Westlake Boys Stunned In Second Half, Lose To Lakewood

The faster the boys basketball team fired up shots, the farther they fell behind Tuesday night.

The result was a stunning 67-53 loss to Lakewood, which outscored the Demons 22-5 over the final six minutes.

"We just rushed everything," coach Bob Patton said after the Demons dropped to 10-9 on the season. "There was no real reason for it. We didn't take particularly bad shots, we just took them too soon.

"It is fine to want to push the ball, to get out and run, but you have to do it smartly. You have to be under control."

That's how Westlake played in the first half to open a 32-25 lead.

"We forced the tempo in the first half by playing sound defense," Patton said. "The momentum changed in the third quarter. We regrouped to take the lead back, then started taking quick shots, just giving in to their defense."

It was Senior Night and the Demons' lone player heading for graduation, , was honored before the game. Labroo led Westlake with 15 points, but occasionally appeared a bit eager to provide quick offense instead of using his experience to settle play.

Only five players scored for Westlake. Shawn Turk backed Labroo with 13 points, Max Rodriguez scored 10, Bryan Mackenzie nine and freshman center Gavin Skelly had six points.

With only nine players on the roster, the Demons' lack of depth proved a problem.

"We were a little bit out of gas," Patton said about a 12-0 run by Lakewood (5-14) that put the Rangers ahead, 57-48.

Westlake had taken control late in the first quarter with a 7-0 run to lead, 19-12. Rodriguez scored the first five.

"We were taking good shots, playing defense, playing smart," Patton said.

Meanwhile, Lakewood's veteran coach Phil Argento was yelling out defensive instructions. The Rangers didn't seem to understand, until putting it all together in a 20-9 third quarter that gave them a 45-41 lead.

Once again, Rodriguez provided a spark by hitting a 3-pointer to start Westlake on a 7-0 run. Labroo and Turk added consecutive fastbreak layups to make it 48-45.

A key steal by Lakewood's Jay Andreani led to a 3-pointer by Chris Bielopetrovich. Another three by Pete Nelson tied the score at 48.

Andreani blocked a shot by Grant Gase and Bielopetrovich scored on a layup, then Andreani and freshman Jason Schmidt converted fastbreak layups, too.

The runnin' Rangers could not be stopped.

"Their coach came over afterwards and gave us the best compliment when he said, 'You guys played so darned hard,' " Argento said.

"We do play hard. We're young (only three seniors), but have a lot of kids who give maximum effort in games, in practice.

"Fans get a little frustrated that it hasn't turned into wins, but it is not for lack of effort. Tonight, the effort was at both ends of the court and it did translate into a win. They matched their effort with some smart play."

Patton believes the Demons will play smarter to close out their season.

"This can be a good lesson," he said. "It is good to have intensity. You just have to combine it with patience at the right time. We've got to start doing that."

Earlier, sophomores Jamie Lackner, with 18 points, and Danny Strodtbeck (13 points) led Westlake's JV team to a 54-39 victory.