KINGWOOD — High school basketball games are often won in the fourth quarter.
If Friday’s boys’ basketball game between Preston and Bridgeport had come down to the fourth quarter, the Knights would have picked up their first victory of the season.
Unfortunately, for Preston, the other three quarters also counted and Bridgeport (5-3) was able to grab a 60-34 win over PHS (0-8).
“It just comes down to us being able to make some shots,” first-year Preston head coach Bucky Forbes said. “We were okay in the first quarter and then going into the second, we missed some layups there at the beginning and it was just one of those things where you never get back those shots.”
The Knights tried to make the Indians grind out a victory with a zone defense and disrupting the passing lanes. That strategy worked for a little while as neither team could get going in the first quarter and Bridgeport held a 14-5 lead.
But Preston would never get closer as Bridgeport went on a 12-5 run that was capped by a 3-pointer from Landon Sanders that forced Forbes to call timeout with 2:30 left in the first half. That quick stoppage did little to stop the Indians as they held a 29-12 lead at halftime.
Bridgeport turned the defensive pressure up in the second half as it forced the Knights into seven turnovers in the second half and also pushed the pace of play.
“Preston played scrappy early on,” Bridgeport coach Dave Marshall said. “Especially with the way they try to get you to play ugly early on. We felt like we had to put as much pressure on the ball as we could and we were fortunate to get some turnovers created.”
The Indians were also able to find their offense as they finished shooting 20-of-38 (52.6 percent) from the field while the Knights shot just 34.4 percent.
Preston was able to hit five of its nine 3-point attempts on Thursday and Forbes said he would like to see his young squad shoot more from distance.
“I think the biggest thing for us is learning where we’re supposed to be on the floor,” Forbes said. “Once we learn that, we can start getting open and use some better cuts and that will lead to better shots.”
The Knights did put together a solid fourth quarter as they outscored Bridgeport 12-8 and committed just two of their 20 turnovers in the contest.
“You cannot throw the ball around against a team like Bridgeport,” Forbes said. “That’s going to come with age and we are going to learn the hard way right now. But we are going to get better.”
Bridgeport had four players score in double digits. Sanders led all scorers with 14 points while Anthony Spatafore and Zachary Ayoob each scored 11 with Ben Bifano contributing 10 points.
Preston, which returns to action on Saturday when it travels to John Marshall for a 7 p.m. contest, was led by Slaton Manko with eight points while Cordell Ayers scored seven.
1 2 3 4 F
BHS 14 15 23 8 60
PHS 5 7 10 12 34
Bridgeport (5-3)
Landon Sanders 4 3-3 14, Anthony Spatafore 3 4-4 11, Phoenix Sickles 2 0-0 4, Zachary Ayoob 4 2-4 11, Brennan Cropp 1 0-0 2, Parker Blount 1 0-0 2, Tyler Randolph 1 0-0 2, Rowen Michaels 0 2-2 2, Ben Bifano 3 4-5 10. Totals: 20 15-18 60.
Preston (0-8)
Cordell Ayers 3 0-0 7, Ryan Rosenberger 1 0-0 2, Bryson Wagner 1 0-0 3, Dillion Taylor 0 3-4 3, Zachary Ferrell 1 0-0 3, Kaden Bachtel 1 4-5 6, Easton Hayes 0 2-2 2, Slaton Manko 3 0-0 8. Totals: 10 9-11 34.
3-pointers – BHS: 5 (Sanders 3, Spatafore, Ayoob) PHS: 5 (Manko 2, Ayers, Wagner, Ferrell)
BY ERIC HERTER
TWEET @DomPostSports
