BY WENDI REARDON PRICE
Clarkston News Sports Writer
Clarkston Varsity Basketball players upheld a tradition established when some of them were in diapers, capturing the Wolves’ 14th consecutive OAA Red title on Friday night. With their 63-48 win over Ferndale, they remained undefeated in the league.
“Winning a league title is big for us,” said Tim Wasilk, head coach for Clarkston Boys Varsity Basketball. “Our kids did a nice job tonight. We know the streak we have. We can’t control what has happened in the past. It’s nice to talk about, but the big picture is our 12 games in the league – that’s our focus.”
“It’s a good competition and most teams are ranked high in the state so it prepares us for playoffs and games to come,” added senior Matt Nicholson.
The Wolves opened with a 3-point shot from sophomore Fletcher Loyer after he caught the pass from Nicholson.
Ferndale’s Jayshawn Moore closed the gap with a basket and Clarkston responded by going on a 12-point run which included two field goals, one from Loyer and one from senior Cole Donchez. The Wolves closed the first quarter with a 18-6 lead with a 3-pointer from sophomore Keegan Wasilk.

“I liked how we started,” said Wasilk. “We shot the ball really well especially early on.”
Ferndale closed the gap during the next quarter to close the Wolves’ lead to eight points, 32-24. They opened the second half with five points to close in more on the score.
“They are a good team. They are an athletic team. Colin Golson just absolutely beat us up a lot especially in the second half,” said Wasilk. “He is a heck of a player. He definitely brought his A-game tonight. We had a tough time containing him. We know when playing a team like this we are going to face runs. They are going to come at us. There are going to be highs and lows of the game. It was a good battle for us. It was a good test.”
“They are a physical team so it was good for us to play a physical game,” Nicholson added.
The Wolves came back scoring five points with another 3-pointer from Donchez and a basket from sophomore Nathan Steinman. Loyer added three more points and Nicholson added five as the boys closed the third quarter, 45-34.
Loyer led with 18 points and six assists as Wasilk had 16 points and six rebounds. Nicholson had 13 points, 17 rebounds and 14 blocks and Donchez had 13 points and five rebounds.
The Wolves opened the week with a 96-57 win over Eastpointe, Feb. 18. Loyer led with 28 points and eight assists. Wasilk had 15 points and six assists; Nicholson had 14 points, 12 rebounds and ten blocks.
Clarkston (16-1, 9-0 OAA Red) heads to North Farmington on Friday and West Bloomfield on Tuesday.
They are back home on March 5 when they host Lake Orion in their last game of the regular season. JV plays at 5:30 p.m., varsity follows.

  Boys Basketball