The Morning Journal (Lorain, OH)
Wellington overcomes slow start, downs Brookside
In many ways, Wellington’s Feb. 2 matchup against Brookside was emblematic of the Dukes’ season.
For some stretches of the game, the Dukes operated without any rhythm or pace on offense, which in turn led to missed shots and unforced turnovers. But for other stretches, the Dukes operated as one unit, methodically working the ball around for easy buckets.
Luckily for Wellington coach Dan Gundert, there was more positive play than negative play, as the Dukes defeated Brookside 51-42.
“I thought we came out a little sluggish while Brookside gave us some fits early,” Gundert said. “I was really proud of our guys for keeping their noses down and being able to pull this game out.”
Gundert’s assessment of Wellington’s early play wasn’t wrong, as the Dukes nearly committed as many turnovers (7) as they scored points (8) and found themselves trailing 9-8 after one.
While Wellington cut down on the sloppy play in the second quarter, the Dukes still headed into the halftime locker room down 19-17.
“Early one it seemed like every pass we were throwing was tipped,” Gundert said.
“Some of that was on our guys and some of that was because of what Brookside was doing. We were trying to over penetrate at some points and the underpenetrating at others; there really wasn’t a ton of balance.”
That changed in the second half, as Wellington simultaneously locked down on defense while also working with more rhythm on offense. Senior Cole Standen (15.9 ppg) led the way for the Dukes in the second half, scoring all 12 of his points in the final two quarters, five of which came in the final minute on game-clinching free throws.
“My shots weren’t falling all night so I figured I’d help the team by being an aggressor,” Standen said. “It was contagious and the whole team started being aggressive on both sides of the ball.”
Additionally, both Standen and Gundert credited senior Wyatt Sasack as being the spark in the second half. While Sasack only had two points (a put back layup to put the Dukes up 44-26 with 2:30 left), he had two steals, a rebound and an assist in the final frame.
Junior Jay Roberts added 12 points and nine rebounds, with nine of his points coming in the second half.
“We didn’t come out with the energy and Wyatt came out and sparked the team and then we started rolling in the second half,” Standen said.
The Dukes were led on offense by freshman Sean Whitehouse, who finished with 13 points on three 3-pointers. Whitehouse’s final 3-pointer put the Dukes up for good with 5:30 left.
“I just kept going baseline and then caught fire from deep,” Whitehouse said. “We started taking our time brining the ball up the floor while also being aggressive.”
Senior Jake Barnhart and sophomore Avery Young each scored 13 points to pace the Cardinals (1-12) on offense. Barnhart went on a personal 5-0 run early in the fourth quarter to tie the game at 33 before Whitehouse’s aforementioned 3-pointer gave Wellington the lead.
The Dukes (3-5) picked up the win in what’s only their eighth game of the season, a symptom of having to go into quarantine twice.
“It’s been the craziest season that we can imagine,” Gundert said.
While it wasn’t the prettiest game — Wellington committed 18 turnovers while Brookside had 23 — Gundert’s happy they’re able to digest everything on a winning note.
“We got some stops and run outs in the second half which is what we need to do to be efficient,” Gundert said. “Any win for us is a big win. We’re trying to figure this out. We’re really happy to go in and learn from a win, it’s better than the alternative.”