The Wilson varsity basketball program had its 2022-2023 season come to an abrupt end this past Saturday afternoon at Buffalo Valley High School in Talihina.

The Tigers and Lady Tigers had their seasons conclude with losses in the consolation finals of the Class B, Area III, regional basketball tournament.

The Wilson ladies had their run through the loser’s bracket come to a close last Saturday with a 45-38 loss to the Sasakwa Lady Vikings, who are coached by former Schulter basketball standout Rikki Wolfe, in the girls regional consolation title game, while the Wilson gentlemen suffered their second-straight regional tournament loss on Saturday, falling to the Boswell Scorpions by a 72-49 margin in the boys consolation title contest.

Prior to the season-ending loss to Sasakwa, the Lady Tigers avoided elimination last Thursday and Friday with double-digit wins over Wanette (58-20) in the regional consolation quarterfinals and Caney (49-37) in the regional consolation semifinals, respectively.

The Tigers entered the regional tournament competing in the winner’s bracket following their district championship victory on February 11 in Macomb and suffered their first loss of the postseason last Thursday with a 55-31 setback to the 11thranked Paden Pirates in Paden. The Wilson gentlemen rebounded from the loss to Paden last Friday with a 67-58 victory over the Eagletown Eagles in the regional consolation semifinal round.

The Wilson girls team finishes 2022-2023 with a 16-10 record, while the Wilson boys cage squad ends the campaign with a 10-15 record.

Below are summaries from the Wilson cage squads’ participation at last weekend’s Class B, Area III, regional tournament at Paden and Buffalo Valley high schools.

--- Class B Regional Tournament Girls Bracket Consolation Quarterfinals Wilson 58, Wanette 20

The Wilson ladies took the opening period by a 17-5 margin, then doubled up Wanette 10-5 in the second quarter for a 27-10 advantage at halftime. The Wilson squad put the finishing touches on its 38-point, season-saving, win by outscoring its foes 18-14 and 13-6, respectively, in the final two frames for the 58-20 decision.

Wilson was led offensively by Janelle Proctor with 14 points. Uven Yang and Kaozong Yang were next in the scoring column for the victorious Lady Tigers with eight points each, followed by Kailee Branson, Brooklyn Weeks, and Gracie Bear with six points apiece, Allie Thompson and Jayda Pinkston four each, and Marah Shanks two.

--- Consolation Semifinals Wilson 49, Caney 37

The Lady Tigers trailed 10-8 after the first eight minutes of action, then went into the halftime break with a slim 20-19 lead following a narrow 12-9 advantage in the second quarter. The Wilson ladies extended their lead to eight (37-29) with eight minutes remaining in regulation after outscoring the Lady Cougars 17-10 in the third period, then closed out the 12-point victory with a 12-8 advantage in the final frame.

The Lady Tigers’ top scorer against Caney was Janelle Proctor with 29, followed by Jaslene Proctor with six and Gracie Bear five. Other Wilson scorers against Caney were Kaozong Yang with four, Jayda Pinkston three, and Brooklyn Weeks two.

--- Consolation Finals Sasakwa 45, Wilson 38

The Lady Tigers trailed 9-8 after one and 25-17 at halftime. The Wilson squad cut the deficit to six, 35-29, heading to the final stanza after edging the Lady Vikings 12-10 in the third quarter. The Lady Tigers were unable to complete their second-half rally attempt in the final frame, as Sasakwa took the period by a 10-9 margin to hand the Wilson ladies the season-ending 45-38 setback.

Janelle Proctor was tops offensively for the Lady Tigers, finishing with a team-best 21 points. Other Wilson scorers against Sasakwa were Brooklyn Weeks with eight, Gracie Bear five, and Jayda Pinkston and Kaozong Yang two each.

--- Boys Bracket First Round

Paden 55, Wilson 31

The Tigers struggled offensively in the first three quarters, tallying 18 points in the first three stanzas. Paden put up 46 points in the first three periods for a 46-18 advantage with eight minutes remaining in regulation. The Wilson gentlemen came out of the final frame with a 13-9 advantage, but wound up on the short end of a 55-31 decision.

