BLYTHEWOOD – Frustration among the Westwood boys basketball team was palpable Tuesday night at The Castle.
The Redhawks and the Vikings battled through 15 lead changes, but missed opportunities at the net and poor free-throw shooting hurt Westwood in a 59-54 loss.
It was frustrating in that the stops we did get, there was a bunch of foul calls on us and we weren’t getting the same foul calls on both ends,” Westwood head coach Trent Robinson said. “We aren’t perfect, but golly, every game we’ve been playing in the region, we’ve been outfouled to the free-throw line. We had a good free-throw shooting team, but we’ve given up a lot of fouls on both ends.”
Westwood (15-6, 3-6 Region 5-5A) came off a 53-50 loss to Ridge View Friday night, and the region slump continued with the loss to the Vikings.
The Redhawks were 11-for-18 from the free-throw line, and Spring Valley outrebounded the Redhawks 24-14. The Vikings cashed in their trips to the foul line as well, hitting 19 of 25 free throws, a stat that helped them in the final minutes of a close game.
In the first quarter the Vikings took a 12-9 lead, but Westwood closed out the quarter with an 8-0 scoring run to lead 17-12 going into the second quarter.
Spring Valley won that period 13-9 to go into the locker room trailing the Redhawks 26-25 at the half.
That one-point advantage remained by the third quarter buzzer, when Westwood held a 43-42 lead going into the fourth quarter. There were four lead changes before D’Marcus Thomas hit a basket to make it 52-51 with 3:21 left in the game.
Levon Smith’s 3-pointer with 2:59 to go gave Spring Valley a 54-52 lead, and as the last two minutes of the game came down to foul shots, the Vikings sank five of six to Westwood’s two of four to seal the win.
Larry Brown scored 19 points to lead the Redhawks. Donovan Mickle hit four 3-pointers and had 13 points on the night.
Dewayne Patterson led Spring Valley (6-12, 2-7) with 18 points. Smith added 12 points.
The Redhawks have lost four straight games and have slid down the region standings as a result.
With games against Lugoff-Elgin Friday, at West Florence Monday, and at home against Sumter Feb. 13, Robinson said he hopes the team can finish strong before the playoffs.
“We’ve got a game Friday night, we’ve got to be ready to play,” Robinson said. “It’s frustrating, and we’ve got to figure out what’s the missing piece and find it.”
In the girls game, the Redhawks (9-14, 3-6) fell 64-48 to the Vikings (12-8, 4-4).
Spring Valley led 16-13 after the first quarter and Westwood trailed 34-25 at the half. The Vikings outscored the Redhawks 21-5 in the third quarter to take a 55-30 lead into the fourth quarter.
Aneya Britt led the way for Westwood with 24 points.
Lauren Crosland scored 29 points to lead Spring Valley. Zie’l Ratchford scored 19 points.
The Westwood girls fell 71-64 in overtime to Ridge View Friday night. Britt had 25 points and Amari Alexander had 16 points.
Girls
Spring Valley – 16-18-21-11 — 64
Westwood – 13-12-5-18 — 48
S – Lauren Crosland 29, Zie’l Ratchford 19, Chisholm 5, Mariana Moody 4, Briggs 3, Mariah Moody 2 Williams 2. W – Aneya Britt 24, Alexander 9, Entzminger 5, Omeire 4, Green 3, Cummings 2, Davis 1.
Boys
Spring Valley – 12-13-17-17 — 59
Westwood – 17-9-17-11 — 54
S –Dewayne Patterson 18, Levon Smith 12, Parks 8, Parker 8, Wilson 6, Young 5, Thomas 2. W – Larry Brown 19, Donovan Mickle 13, Crews 4, R. Brown 4, Archie 4, Veal 3, Cockfield 2, Goddard 2, Thomas 2, Hardy 1.
