FAIRMONT, W.Va. — Buckhannon-Upshur boys basketball coach Jason Westfall didn’t like much of what he saw from his team throughout the first half of Monday’s matchup against Fairmont Senior.
“Our halftime was very pointed and very direct,” Westfall said. “If we’re going to be a good team, we have to find ways to find a solution for what’s causing us a challenge.”
That’s precisely what the Buccaneers did throughout a dominant third quarter, outscoring the Polar Bears 18-1 during that 8-minute stretch to turn a six-point deficit into a double-digit lead, and hanging on down the stretch for a 50-46 victory at the Fairmont Senior Field House.
“We played the worst defense of our whole season in the first half,” Westfall said. “To come out in the third and have a really nice defensive quarter is what we were wanting, but that was way more than what we were expecting.”
B-U (10-5) trailed 27-21 to start the second half, but gained its first lead since 2-0 when Jerin Westfall accounted for a conventional three-point play at the 4:50 mark of the third, allowing the visitors to go in front, 29-28.
Westfall followed suit 31 seconds later with another one that made it a four-point lead, while his follow-up bucket later in the period left the Polar Bears with a 36-28 deficit.
Brody McDaniels made the last of his three three-pointers for the final points of the period, allowing the Bucs to lead by 11 through three.
Brody McDaniels with one of his three 3s during a 50-46 win at Fairmont Senior. This trey marked final points of dominant third quarter for Bucs, who outscored Polar Bears 18-1 that frame.#wvprepbb pic.twitter.com/At77v9iqZW
— Greg Carey (@gcarey938) February 3, 2026
After making 12-of-23 field-goal attempts in the first half, Fairmont Senior (7-6) shot 0 for 11 in the third.
“We missed shots and let that affect our defense,” Polar Bears’ head coach Dave Retton said. “When you’re missing shots, it’s either not a good shot, or if you have to figure out something else to score the ball whether it’s with a drive or making two or three more passes. Whatever was going on inside of our heads we had to clear to move forward, and we didn’t do that.”
B-U’s lead grew as large as 14 early in the fourth, and it was still that at 46-32 after Xavier Robinette scored in the paint.
The Polar Bears came charging back immediately after, starting with two free throws from Landon Morris, who sank a corner triple moments later.
Gregory Johnson followed with a trey with 3:15 left that cut the Bucs’ lead to 46-40, and it was a four-point game after Jaylen Deuesenberry scored in transition.
Westfall countered with a paint bucket, but Deusenberry answered with a dunk, and when Darrell Claybrook scored from close range with 1:25 remaining, Fairmont Senior’s deficit was 48-46.
The Polar Bears got the ball back with a chance to tie or lead late, but Morris’ three was off the mark and rebounded by Westfall.
FSHS still had hope after Westfall missed two free throws with 8 seconds left, but Claybrook had the ball stolen for one of only three Polar Bear turnovers, and Jacob Frye made two free throws with 2.2 seconds remaining to seal the verdict.
“We played three solid quarters, but three solid quarters against a good team is not enough,” Retton said.
Claybrook dominated much of the first half. He made his first four shots and scored 10 points in the first quarter to help the Polar Bears build a 15-9 lead.
Claybrook hardly slowed down in the second, and his jumper made it 23-12 before the Bucs ran off six straight points. Claybrook accounted for all but four of his team’s points that period, including an isolation basket just before the buzzer that gave him 18 first-half points on 9-for-11 shooting.
“I was worried early, but late in that second quarter, we got a little action with our ball screen high, and it got us going a little bit,” coach Westfall said. “We hit a green light if you will and it felt like we could play.”
In the second half, Claybrook made 2-of-3 shots as he finished with 22 points.
“We made a conscious effort trying to slow Claybrook down,” coach Westfall said. “That young man is an excellent player. I respect his game and think so much of him, but we had to focus on him and have better effort across the board. We can’t do anything if we don’t guard the ball, and it felt like we didn’t guard anything in the first half. we needed that defensive effort in the second half or we were going to get blown out.”
Westfall was consistently double-teamed regardless of where he received the ball. After going to halftime with six points and for rebounds, he finished with 21 points and 13 boards. Westfall was at his best in the third, when he totaled 10 points and six rebounds.
Robinette scored 11 points and added seven rebounds, McDaniels finished with nine points and eight boards and Frye also scored nine.
B-U dominated the boards, 35-20.
“Who are you going to beat like that? Wow,” Retton said. “That says a lot.”