Boys Basketball: Deakan Wirth scores 26 points as Wellington beats Open Door for second straight win

WELLINGTON — Senior Night is usually about making memories. On Tuesday night, Wellington also made progress. Behind a 26-point game from senior Deakan Wirth and 19 points from junior Connor Kinser, the Dukes defeated Open Door 70-47 in non-league play. Coming off an 11-point win Saturday at Beachwood, it's the first time the Dukes (5-15) have won back-to back games this season. "Tonight was a lot of fun. It was good to see everyone get in their groove and play together and start a win streak for the playoffs," Kinser said. Wellington led 26-19 at the half. Open Door came out and scored the first points of the third quarter on a basket by Liam Coughlin. The Dukes responded with a 16-2 run that started with a 3-pointer from Kinser. "We called a timeout and talked about getting back on pace, guarding our players and getting back in our groove and then we went out and did it," Kinser said. Open Door (3-17) never led but hung tough for 2 1/2 quarters before eventually fatigue set in for the Patriots, who played seven players until they emptied the bench late in the fourth quarter. Five of those seven players also see time in the junior varsity game. "We have to control the tempo. We can't take quick shots," Open Door coach Alan Januzzi said. "When we cut it to five we took a couple of quick shots that led to baskets on the other end and all of a sudden it's a 10- or 12-point game again." After having games of 35 and 28 points as the Patriots swept a home-and-home series with Lake Ridge Academy, junior Brayden Bendik led Open Door with 18 points. "We've been playing much better," Januzzi said. "We've competed against good teams. There have been some bright spots. These kids have really come along since the start of the year." Wirth came in averaging 13.9 points and nearly doubled that against the Patriots. "It was really fun playing with these guys one last time here," said Wirth, one of five seniors on the Dukes roster. "Senior Night means a lot to me. Growing up here, this moment was very heartwarming. I'm very upset I won't be able to play here with these guys ever again." Wirth scored 10 of his points in the third quarter as the Dukes outscored Open Door 23-14 to take a 49-33 lead. The Dukes will have two more chances to add to their win total when they close out the regular season with back-to back games against Mapleton and Northwestern beginning Thursday. "We're still having fun," Wellington coach Jim Baker said. "I know our record isn't pretty or anything like that but these kids are playing hard and practicing hard. We just want to keep playing. I told them in the locker room we're going to keep playing basketball until they tell us we're not allowed to." Dukes senior Landon Whitehouse was in double figures with 10 points. Coughlin, a freshman, also had 10 points for the Patriots. Contact Todd Shapiro at (440) 329-7135 or ctsports@chroniclet.com. Wellington 70, Open Door 47 Open Door (47): Cooper Szwagulak 3-0-9, Brayden Bendik 7-3-18, Titus Hanrahan 3-1-8, Zane Patten 1-0-2, Liam Coughlin 3-2-10. Totals 17-6-47. Wellington (70): Connor Kinser 8-1-19, Bryce Lehmkuhl 3-1-9, Landon Whitehouse 4-0-10, Gaven Wacker 2-0-4, Deakan Wirth 11-3-26, Dylan Parsons 1-0-2. Totals 29-5-70. Open Door&emsp;5&emsp;14&emsp;14&emsp;14&emsp;—&emsp;47 Wellington&emsp;10&emsp;16&emsp;23&emsp;21&emsp;—&emsp;70 Three-point goals: Open Door (Szwagulak 3, Coughlin 2, Bendik, Hanrahan), Wellington (Kinser 2, Lehmkuhl 2, Whitehouse 2, Wirth). Field goals: Open Door 17-46 (37 percent), Wellington 29-60 (48 percent). Free throws: Open Door 6-7 (86 percent), Wellington 5-6 (83 percent). Rebounds: Open Door 24, Wellington 36. Turnovers: Open Door 17, Wellington 9. Team fouls: Open Door 6, Wellington 13. Junior varsity: Open Door, 41-38.