By DAVE WOODALL
Slidell sportswriter
The Pope John Paul Jaguars picked up a close win against District 8-2A opponent the Northlake Christian Wolverines, 60-54.
With the win, the Jaguars improve to 8-12 overall and 3-1 in district play.
The Wolverines fall to 13-13 for the season and 2-2 in league competition.
Things started out great for the Wolverines as they jumped out to an early 10-1 lead.
But their shooting went cold which allowed the Jaguars to gain ground and take a 13-12 lead by hitting a three-pointer at the buzzer.
In the second period, each team would match the other as Northlake posted a 26-25 halftime lead.
The second half saw Northlake struggle again from the field scoring only 10 in the period.
“In the second half we had trouble making our shots,” said Wolverine Coach Sean Englert. “We also had to deal with foul trouble which forced us to juggle our lineup and utilize some of our inexperienced players off the bench.”
The Jaguars took advantage of the foul trouble making 12-of-12 from the line at one point.
In the fourth period, Northlake’s shooting improved but the Jaguars kept pace and outscored the Wolverines 21-18 in the final period.
Englert summed it up saying, “We gave them too many second chance shots and put backs. It was just an off night for us.”
For Northlake, Josh O’Rear scored 19 points on the night and was the only player to score in double figures.
Tyler Nicolosi led all scorers hitting 21 points for the Jaguars. Codey Davie contributed 18 and Joe Feraci pumped in 13.