Basketball Preview 2017

WJU Men Back for More

By SHAWN RINE WHEELING — Coach Danny Sancomb steered the Wheeling Jesuit men’s basketball team to the cusp of the NCAA Division-II Elite 8 a season ago, falling to eventual runnerup Fairmont on its home floor in the regional final. That marked the deepest postseason run in program history. A mix of veterans and newcomers make up the roster of a team that began the season ranked No. 19 in the county and has visions of grandeur this time around. The Cardinals kicked off the season by sweeping their way through Gannon and Bowie State at a tournament on the campus of Shepherd, ...

Buff, Cardinals Learning on the Fly

By SHAWN RINE WHEELING — Debbie Buff is accustomed to winning. She has led the Wheeling Jesuit women to back-to-back Mountain East Conference championships. But even Buff was taken aback during the conference’s media day, where it was revealed the Cardinals were picked preseason No. 2. Last season’s club took eventual national runner up Virginia Union to the wire in an Atlantic Regional opener. ‘‘We’re not last year’s team,’’ Buff said. ‘‘We lost four players (Jaana Motton, Kyle Frizell, Chelsea Richardson and Ludia Hyburg) and have a lot of young kids ...

Doyle to Lead Bellaire

By RICK THORP BELLAIRE — Ben Doyle cares about Bellaire. He cares about its kids, it’s future. So, when the high school had an opening for head boys’ basketball coach, he decided to give it a go. After spending a year on J.R. Battista’s staff, Doyle takes over for him as the Big Reds hope to improve on a campaign that saw them win nine games before falling in the opening game of the Division III sectional tournament. “It’s been great,” Doyle said. “We have a lot of good kids. They’ve all been working hard. “We want to embrace the past, present and future of ...

Expectations Remain High for Wheeling Park

By JOSH STROPE WHEELING — Last season, the Wheeling Park girls’ basketball team finally broke through in a big way. An OVAC Class 5A championship for the first time since 2012. A trip to the state tournament for the first time since 2012. But that was last year. What the team does this year and going forward is what can define a program. “If we don’t go down state, it will be a disappointment,” Wheeling Park coach Ryan Young said. “We want to get back to that position. If we want to be one of the better programs in the state, that is something you have to do year in ...

Patriots Look for Bounce Back Season

By JOSH STROPE WHEELING — Wheeling Park isn’t used to too many 9-15 seasons, but that is just what happened last winter for Coach Michael Jebbia and his Patriots. What Jebbia, entering his 12th season in charge, is hoping for this year is a quick turnaround and so far, he likes what he sees. “Last January was a tough stretch for us where we lost five games in a row and had a couple beatdowns, but we improved from late January into March,” Jebbia said. “The biggest thing is ‘are we going to be able to close the gap on Morgantown and University?’ We fill find out soon ...

Goals Remain the Same for Central Boys

By KYLE LUTZ WHEELING — Every year when basketball season rolls around, there’s always those handful of teams that don’t rebuild, but rather reload. For the Wheeling Central boys’ team, this year is no exception. After making it to a West Virginia Class A state semifinal in 2017, the Maroon Knights will return a strong nucleus of players to try and make it back to Charleston. After winning its fifth straight OVAC title, sectional tournament and regional tournament, Wheeling Central ran into eventual champion Notre Dame in a semifinal of the state tournament where it fell, 73-51. ...