By Wendi Reardon Price
Clarkston News Sports Writer
 BIRMINGHAM — Clarkston Boys Varsity Basketball defeated OAA Red foes Birmingham Groves on the road last Thursday, 52-49.
“We hadn’t played in two weeks so it was good to get back and get the rust off,” said Tim Wasilk, head coach. “We started off with a lot of good energy. We were really good defensively and shot the ball pretty well.”
The Wolves finished the first half up 27-18. Then, Groves closed the gap during the third quarter and took the lead, 37-35.
“We just grinded it out during the fourth quarter and ended up winning. We had some big defensive stops at the end and knocked a couple free throws in,” Wasilk said, adding the boys responded well in the quarter. “Our kids have been pretty resilient. It’s our third game in a row the game could have gone either way. It’s just coming together at the end and playing with toughness, finding way to win and believing in each other. The team has pretty good chemistry on and off of the court. I think that really helps. It’s makes it that much easier in crunch time when you need to rely on each other. When you win those close games they tend to believe in themselves a little more.
Senior Peyton Fitzsimonds had 17 points with two 3-pointers. Junior Quinn Rosenberg had nine points, three assists and 12 rebounds. Junior John Kaul had 12 points with one 3-pointer and sophomore Cole Charter had ten points and four assists.
“Matthew Pflieger did really good defensively on their best player,” Wasilk said. “It was a good team effort. A lot of kids across the board scored points. We are just trying to get better every game. We have two tough league game coming up. It will be a good test for the kids.
The Wolves (6-2, 2-1 OAA Red) opened the week against Oak Park. They head to West Bloomfield on Friday and Troy on Monday.

  Basketball, Clarkston Boys Basketball