Charles Shelburn was tops offensively for the Tigers against Paden with 12 points. Keshon Shelburn also tallied double-digit scoring in the contest, finishing with 10 points. Other Wilson scorers in the winner’s bracket battle were Andrew Wilson with five and Nick Willliams and Esiah King with two each.

--- Consolation Semifinals Wilson 67, Eagletown 58

The Tigers trailed 18-17 after one and 38-28 at halftime. The Wilson gentlemen took a 50-46 lead into the final quarter after outscoring the Eagles 22-8 in the third period. The Tigers completed the second-half comeback by edging their foes 17-12 in the final stanza to walk away with the season-saving 67-58 victory.

The top scorer for the Tigers in the win was Keshon Shelburn with a team-high 25 points. Charles Shelburn was next offensively for Wilson in the win with a 24-point performance. Other Tiger scorers against Eagletown were Peyton Proctor with seven, Nick Williams six, and Ryder Herring five.

--- Consolation Finals Boswell 72, Wilson 49

The Tigers fell into an early double-digit deficit after being outscored 29-10 in the first quarter. Boswell took the second stanza by a 17-13 margin to send the contest into the intermission with Wilson trailing by 23 points, 46-23. The Tigers escaped the back-and-forth third period with a 17-16 margin for a 62-40 deficit with eight minutes remaining in regulation. The Wilson gentlemen were unable to overcome the huge deficit in the final frame, being edged 10-9 in the stanza to suffer the season-ending 72-49 defeat.

The Tigers were led in scoring by Keshon Shelburn with 24, followed by Charles Shelburn with 16. Other Wilson scorers against Boswell were Nick Williams with four, Ryder Herring three, and Peyton Proctor two.

--- Class B Regional Tournament Girls Bracket Consolation Quarterfinals Wilson 58, Wanette 20 Wanette: 5 - 5 - 4 - 6 (20) Wilson: 17 - 10 - 18 - 13 (58) Wilson Scoring: Janelle Proctor 14, Uven Yang 8, Kaozong Yang 8, Kailee Branson 6, Brooklyn Weeks 6, Gracie Bear 6, Allie Thompson 4, Jayda Pinkston 4, Marah Shanks 2.

--- Consolation Semifinals Wilson 49, Caney 37

Caney: 10 - 9 - 10 - 8 (37) Wilson: 8 - 12 - 17 - 12 (49) Wilson Scoring: Janelle Proctor 29, Jaslene Proctor 6, Gracie Bear 5, Kaozong Yang 4, Jayda Pinkston 3, Brooklyn Weeks 2.

--- Consolation Finals

Sasakwa 45, Wilson 38

Sasakwa: 9 - 16 - 10 - 10 (45) Wilson: 8 - 9 - 12 - 9 (38) Wilson Scoring: Janelle Proctor 21, Brooklyn Weeks 8, Gracie Bear 5, Jadya Pinkston 2, Kaozong Yang 2.

--- Boys Bracket First Round

Paden 55, Wilson 31

Wilson: 5 - 6 - 7 - 13 (31) Paden: 16 - 13 - 17 - 9 (55) Wilson Scoring: Charles Shelburn 12, Keshon Shelburn 10, Andrew Wilson 5, Nick Williams 2, Esiah King 2.

--- Consolation Semifinals

Wilson 67, Eagletown 58

Wilson: 17 - 11 - 22 - 17 (67) Eagletown: 18 - 20 - 8 - 12 (58) Wilson Scoring: Keshon Shelburn 25, Charles Shelburn 24, Peyton Proctor 7, Nick Williams 6, Ryder Herring 5.

--- Consolation Finals Boswell 72, Wilson 49

Wilson: 10 - 13 - 17 - 9 (49) Boswell: 29 - 17 - 16 - 10 (72) Wilson Scoring: Keshon Shelburn 24, Charles Shelburn 16, Nick Williams 4, Ryder Herring 3, Peyton Proctor 2.