Photo by Jay W. Bennett of Williamstown’s Parker Schramm (5) looks as if Ethan Colegrove (33) of Tug Valley is defending during a high school boys basketball game on Wednesday. Williamstown won 61-43.
WILLIAMSTOWN – Parker Schramm and Payton Bunch scored 24 points in the first half here on Wednesday night to put Williamstown 61-43 past Tug Valley.
The Panthers, who were third in Class A last season, played without a transfer Parker Davis and fell back to 4-1 with a home game against Sherman on Tuesday. Davis recently took 32 points in a 76-73 win over Huntington St. Joe.
Williamstown, who celebrated a close 55-53 overtime win in Wirt County on Tuesday, again had to do without the starters Seth Hammer and Alex Irvin. Nonetheless, the now 5-1 Yellowjackets from head coach Scott Sauro shot up 60% (15 of 25) in the first half, including 6 of 11 from downtown, for a commanding 39-17 half-time advantage.
Bunch’s triple from a kickout by Gavin Lemley at 6:13 of the first opened the scoring. A bucket from Ashton Davis, who lost 11, put the Panthers in one, but they never got closer.
WHS, which host Ritchie County on Tuesday, then received a lay-in from Lemley over one of Gavin Bosgraf’s six high-value assists. Bunch followed on a 3, and then Louis Goodnow converted a baseline drive to 10-2.
Ethan Colegrove, who doubled down on 17 points and a game high of 10 rebounds, scored an assist from Jonathan Wagoner to bring it down to 10-4, but WHS scored 13 of the last 16 points to go 23-7 after one. After Davis shot a Trifecta out of the can with eight seconds to go in the first verse, Bosgraf was able to pull out a deep 3 that went out of the glass and then in and out of the cylinder before reclaiming the 16-point lead.
Schramm, who finished on 17 points and took eight rebounds with Bosgraf, went on to score eight in a row, including a pair of Treys for a 31-9 lead. Cruz Isaly later added three-point play for part of his eight counterattacks. Bunch, who counted 14 markers, also had a steal and lay-in before the break.
“I thought our boys started fast and played hard.” admitted the trainer. “We were a little worried about the physicality of this game with such a young team. I thought they answered the bell, especially in the first half. “
Things didn’t go well for the hosts in the third quarter as coach Sauro watched his team 1 of 9 lift off the ground and make six losses.
WHS, which thanks to a Bosgraf turnaround one-handed jump swimmer was still leading with 43:30 in the last eight minutes, made only two ball losses in the first half.
Tug Valley was able to close the gap in fourth place twice to 10. The first came 43-33, just 24 seconds later when Davis hit a 3. The last time came at 3:21 when two Colegrove Charity strip throws made 47-37.
Contact Jay Bennett at jbennett@newsandsentinel.com
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