CREATING — Oak Glen’s Jontae Howard looks around the court during Monday’s contest against Trinity. -- Justin Golba

NEW CUMBERLAND — After falling by 36 points against Wheeling Central on Friday, the Oak Glen Golden Bears recovered nicely, defeating Trinity Catholic, 57-47, on Monday.

The Bears improve to 2-3 while Trinity falls to 3-2.

“We started out in a 3-2 zone defensively because we were worried about (Jaiden Dobbs), but we started to get into a little bit of a man-to-man. Our guys liked i,t and they wanted to stay with it,” Oak Glen coach Jerry Everly said. “I thought that we worked hard.

“The idea of what we were going to do in the beginning of the game kind of changed when we saw we had the energy, and we were playing hard. We got after it and were able to contain (Gavin Jackson) for the most part. That was a big concern because he is really good. Once we contained him off the dribble, we felt confident in our man.”

Gage Patterson had another stellar game for the Bears, recording 25 points. Sharpshooter Jered Hissam added 19 points and four 4-pointers. Gavin Jackson led Trinity with 17 points.

Being a younger team, it was important for Oak Glen to get back in the win column after Friday night.

“Honestly, we were down after the Wheeling Central game,” Everly said. “We had a rough practice Saturday, and I got on them a little bit. I think the guys were a little bit down, and we were wondering where we were at. We played some good games up until Central.

“A lot of times, it is just about how hard you really want to play. It’s huge for our confidence because we are playing a lot of young guys with Gage Patterson, and they are learning as they go. And, he is bringing them along.”

“Our defensive pressure in the first half was a lot better,” Trinity coach Rick Hill said. “We were communicating and talking, and then in second half, we had a little bit of a breakdown. Basketball is a game of runs, and they hit a big run and hit some shots and, unfortunately, we came out on the bad end of it. We are young. It is something we have to learn.”

The game was tied, 21-21, at the half, and the Golden Bears outscored the Warriors, 21-12, in the third quarter to take the lead into the final quarter. Hissam scored eight of the team’s first 10 points in the third. With the Bears leading 37-33, Patterson hit a 3, got a steal and hit a buzzer-beating 2 to make the score 42-33 heading into the final quarter.

“He’s a tough player,” Hill said about Patterson. “He can shoot off the dribble and do some good things. I like the way he plays. He plays hard the whole game.”

“He’s just a leader,” Everly said about Patterson. “He plays so hard and just gets after it. There aren’t many like him that play like that and make those kind of plays.”

It was a full-team effort for the Bears in this win. Jontae Howard had nine points and was huge on the boards.

“He played against a big-time player, and he stepped up,” Everly said. “He controlled the boards and got some put backs, and that’s big time. You have to have someone who is going to sweep the defensive rebounds.”

Landon Beatty, Ethan Arner and Chaise Clark provided solid defensive minutes.

For a Trinity team that starts no seniors, it can learn and grow from games like these.

“We have to fight,” Hill said. “We can’t get down when something bad happens, and that is part of us being young right now.

“We have to overcome the bad runs in a game. Basketball is a game of runs and ups and downs. We have to fight through the downs.”

Trinity will host Hampshire on Thursday. Oak Glen is at John Marshall Wednesday.

Game notes

* Trinity won the jayvee game, 55-34.

* Oak Glen senior Jacob Clark missed the contest with a knee injury. He also missed the first two games of the season.

“We aren’t sure how long he will be out,” Everly said. “We are just playing it by year and hoping to not do anything to aggravate it.”

Oak Glen 57, Trinity 47

Trinity 11 10 12 14 — 47

Oak Glen 10 11 21 15 — 57

TRINITY: Zapotoczny 1-0-3, Jackson 7-2-17, Teets 1-0-2, Garbart 2-0-4, Hill 3-0-6, Bourne 4-1-9, Dobbs 3-0-6, Steptoe 0-0-0. TOTALS: 21, 3-6: 47.

OAK GLEN: Clark 0-0-0, Patterson 9-6-25, Hissam 6-3-19, Arner 0-0-0, Beatty 0-0-0, Howard 3-3-9, Taylor 1-2-4. TOTALS: 19, 14-19: 57.

3-POINT GOALS: Trinity 2 (Jackson, Zapotoczny); Oak Glen 5 (Hissam 4, Patterson).