Wheeling Central Captures W.Va. AA Sectional Title
Maroon Knights Host Ritchie Co. Thursday For Charleston Trip
WHEELING – Stifling defense and perfect free-throw shooting at crunch time. Those two ingredients proved a recipe of success for Wheeling Central Friday night.
As a result, the second-seeded Maroon Knights laid claim to the Class AA Region I Section I championship, via a 43-33 win over top-seeded St. Marys at Wheeling University. The triumph improves Central, void of a senior, to 13-10 on the campaign and avenges an earlier 61-60 overtime loss to the Blue Devils in early December.
“It feels pretty good right now. Winning the sectional title and being able to host our regional game is a nice accomplishment,” elated Central head coach Mel Stephens said.
Central will host Ritchie County Tuesday night. The winner punches it ticket to the state tournament.
Stephens and his staff deserve major credit for their defensive game plan. They opted to start in a 2-3 zone instead of their normal man-to-man. The switch paid major dividends.
St. Marys had no clue on how to attack the 2-3 look. In fact, the Blue Devils held the ball for several minutes with the score still reading 0-0, turning it over with 3:21 left in the opening stanza.
Central edged out to a 6-3 lead after the snail-paced opening frame, getting four points from junior ace Quinton Burlenski. The 6-2 guard poured in nine more markers in the second period, staking the Maroon Knights to a 22-11 halftime advantage.
“We watched them on film several games and we thought the zone would give them some problems,” Stephens said. “Even in the zone, we were still able to get pressure up top with our guards. I thought it was very effective even though we practiced it only one day.”
Despite the impressive first half, matters got interesting for Central in the second half. The Maroon mixed in some man-to-man defense after intermission.
St. Marys, getting scoring from five players, pared the gap to 30-27 entering the fourth quarter, as Central cooled from the field. Junior standout Jeremy Ratcliffe delivered five points for the Maroon.
After St. Marys senior Joey Ramsey goaled with 3:55 remaining in the contest to bring the Blue Devils to within 35-31, Central went into its delay game. The Knights drained more than two minutes from the clock before turning it over with 1:47 remaining.
St. Marys subsequently misfired from the floor with the Knights collaring the rebound. The Maroon resumed its kill-the-clock mode. Ratcliffe was fouled with 57.9 second left. He buried both freebies, pushing the lead to 37-31.
After another Blue Devil missed shot, Burlenski grabbed the carom. Central’s rising sophomore Troy Anthony was fouled at the 41.0 mark. He also buried both his charity tosses, giving the Knights an eight-point advantage.
Another St. Marys miss led to Ratcliffe being fouled intentionally with 19.7 second left. He netted two more foul shots for a 41-31 reading. The Knights retained possession with freshman Max Olejasz being fouled with no time elapsed. He sank both shots to seal the deal for Central.
“I was really pleased with how we executed down the stretch,” Stephens said. “We took care of the ball, rebounded well and made our free throws.
“We have a lot of young kids and they didn’t crack with the game on the line,” he added. “I think that is due in part with the demanding schedule we have played. It has made us better.”
Burlenski was his usual superb self. He led all scorers with 18 points while also grabbing six rebounds and recording four steals.
Ratcliffe was excellent support. He finished with 14 points and played with unflappable poise in the fourth period. Anthony, who also acquitted himself quite nicely at crunch time, finished with seven markers.
St. Marys closes out its campaign with a 15-8 record. Ramsey led the Blue Devils with 14 points while 6-8 senior Luke Powell added nine points.
“We don’t know much about Ritchie County. So we will get on the computer tonight and start doing our homework,” Stephens said. “One thing is for sure, it will be nice playing at home.”
Central committed just eight turnovers on the night. St. Marys had 12 miscues.