in the second quarter when its Dylan Hamrick scored the first four points for a 15-12 lead.

James Wood sophomore Ben Smith then added a couple of baskets and the Colonels had a 16-15 lead.

But Strasburg outscored James Wood 19-5 over the remainder of the half for a 34-21 halftime lead.

Craig Pangle tied it when he made one of three free throws and then Kloosterman canned his 3 and the Rams were ahead 19-16 with 5:14 showing in the half.

The visitors would never trail again. Before that point in the game, there were five lead changes and two ties.

Ram Derek Fox’s basket and a free throw by Pangle stretched the Rams’ lead to 22-16 with 4:07 to go.

Over the next 3:07, a basket by Elijah Boggs and a free throw by 6-3 junior Lavaughan Freeman (team-high 13 points) were all the points that the Colonels could muster as Strasburg tallied seven. Kloosterman’s pair of free throws gave the Rams their first double-digit lead with a minute showing on the halftime clock at 29-19.

The Rams’ largest advantage came at 43-27 in the third quarter due to a steal and layup by Pangle. The Colonels trailed 43-30 heading into the final period.

Six-foot-five sophomore Jayson Herndon gave the Colonels some valuable minutes in quarter four, scoring four of his six-point total, but the big fellow was saddled with foul trouble.

“He’s a guy who usually can give us 15, 16 good minutes, but he’s got to learn to stay out of foul trouble,” said Wygant.

Freeman had a strong fourth quarter, scoring six points. His layup cut Strasburg’s lead to 50-40 with 2:06 to go. It was his score that set the final spread at nine with just 29.8 seconds remaining.

In between, Strasburg made enough free throws to stay comfortably ahead.

“We had our chances in the fourth quarter, but we left some points out there, I mean by missing some high percentages shots,” Wygant said. “When we got closer, there were one or two things that — if they could have gone our way — it might have made a difference.”

Indeed, the Colonels put on a half-court press in the final period and intentionally committed fouls as the final seconds ticked off the clock, hoping to slow the Rams down.

Hamrick and Sager had 11 points each for Strasburg. Craig Pangle added eight and his twin brother, Kam, scored six.

Smith added nine points for the Colonels, all in the first half.