Westerville Central swallows up Newark boys basketball

On Feb 5, 2023

WESTERVILLE — Jeff Quackenbush was not willing to quickly dismiss Saturday as just one of those nights for his Newark boys basketball team.

The way the Wildcats’ stunning 60-31 loss at Westerville Central unfolded will be dissected this week as they continue into this critical month of February. The Warhawks scored 16 points on their first seven possessions, and it got worse from there.

“We have a lot of things to fix this week, there’s no doubt,” Quackenbush said. “Tournament games are played like that. They are physical, and they are fast-paced. We didn’t handle it real well.”

Newark senior Grant Burkholder attempts to elude the long arms of Westerville Central junior Nick Patton on Saturday, Feb. 4, 2023. The visiting Wildcats were held to 32% shooting in a 60-31 loss.

Newark (13-6) held Central Crossing to just nine second-half points in a 57-31 victory on Friday. Central (11-8), however, hit a trio of 3-pointers midway through the first quarter, and the Warhawks took off, outscoring the Wildcats in each quarter.

It was a literal night and day difference for Central. The Warhawks, who like the Wildcats have run a gauntlet this season, fell 49-33 to Gahanna on Friday after a 61-49 loss to Olentangy Orange last Tuesday, and they had matched their 33 at halftime Saturday thanks to 19 points from junior guard Dallas Tucker, who hit the first two of those early 3s.

“You have to have a short memory after something like last night, and you don’t have a ton of prep time,” said Central coach Kevin Martin, who led the Warhawks to a Division I state runner-up finish in 2021 after an outstanding run at Johnstown.

“We’ve hung our hats on the defensive end all year long,” he added. “We have been really consistent there. Where we haven’t been consistent is offense, and tonight, we made shots early. It’s amazing what confidence will do. It took a weight off their shoulders.”

Junior Steele Meister and senior Grant Burkholder combined for 14 of Newark’s 16 points in the first half. The deficit only grew in the third quarter.

Central had good length and quickness on the perimeter that closed the air space on shooters and cut off driving lanes. When the Wildcats were able to work into paint, 6-foot-3 Jacob Harris blocked four shots as the Wildcats were held to 32% shooting from the field and committed 11 turnovers.

“You could tell they were anxious to get back on the floor and prove they are better than what they played those two games,” Quackenbush said. “They were more physical, they were faster — the whole nine yards. That doesn’t happen to us a lot.”

Tucker finished with 25 points. Devin Martin, the coach’s son, recorded 14 points and six assists, directing an attack that committed just five turnovers, and Harris added eight points and nine rebounds.

“We challenged them at shootaround: ‘What is going to be our response after last night? What are we made of?’ I am extremely proud of what they did,” Kevin Martin said.