Basketball Recap: West Jefferson Takes a Loss

West Jefferson was not able to break out of their rough patch on Saturday as the team picked up their third straight loss. They were five points away from ending the streak, but they lost a 54-49 heartbreaker at the hands of the Shekinah Christian Flames. While losing is never fun, the Roughriders can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Ohio basketball rankings (they are ranked 490th, while the Flames are ranked 190th).

When it comes to explaining why West Jefferson lost, don't look at Austin Buescher. Despite the final result, he went 7 for 17 on his way to 19 points and seven rebounds. Buescher is also crushing it when it comes to blocks: he's posted at least two every time he's taken the court this season. Nick Fitzpatrick was another key player, putting up six points and six rebounds.

West Jefferson's defeat dropped their record down to 3-3. As for Shekinah Christian, the victory (which was their fifth in a row) raised their record to 6-1.

West Jefferson and West Liberty-Salem will round out the year against one another at at 7:30 p.m. on Monday. West Jefferson is strutting in with some offensive muscle as they've averaged 50.8 points per game this season. As for Shekinah Christian, they will challenge Berne Union at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday.