Central Catholic holds on for victory over Patterson

PATTERSON -- Central Catholic was on the way to a lopsided Western Athletic Conference win Wednesday.

Then the second half started — and the Raiders had to fight for their win.

"One reason we play the tough preseason schedule is to get us ready for games like this, when it gets tight," coach Mike Wilson said. "We stayed calm and won despite a big injury."

With Nate Loya nursing a twisted ankle, point guard Kyler Wilson hit a decisive trey with 1:35 left to seal the Raiders' 56-48 victory over Patterson.

The Raiders (18-3, 6-0), No. 2 in The Bee's small-school rankings, travel to Los Banos (13-6, 5-1) Friday. Central rolled in the first meeting, 73-39.

Central led 30-10 at halftime against Patterson (14-6, 3-3). Wilson hit a pair of treys to open the game and 6-foot-9 junior John Fenton (15 points, 18 rebounds, five blocks) scored inside.

John Minton hit three treys in the second half to rally Patterson. Two of his treys were bank shots, including one from the top of the key. His final basket made it 44-40 with 2 minutes to play, before Wilson countered with his long-range jumper to seal it.

"With a 3-point threat, it forces the defense to spread out and keeps them from falling back on Fenton," Wilson said. "Kyler's a streak shooter, like a lot of 3-point guys, so if you don't go guard him, you're running a risk."

Loya, another 3-point threat, went down early with an ankle injury. He is 50-50 for Los Banos, Wilson said.

Junior guard Terrell Elder used the extra playing time for a career-high 13 points. His previous high was 10.