Against the Washington Patriots, ranked No. 4 in the most recent Class AAAA coaches poll, the Maroon passed their big test with flying colors Friday inside the Central Catholic Athletic Center, turning an early deficit around into a 73-60 win and a sturdy jumping-off point into the postseason.

With the victory, Wheeling Central sits at 19-0. The Knights are looking at what’s in front of them though, not the wins in the rearview.

“Undefeated’s pretty good, a pretty good accomplishment,” Wheeling Central head coach Mel Stephens said. “But like I told them the other day, once this game’s over, now everybody’s 0-0. You start from scratch and you got to win all your games to win a championship.”

Leading the way Friday was the usual suspect for Central, with senior Eli Sancomb going for 30 points, 13 rebounds, six assists and three steals. Sancomb took a little while to get going, scoring two points in the first quarter, but once the reigning Evans Award Player of the Year built up steam, he never stopped.

Sancomb has made the exceptional into the everyday this season with eye-popping statlines game-in and game-out.

“I’ll be surprised when I look at the scorebook because you’ll think, oh, he didn’t have a very good start– you know, he probably still had 30 or whatever,” Stephens said. “But yes, when the chips are down, that’s when he really is at his best and makes big-time plays.”

Sancomb shot 18/19 from the foul line Friday. Trips to the stripe favored Central heavily, as the Knights shot 20-22 from the line, while Washington shot 1-3 as a team.

It wasn’t smooth-sailing from the opening tip for Wheeling Central, who fell behind 17-7 after the first quarter.

Washington was rabid in putting up shots from behind the arc– shooting 13 3’s in the first quarter alone, and making five of them– all assisted. In the first half, Washington fired 23 3-pointers, making 10, and only attempted seven 2-pointers.

“Coming in, we felt they were more of a driving team,” Stephens said. “I mean, they made some shots and 3’s, but they probably didn’t shoot as many almost all year as they did today. But they got good looks and they made the shots. You know, you still have to be able to make them, and they did.”

While the Patriots were conducting their long-range assault, Wheeling Central senior Max Olejasz was instrumental in keeping the Maroon in the game, and shortening Washington’s lead to just two points at halftime, 37-35.

Olejasz shot 6-6 from the field in the first half; nailing a 3-pointer, converting an and-one contact layup, and driving down the lane for a gym-rocking one-handed slam dunk that tied the game 31-31 with under two minutes in the half.

Olejasz scored 14 in the first half and finished with 23 points, missing just two shots all night.

“He played great,” Stephens said of Olejasz. “I mean, he’s played great all year for us, really. This game here, we felt we had a little bit of an advantage with him because of his size, plus he does such a good job of sneaking along the baseline, getting behind the defense, and Eli does a really good job of finding him there. Absolutely, he played really well for us.”

In the second half, Washington’s 3-point barrage slowed down, but the Maroon Knights’ offense kept churning out scores.

Wheeling Central took a permanent lead midway through the third quarter, going ahead 50-48. Central led 59-50 after Eli Sancomb sunk a 10-foot fallaway jumper with two seconds in the period.

The lead was as big as 16 in the fourth quarter. After making 10 3’s in the first half, Washington made three in the second half.

“We adjusted a little bit at halftime,” Stephens said of his team’s defense. “I thought we’d get a little more pressure on those guys. Started switching some of their action to be able to make sure we had somebody there. I told them, I didn’t think they’d shoot it as well in the second half as they did in the first. Part of that was maybe they got a little bit tired. Maybe our defensive pressure was a little bit better.

“You still have to force contested shots and you still have to finish those possessions with a box out and rebound, which I thought we did really well.”

Central outrebounded Washington 27-19 Friday.

“We knew coming in it was going to be tough,” Stephens said. “[Washington’s] very good, and they came right out from the very beginning, jumped on us a little bit.

“But that’s why we play the type of schedule we play, to be prepared in games like this where you might not be playing your best in the beginning. You fall behind a little bit. But, you know, we made it. We played a nice second quarter, cut it to two. Then we came out and played much better in the third and the fourth.”

Luke Sancomb scored nine while Nico Kusic finished with six points, seven rebounds, four assists and two steals.

Kris Doleman led Washington with 19 points.

The defending Class AA state champs now await the regional tournament. The Knights are the No. 1 seed in Class AA, Region 1, and will host a state tournament-qualifier on March 12 against the winner of No. 4 Oak Glen vs. No. 5 Tyler Consolidated.

Shadyside’s Jayden Johnson shoots a layup against Frontier on Friday.

BYU forward AJ Dybantsa (3) is defended by Miami guard Dante Allen, left, during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game, Thursday, Nov. 27, 2025, in Kissimmee, Fla. (AP Photo/Phelan M. Ebenhack)