One of the stories of the offseason was West Potomac losing three talented players that transferred to O’Connell. While that was a blow to the Wolverines, it didn’t affect the “West Potomac Way.”
That way is hard-nosed defense, and it was on full display Thursday night as West Po visited Lake Braddock. The Wolverines held the Bruins to 14 first half points and 34% field goal shooting overall en route to a 49-35 Patriot District victory.
“As Coach Houston always says in the huddle, it’s just the West Po way,” said Wolverines senior Dom Sanchez.
In the first half the Bruins only could manage 14 shots as West Potomac switched between zone and man-to-man and simply didn’t allow Lake Braddock many looks near the basket. Defenders gave up their bodies and took charges, got their hands on passes, and forced the Bruins to burn clock in search of any kind of decent shot. It was 23-14 at halftime.
“We can switch, we’ve got guys that give their bodies up and take charges,” said Coach David Houston III. “Rebounding has been a challenge for us and I thought we did a pretty good job today and we locked in defensively.”
While the Bruins could only find 14 shots early, Sanchez alone found that many shots in the first half. He had nine of his game-high 15 points in the first half, but shot less in the second half. That didn’t make him any less clutch. When Lake Braddock opened the fourth quarter with a trap and a steal to cut it to 32-26, Sanchez got to the line and sank two free throws.
When the Bruins cut it to 34-30 a few moments later, Sanchez hit a mid-range jumper and then next possession two more free throws to extend his team’s lead to 38-30. Lake Braddock never got that close again.
“Offensively we were running sets for him,” Houston said of Sanchez. “We were getting him in spots that we know he’s got good shots and good advantages…we told him he needed to shoot the ball–three-year varsity guy, that’s what you’re supposed to be doing.”
Sanchez got plenty of support from his teammates, not just defensively. Senior Michael Ofori had 10 points and four assists and generally made sure his team didn’t turn over the ball too much. Forward Griffin Melley had eight points and six rebounds, while fellow juniors Iverson Adomako and Brendan Forti had seven points apiece. Forti had six of his points in the third quarter, when he hit consecutive threes to help beat back another Braddock run.

The victory was a key one for Houston’s team, as it gave the Wolverines (3-2, 6-6) sole control of third place in the Patriot District. As long as they keep playing their “way,” they’re going to be a tough out going forward.
“We were shaky at the start of the year, we’d score 30 points but we’d hold teams under 40,” Sanchez said. “I think that’s always been our game, defense. That’s what propels us above everybody else.”
Lake Braddock (2-3, 6-7) was buoyed by junior Nate McComb (14 points, 12 rebounds), and senior Xavier Main (10 points), who were effective on defense all night protecting the paint and got better looks close to the basket in the second half.
all statistics are unofficial
WEST POTOMAC | FG | FT | TP | REB | AST | |
ADOMAKO | 1-6 | 4-8 | 7 | 1 | 1 | |
FORTI | 2-5 | 1-2 | 7 | 5 | 1 | |
OFORI | 4-6 | 2-2 | 10 | 3 | 4 | |
MELLEY | 4-6 | 0-0 | 8 | 6 | 0 | |
SANCHEZ | 5-16 | 4-4 | 15 | 6 | 0 | |
Wanzer | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 3 | 2 | |
Hopper | 1-2 | 0-0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | |
TOTALS | 17-41 | 11-16 | 49 | 25 | 8 | |
Threes: Forti 2-5, Adomako 1-1, Sanchez 1-3 | ||||||
LAKE BRADDOCK | FG | FT | TP | REB | AST | |
McCOMB | 5-10 | 4-4 | 14 | 12 | 1 | |
MAIN | 4-7 | 2-5 | 10 | 4 | 1 | |
CLAYTON | 0-6 | 0-2 | 0 | 4 | 2 | |
ANTENEH | 3-9 | 0-1 | 8 | 1 | 0 | |
TAR | 1-5 | 0-0 | 3 | 0 | 1 | |
Johnson | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
Pedersen | 0-1 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | |
TOTALS | 13-38 | 6-12 | 35 | 22 | 7 | |
Threes: Anteneh 2-7, Tar 1-4, Clayton 0-3, Pedersen 0-1 |