James Wood boys beat Sherando for first time since 2019-20 season

WINCHESTER — The James Wood boys' basketball team might not have executed the way it wanted to on offense in the fourth quarter on Thursday night, but the Colonels sure enjoyed the appearance of the Shirley Gymnasium scoreboard after the final buzzer.

Kellen Tyson's 30-foot 3-pointer from the center of the floor hit the left side of the rim and ricocheted to the floor as time expired, and that miss secured James Wood's 51-48 win over Sherando in the Class 4 Northwestern District opener for both teams.

James Wood (1-1) took the lead for good with 6:37 left in the second quarter in the middle of a 10-0 run, and the Colonels held their largest lead of the game at 43-33 entering the fourth quarter.

The last eight minutes for James Wood weren't pretty — the Colonels were 0 for 4 from the field and 8 for 16 from the line — but they had the grit they needed to earn a long-desired result.

James Wood — which went 2-16 last year — beat Sherando (0-2) for the first time since the 2019-20 season (snapping a string of five losses) and broke an eight-game losing streak to Winchester-Frederick County foes that dates back to the spring 2021 season.

"It means so much," said James Wood junior forward Ashton Kees, who led the Colonels with 13 points and eight rebounds. "You have no clue how excited we were walking into the locker room.

"All around school, I'm always hearing about people talking about how bad the basketball team is, and how we didn't have a good season last year. This really means a lot to all the guys."

It was a forgettable shooting night for both teams. The Colonels made 15 of 43 field goal attempts (34.8 percent) and 17 of 31 free throw attempts, while the Warriors made only 15 of 58 shots (25.8 percent) and 16 of 31 free throws.

James Wood was gritty on defense all night, and that helped it overcome its offensive struggles in the fourth quarter. James Wood's toughness played a role in the Warriors making only 3 of 11 shots in the final eight minutes, a stretch in which Sherando clawed to within 48-47 and 49-48 but could never get over the hump.

"This group really prides itself on how tough they are and how physical they play within the rules," James Wood coach Tim Wygant said. "I think that really showed itself in the fourth quarter.

"When things aren't clicking necessarily offensively, you can pick it up on the defensive side. You can use substantial activity in a physical nature to give yourself more of an advantage. Every once in a while the shots don't go in, but you've got to be able to do the other intangibles to propel you to success."

While the Colonels didn't hit their shots, they did get to the line enough to keep Sherando at bay.

After Trey Williams (seven points, 14 rebounds) hit two free throws with 44 seconds left to cut the Colonels' lead to 48-47, Sherando applied intense pressure on the Colonels before finally fouling Jared Neal (12 points) while attempting to steal a backward pass to him toward midcourt with 29 seconds left.

Neal hit 1 of 2 free throws to make it 49-47. The Warriors took possession and Tyson (eight points, 14 rebounds) drove from the right side into the lane, hopped to the left side, and put up a shot that hit the glass, went off the rim, and bounced away.

Senior guard Caleb Brown (team-high 11 points) was fouled in the process of grabbing the rebound, but he missed the first free throw before making the second to make it 49-48 with 6.6 seconds left.

Brandon Waters (seven points) was fouled with 4.3 seconds left, and he knocked down both of his foul shots to make it 51-48. Sherando moved the ball quickly up the court and found Tyson open in the middle. But he had to rush his shot to get it off in time, and it bounced off the rim.

Sherando coach Garland Williams credited James Wood for playing tough, but he felt his team missed far too many shots that he thought were makeable. With a 49-34 rebounding edge and 17 offensive boards, the defending Class 4 Northwestern District tournament champions did have its opportunities.

"We were playing hard, but we just weren't making shots," said Williams, who has six players 6 feet, 2 inches or taller. "We were making mistakes we can't make. We missed way too many shots inside and way too many foul shots. And we threw the ball way in unforced situations. You're not going to win like that no matter who you play.

"I told the guys that everybody we play is going to be gunning for us. You've got to come out each night and play tough and well. And when your shots don't fall, you've got to make things happen in other ways."

The Warriors' rebounding edge showed up in the first quarter (15-4) and the fourth quarter (13-6). The middle two quarters belonged to the Colonels (24-21), and James Wood's ability to steady themselves on the glass helped get the rest of its game going.

Trailing 15-12, James Wood went on a 10-0 run from the 7:00 mark to the 4:47 mark to take a 22-15 lead. Kees had six points and assisted another bucket in the run. The Colonels went up 28-22 at the half after Waters stole the ball from near his own basket, dribbled the most of the length of the floor and dished to Neal, who hit a 3-pointer from the left elbow with 3.7 seconds left.

The Warriors were within 30-28 with 5:37 left in the third quarter, but the Colonels hit 3 of 7 shots and 6 of 6 free throws for a 13-5 run to put them up 43-33 entering the fourth quarter. The Warriors missed their last 11 field goal attempts in the third quarter.

"We made some shots in the third quarter, and our defense really strapped up," Wygant said. "We needed every bit of that lead in order to hang on at the end."

James Wood gave credit to Andrew Link's defense for helping to limit Tyson, who scored 27 points in Sherando's season-opener against Rock Ridge at Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C. Tyson had all of his points in the second half, and had just two points in the fourth quarter.

Thursday's game might not have been perfect, but it was a great way to start the district season. James Wood's two wins came against Fauquier last year, part of a 2-11 mark against district foes when including the tournament.

"There's just a lot of confidence," Neal said. "It feels good to get the win."

"To start the district season 1-0 is a big deal for these kids," Wygant said. "They are a fun group of kids. We look forward to practice every day. There's a ton of smiles there. The competition in practice is amazing, the coaching staff is amazing, and we're hoping this continues to propel us to success."

The Warriors were also led by Lazare Adingono (nine points, eight rebounds) and Caleb Bowers (eight points). Chris Morrison added eight points for the Colonels.

The Colonels are next in action on Saturday at 5:30 p.m. at Clarke County. The Warriors have another district game on Tuesday at Liberty.

— Contact Robert Niedzwiecki at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

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