MORAN — While they’ve not tasted victory on the basketball court this season, Marmaton Valley High’s Wildcats have made small, but steady steps to a brighter future, head coach Gavin Cole said.
“It’s a process,” Cole said Tuesday, after the latest setback, a 47-33 defeat against visiting Chetopa. “We’re improving. It’s happening.”
Marmaton Valley played Chetopa to a virtual standstill after the first half.
Bo Knavel’s free throws in the waning seconds of the second quarter pushed Marmaton Valley on top 23-22 before the Hornets scored at the buzzer to take a halftime lead.
Things went south in the third quarter. Chetopa opened the half with a 12-2 run to push the lead to double digits.
But while Marmaton Valley kept the Hornets from breaking away even further, the Wildcats couldn’t muster enough offense to make things interesting.
The Wildcats scored only six points in the third frame; four in the fourth.
“We still turn the ball over too much,” Cole said. “When we weren’t turning it over, we were getting decent looks. We just didn’t finish. We weren’t able to get to the free throw line in the second half. We just got weak with the ball in multiple ways.
“We spent halftime talking about how we wanted to attack that 1-3-1 (defense),” he continued. “We executed a couple of times, but not as many as we would have liked.”
It was a far cry from the first half in which the Wildcats led, 8-5, after one quarter, then rebounded after Chetopa opened the second period with a 12-1 run.
Senior Ty Scharff was the primary catalyst, scoring 11 points before the break on senior night.
“Ty’s put together a couple of nice games for us this week,” Cole said. “I can’t say enough about our seniors (Scharff and Knavel, who played despite being hobbled with an ankle injury.) I can’t say enough about what they’ve put into this. They’re good leaders; good kids.”
Scharff wound up with 11 points and 11 rebounds. Freshman Dylan Drake chipped in with 10 points. Sophomore Quincy Adams pulled in five boards.
Connor Wright scored 18 to lead Chetopa.
Cole remained bullish about his team’s prospects.
“Most people say, ‘I bet you’re miserable with a winless season,” he said. “I’m not at all, working with this group of kids, and seeing them make improvements. They really do put the time in. They want it.
“We keep talking about stacking up the little things,” he continued. “Once they stack up high enough, it’ll lead to some big things.”
