Westfall finds its groove in upset win over Paint Valley
WILLIAMSPORT − Casey Cline felt everything click in Westfall's win over Paint Valley.
The senior knows what the Mustangs can do when their offense gets rolling. He's often at the forefront of it. The Mustangs move as a unit, score as a unit and win as a unit. When one player on the court finds a spark, the rest catch fire.
Westfall found that spark and set the court at Westfall High School alight. Behind Cline's 20-point performance, Westfall upset Paint Valley 57-41 on Friday night. All five of Westfall's starters carried their weight and commanded an offense that scored its most points in a game since its season-opening win over Amanda-Clearcreek.
"We were just trying to get going on the offensive side and everything clicked," Cline said. "It led with me and Brody (Clark), and when we got stuck or face guarded we just dished it to our big. Seth Gifford had a great night, Jeremiah Layton had a great night and Henry (Barnes) can go off with it. That led to Blaec (Bugher) getting open, and he had a huge few drives that helped everyone get open."
It was only a matter of time before the Mustangs took control. They'd nipped at the Bearcats' heels all night. Brody Clark bombarded the Bearcats from long range and sank a pair of 3-pointers in the first quarter. Clark only made one shot from within the arc in the first eight minutes of the game. The junior punched out of the game with 17 points, second only to Cline.
Even when they lost the lead late in the first quarter, Westfall never faltered. Paint Valley never assumed more than a single-digit lead and was only up by a point come halftime.
Dax Estep and Braylon Robertson put up shots in an attempt to widen the gap, but nothing stuck. Although Estep ended the game with 10 points and nine rebounds while Robertson tacked on eight points of his own, they had to fight for an open look. Paint Valley went just 18-for-46 on field goal attempts and shot 25 percent from beyond the arc.
The Bearcats made four 3-pointers all game. Clark and Cline sank three apiece.
"They're some confident kids," Westfall coach Christian Meister said. "They've just got to get confidence within the game. But just seeing confidence early got us going."
Westfall didn't slow down after halftime. If anything, it sped up. Despite a four-minute scoring drought, it ended the third quarter on a 12-2 run and established a lead it maintained until the clock ran out. Cline scored 11 of his points in the second half. Seth Gifford bullied Paint Valley in the post. Blaec Bugher, who had remained silent in the first half, scored all nine of his points after halftime.
The Bearcats couldn't keep pace. They sank just seven field goals after halftime and fell into a double-digit hole by the fourth quarter. The Mustangs surged while the Bearcats succumbed to fatigue.
"I thought in the second half they just executed their game plan batter," Paint Valley coach Jason Smith said. "I think they hit shots because of that. They knew what they wanted to do. They attacked us and we didn't respond. We can make excuses about it, but we just didn't play very well in the second half and they played extremely well."
The Mustangs had to work through trial and error this year, but they've found a formula for success. They've won their last two games by double digits, and Friday served as an example of what their rotation can do. They stunned one of the top teams in the SVC and did so with their largest margin of victory against a conference opponent this season.
Westfall isn't where it wants to be yet. Meister believes there's plenty to improve upon. But, for one night, everything clicked.
This article originally appeared on Chillicothe Gazette: Westfall finds its groove in upset win over Paint Valley
