Basketball upended at St John Paul the Great, 55-48

Junior Nick Schmelzer (33) had a game-high 20 but the Cardinals were edged in Dumfries Saturday afternoon by the Wolves.

The home team took a 7-point lead after one quarter of play, and when it was all over, that was the final margin of victory for St John Paul the Great in Dumfries, 55-48 Saturday afternoon.

The Wolves staked themselves to a 16-9 first period advantage and though the Cardinals cut into the margin, trailing 24-21 at intermission, Bishop Ireton could not maintain that momentum in the second half. With JPG leading 40-36 going into the final period the teams traded hoops and the home team took advantage of a 25 to 8 margin in opportunities from the free throw line. The visiting Cardinals collected only five points from the charity stripe while the home team made 15 of their 25 chances.

Nick Schmelzer again led Bishop Ireton in scoring, putting 20 points on the board, junior Jeremiah Brooks added 9 and Quintin Gilcrest had 6. John Paul The Great clinched their lead in the third quarter on a three-pointer from Daud Avazova, who led the Wolves with 19 points. Brandon Edmond had 15, Xayvin Johnson chipped in 10 for the winners.

The Cardinals finished the game with 22 rebounds (11 offensive/11 defensive) and five steals.

The Cardinals return home to host Gonzaga on Sunday at 3pm in a varsity only affair. The rescheduled date sees the frosh and JV contests set for Saturday, Feb 14th at 11am and 12:30pm respectively in Alexandria.