T-L Photo/SETH STASKEY LINSLY SENIOR Carter Anderson looks to drive to the basket against Parkersburg South’s Austin Reeves during the first quarter of Monday’s game, which was part of the inaugural MLK Classic on the Linsly campus. Anderson scored 26 points to help lead the Cadets to an 84-78 victory

WHEELING — The cutoff date for the annual OVAC Basketball Tournament is quickly approaching and most recently released standings show defending Class 3A champion Linsly sitting in the fifth spot.

The Cadets can expect a boost in the next standings, however.

Seemingly playing with a purpose and fire that Dave Wojcik had hoped to see, Linsly picked up a pivotal conference victory, 84-78, against Parkersburg South Monday evening in the finale of the inaugural MLK Classic held at the Stifel Fieldhouse.

“In my short time here (at Linsly), this is probably one of our bigger wins,” Wojcik said. “Our guys did an unbelievable job of trusting each other.”

Linsly (7-5) wasted no time in asserting itself. It held a 19-12 lead after one, but the Patriots were within a bucket at halftime, which set the stage for an entertaining second half.

“Linsly’s kids were more excited about the game than we were,” South head coach Mike Fallon said. “They beat us. I think they wanted it more and it showed.”

The third quarter was back and forth as proven by the eight lead changes and four ties.

Linsly’s Gavin Jackson caught fire, scoring 12 of his 26 in the period. Austin Reeves fueled the Patriots with 10 in the third, including a six-of-six effort from the foul line.

The biggest issue Linsly faced entering the fourth quarter was foul trouble. Jackson found himself with four fouls and firmly planted on the bench.

South was unable to capitalize. Actually, Linsly’s Carter Anderson and Nate Coleman along with the help of John Paul Jones and Jonah Vaysbakh, off the bench, the Cadets extended the lead to as many as 13.

“When Gavin had to sit the first four minutes, instead of the lead staying (the same), our bench extended the lead, which was huge,” Wojcik said. “Gave me more option and freedom to keep him on the bench longer and save him.”

South, which is ranked second in the state of West Virginia’s Class AAAA, demonstrated plenty of resolve. It wasn’t about to let the Cadets pull totally away.

Thanks to a swarming pressure that led to several Linsly turnovers, a technical foul on the Cadets, and solid inside play of Nathan Plotner, the Patriots reeled off 11 unanswered to make it a 78-76 game with still 1:40 to play.

Senior Nathan Coleman, who caught an impressive lob dunk in transition during the first quarter, turned away a South shot on back-to-back trips in a one-possession game.

“Nate is a really good defender and had two, big blocks that were crucial,” Wojcik said.

Linsly was able to control a rebound and stretched the margin back out by 13 of 19 from the line in the fourth. Vaysbakh was solid at the line, calmly making five of six and Anderson, who also finished with 26 points, scored half of those in the fourth.

Though the Cadets held on to win, the fact that two players were whistled for technicals didn’t sit well with their head coach, especially when you consider both followed foul calls when South was in the double bonus, meaning it shot four and got the ball out of bounds.

“It was emotion,” Wojcik said. “One thing I talked to the guys about is being able to handle success and adversity. We’ve handled some adversity this season, but this is our first big success, beating a really good, well-coached team. We didn’t respond well to that at times and we have to do a better job of that moving forward.”

Along with the back-court duo of Jackson and Anderson evenly divided 52, Coleman added 15.

“I thought we were aggressive (Monday) and not just defensively, but offensively, too,” Wojcik said. “We attacked their pressure. Our motto is ‘if someone presses us, we’re thinking layups and dunks.'”

Reeves paced a balanced South with 23 points. Aiden Blake chipped in with 16, while Plotner donated 14 and Cyrus Traugh finished with 11, but nine of those came in the first half.

“Playing in an environment like this, against a quality team, is good for us,” Fallon said. “In the big scheme of things, it means nothing, but it’s a (game) that can pay off for us down the road, if we go back and learn from it.”