The Wilton-Lyndeborough boys’ basketball team is just a couple breaks away from a decent record, but a pair of one-hoop losses leaves them with just one win so far on the season.
First-year head coach Nick Gutterson takes over a program short on returning starters but heavy on multi-sport athletes as he works to revitalize the Warriors after a 4-14 season last year.
“Everyone is starting from the ground up and trying to build,” Gutterson said. “We’ve got a lot of athletes — obviously, at smaller schools, they play different sports. So we’re trying to work on defense first, energy and hustle.”
The Warriors have one win so far, over Mount Royal, and two losses — 39-36 at Sunapee and 49-48 at Pittsfield — that came down to the final moments. But, after Wednesday’s loss to Mascenic, they’re just 1-6. Against the Vikings, it came down to depth and discipline. WLC was down 28-21 at the half with senior captain Daxton Richard scoring 10 of his team-high 12 points in the first, but after the break, the Vikings ran away with it and won 59-32.
“A big part of it is our depth — or lack of depth,” Gutterson said, “and definitely we get in foul trouble way too much. We talk about that when we practice, defending without fouling for 30 minutes, every practice. But in the second half, you start to see a switch in the score as we get tired on our rotations, guys gotta get subbed out for foul trouble, and things like that.” Once the Vikings took over in the second half, it was smooth sailing for the visitors, with Cayden Emerson (game-high 16 points) and Brody Shaw (9 points) leading the way offensively. Mascenic got some good scoring from new contributors as well, with Reino Crawford (8 points) and Zach Alix (4 points) scoring down the stretch.
“[Mascenic] has been known for their grit and their defense and their hustle,” Gutterson said, “but they’ve got a skilled group of guys. … They really stretch the floor.”
Point guard Logan Pixley (8 points) and Avian Benson (7 points) were Wilton’s other top scorers.
Mascenic hit eight threes in the game to WLC’s two, and the Warriors went 4-17 from the charity stripe. Long-range shooting and free throws are two key areas for the Warriors to improve.
“Obviously, we’ve got a long way to go with the offense,” Gutterson said. “If we can score the ball better in upcoming games, we’ll have better outcomes. But right now we’re starting with defense and getting that going.”
Richard and co-captain JJ Benson are the team leaders; Gutterson described them as leading by example on the court through effort, scoring and rebounding.
WLC was set to return to action at home on Monday night against Franklin (4-4) and then host Farmington (5-2) on Wednesday.
Mascenic (5-3) beat Holy Family on the road Friday night, 66-60, behind 25 points from Chuck Phillips. The Vikings were set to host Monadnock Monday night and play at Concord Christian (2-3) on Friday.