In a battle of the top teams in Region 3A, the West Central Trojan boys held off the Baltic Bulldogs at home 37-31 on Monday, January 19th.
Neither offense was really able to get into much of a rhythm the entire game as both defenses were the stars. The Bulldogs held a 10-7 lead at the end of the first quarter. Baltic continued to lead in the second quarter and remained in front by the same three points, 19-16, at halftime.
The Trojans got rolling a little bit in the third quarter. They opened the second half with a 9-0 run to take a 25-19 lead. That run proved to be the difference in the game. West Central continued to hold the lead through the rest of the quarter. The score was 29-24 in favor of the Trojans going into the fourth quarter. The Bulldogs made a run and got within a point, 32-31, late in the game. A layup by Hayden Heier and three made free throws in the closing seconds secured the win.
West Central shot 38% (14-37) from the field overall, 21% (3-14) from three-point area, and 6-10 from the free-throw line. Baltic ended the game shooting 34% (12-35) overall, 28% (5-18) on three-point shots, and 2-2 from the free-throw line.
Will Kuhl had 11 points and six rebounds. Heier finished with nine points and three steals. Tanner Wagner ended with six points and four rebounds. Carter Gross had four points, and Braden Ockenga had three points.
