WELLSBURG – The Broke boys’ basketball team trailed from the outset against rival Wheeling Park.

The Patriots scored seconds into the contest while the Bruins were held scoreless in the first quarter. Wheeling Park recorded the first 12 points of the game en route to a 48-33 victory Saturday night inside the Brooke Wellness Center.

“The 12-0 start absolutely killed us,” Brooke (10-6) head coach Adam Shinsky said. “We had three or four shots just roll out. Defensively, I liked our effort. To hold Park to 12 points in the quarter, I will take that. We just couldn’t get shots to go in. 

“We wanted to hang around, and hope things got kind of crazy but they didn’t. They played smart basketball. 

“We just had shot roll out. Murdock got into the pain a few times, and the ball just rolled out. We won the second quarter, and we won the third quarter. I think we cut it down to seven, but they were able to go on a run a late in the game. We had to try and do some things, but they are just too skilled. They were able to get some easy baskets at the end of the game.”

The boys from Ohio County led 12-0 at the end of the first, and the visitors led by as many as 13 three times in the second. After being held scoreless in the first, the Bruins finally got on the scoreboard with 7:26 left to play in the first half, and the hosts ended up outscoring the Patriots in the quarter as Wheeling Park took a 25-14 lead into the locker room at halftime.

“I called a timeout in the second, and we got seven stops in a row,” Shinsky said. “We were running up-and-down the floor, but we ended up having empty possessions or we missed shots.”

The boys from Brooke County continued to battle back in the third as they closed to within seven points on multiple occasions. The Green-and-Gold had multiple opportunities to get even closer, but they were unable to do so. Ultimately, the Bruins outscored the Patriots, 10-8, in the quarter to pull within 33-24 entering the fourth. 

The boys in red built a 14-point advantage at 40-26 with 4:26 left to play in the game, however, the home team fought back and got as close as nine of a three-point play with three minutes left. Unfortunately, Brooke did not score again as the victors netted the final six points of the night to pull away for the victory.

“They were patient on offense,” Shinsky said. “They did a good job. Whitmore does a good job of handling the ball. Williams is a scorer. Bordas is a smart basketball player. He sets screens. He is a good shooter. 

“They are athletic, and they shoot the ball well. They are very disciplined. We hoped to stay in the game. We hoped they may have gotten a little crazy on offense, but they were very disciplined. They played well.”

Andrew Murdock recorded a game-high 13 points to lead the way offensively for the Green-and-Gold, while Crosby Morris contributed 12.

J.D. Williams tallied a game-high 16 points to lead the way for the Patriots (5-6), while Josh Huffman finished ith 15.

“Things like this happen,” Shinsky said. “You can control some things. You can control your effort, and you can control your defense. Our effort was good. We played well on defense. We held Wheeling Park to 12 points in the first quarter. We got some offensive rebounds, and we had some putbacks just roll out. We had three or four layups just roll out. We were just cold. That happens.

“We have two seniors, and it may happen this year or next year where we come out flat at the start and we start 0-for-9 or 0-for-11. You want to remember this. You want to make adjustments.” 

The win was victory No. 300 for Wheeling Park head coach Michael Jebbia.

Brooke is scheduled to play rival Weir Tuesday night on the road on Ron “Fritz” Williams Court inside the Carl Hamill Fieldhouse.

“It’s rivalry week,” Shinsky said. “We played Oak Glen last night, Wheeling Park tonight at Weir Tuesday. It is always a fun atmosphere whether we play at Brooke or at Weir. I hope we shoot the ball better. You always want to give a good effort.

“With the style of basketball that we play, we live or die by the 3. Last night, we lived by the 3. Tonight, we died by it. We’ll see what happens Tuesday.

“I think we have wrapped up the No. 2 seed in the OVAC Tournament. We may play Wheeling Park again here.”

Wheeling Park is slated to play rival John Marshall Tuesday night on the road down at the John Marshall Fieldhouse.

Tuesday is the cutoff date for teams to qualify for the annual OVAC Tournament.

The girls’ tournament is set to get underway tonight.