A pair of third quarter spurts proved to be the difference as Logan defeated Woodrow Wilson 64-46 in the New River CTC Invitational at the Beckley-Raleigh County Convention Center Saturday night.
Trailing by two at the half, Class AAA No. 1 Logan scored the first nine points of the third quarter, which part of an 11-0 run after Jackson Tackett’s basket just before the first half buzzer, gave Logan a 31-24 lead.
The second, a 17-0 run gave Logan a 51-30 lead and turned a close contest into a runaway as the Wildcats increased their advantage to 26 with a 9-0 run to start the fourth quarter.
The Flying Eagles never got any closer than the final margin in dropping its fourth straight after starting the season 2-0 with wins over sectional rival Greenbrier East and Mercer County rival Bluefield.
Scotty Browning led Logan with 17 points while Jackson Tackett and Garrett Williamson added double-doubles in the victory. Tackett scored 15 points and pulled down 11 rebounds and Williamson had 11 points and dished out 10 assists. Jaxon Cogar added 13 for the Wildcats.
Woodrow Wilson started the game on a 9-2 run forcing Logan to call a timeout with 3:58 remaining in the first quarter.
Browning’s basket with 1:59 remaining in the opening quarter ended a 5:59 field goal drought that saw Logan missed 10-of-its-first-11 shots.
Woodrow Wilson led 14-9 after one quarter and quickly extended its lead to 11 points, 20-9, with six straight points to start the second quarter forcing Logan to call a timeout with 5:38 remaining in the first half.
The Wildcats responded with a 11-2 run out of the timeout capped off by Williamson’s 3 with 2:24 to play in the first half. The triple was Logan’s first after 11 straight misses to start the game.
Elijah Redfern led Woodrow Wilson with 15 points. Braden Hawthrone had 10 and Zan Hill nine for the Flying Eagles.
Logan relied on its offensive rebounding and defensive pressure to stay within striking distance in the first half. The Wildcats pulled down 12 rebounds, but eight of the 12 were offensive rebounds and led to second chance opportunities. On defense, the Wildcats ability to switch defenses, changing from a 2-3 zone to a man back to a 1-3-1 zone forced Woodrow Wilson into nine first half turnovers.
Logan connected on 25.9 percent (7-for-27) of its shots in the first half and was only 1-of-12 from downtown. The Wildcats shot much better in the second half connecting on 17-of-36 attempts from the field including 12-of-20 in the third quarter. Overall, Logan was 24-for-63 from the field, 5-of-27 from 3 and 11-of-13 from the free throw line.
Woodrow Wilson was 10-of-23 in the first half but was 9-of-27 in the second half and finished 19-of-50 for the game. The Flying Eagles were 6-of-12 from 3 and just 2-of-4 from the free throw line.
Woodrow Wilson will look to snap its four-game losing streak Friday night when they travel to Oak Hill.
Logan improves to 6-0 and will likely keep its top ranking in Class AAA. The Wildcats host Class AAA No. 4 Winfield in a battle of unbeatens Tuesday night at Willie Akers Arena. The Generals, who will bring a 7-0 unblemished record into Logan, have not played since defeating Lincoln 60-44 on Dec. 29.
Logan 64, Woodrow Wilson 46
Logan (6-0)
Scotty Browning 6-19 3-3 17, Garrett Williamson 4-12 1-1 11, Aiden Slack 2-9 1-2 6,
Jaxon Cogar 6-9 1-1 13, Jackson Tackett 5-9 5-6 15, Cole Blankenship 0-3 0-0 0,
Derrick Browning 0-1 0-0 0, Chance Maynard 1-1 0-0 2. Totals: 24-63 11-13 64.
Woodrow Wilson (2-4)
Elijah Redfern 6-17 0-0 15, Braden Hawthrone 3-8 2-2 10, Sam Peck 2-6 0-0 4,
Jaylon Walton 0-1 0-0 0, Nelson Staples 0-1 0-2 0, Elijah Walter 0-2 0-0 0, Zan Hill 3-9 0-0 9, Isaiah Patterson 4-6 0-0 8. Totals: 19-50 2-4 46.
Logan 9 13 29 13- 64
Woodrow 14 10 10 12- 46
3-point field goals Logan 5-27 (Browning, S. 2-10, Williamson 2-8, Slack 1-4, Cogar 0-1, Blankenship 0-3, Browning, D. 0-1), Woodrow Wilson 6-12 (Redfern 3-4, Hawthrone 2-3, Peck 0-1, Waller 0-1, Hill 1-3). Rebounds-Logan 30 (Tackett 11), Woodrow Wilson 33 (Peck 7). Assists-Logan 16 (Williamson 10), Woodrow Wilson 10 (Redfern 3). Total fouls-Logan 6, Woodrow Wilson 10. Fouled out-None. Technicals-None.