Tosa West boys basketball team's poor third quarter leads to loss to Pius XI

A poor third quarter cost the Wauwatosa West boys basketball team another game, a 57-47 defeat - their fourth straight loss - at Pius XI on Friday.

Each team took turns dominating the first half, as the Trojans jumped out to a 15-6 first quarter lead, only to see the Popes jump back with a 16-7 second quarter for a 22-22 tie at intermission.

Pius XI came out and went on a 16-9 run to take a 38-31 lead into the fourth period. That means Pius XI outscored Tosa West, 32-16, in the middle two quarters.

"We came out in the first quarter and really played well on both ends," Tosa West coach Chad Stelse said. "Then we got in some foul trouble, and started to struggle and never got back into a good flow on either end of the court. We need the next guy to step up in order for us to be successful. It needs to be a team effort."

The Trojans tried to bounce back in the fourth quarter, but the Popes still held on with a 19-16 advantage.

"We have been doing a good job coming out ready to play in the third quarter for most of the season," Stelse said. "Against Pius I liked our energy coming out of the half, but offensively our execution was poor and they made a couple plays to get them going."

The teams made 58 trips to the free throw line, as the Popes were 28-for-35 and the Trojans were 16-for-23.

"Both teams had trouble all game getting into the flow because of all the whistles," Stelse admitted. "That being said, our guys need to do a better job of recognizing how the game is being officiated and adjust."

Leading the scoring was sophomore wing Andre Carroll with 13 points, which included 5-for-9 from the free throw line and two 3-pointers. Junior forward Blake Harvey added 11, going 4-for-6 from the free throw line, with a 3-pointer.

Junior forward Ricky Landers added nine points, going 3-for-4 from the charity stripe, and sophomore guard Steffan Brown added eight with two 3-pointers.