By Jim McConnell
Sports Editor

Chris Deleon has virtually limitless range on his jump shot, but as the Powhatan High boys basketball team went through its warmups prior to Friday’s game against Louisa, Deleon’s shot was misfiring more often than not.

Even though the ball didn’t feel right coming off his fingers, the confident Deleon still told teammate Tyler Allen he was about to have a big game.

The talented junior made good on his prediction by pouring in a career-high 33 points, helping the Indians claim their first-ever Jefferson District victory with a 68-51 win.

Sophomore Drew Ratliff scored 12 points and freshman Joey Balcom added 10 for Powhatan (4-11 overall, 1-6 district), which avenged an earlier loss to Louisa before an enthusiastic Senior Night crowd.

“It sure feels good to get that first district win,” Powhatan coach Steve Washburn said. “It’s like a big weight off our backs.”

Powhatan has only two seniors (Joe Manion and Trevon Taylor) that play regular minutes and the lack of experience showed on both ends of the floor early in the season.

As they’ve gotten more comfortable playing together and gained a greater understanding of Washburn’s new motion offense, the Indians have started to hit their stride.

In its last two games leading into the clash with Louisa, Powhatan hung with a strong Western Albemarle squad and matched Monticello for two of the four quarters.

Still, that first district win proved elusive. With road games against Charlottesville, Fluvanna and Western Albemarle on tap to close out the 2011-12 regular season, the Indians knew they had a major opportunity against a Louisa squad that came to town with just one district win – a 59-47 victory over PHS on Jan. 5.

“We’ve been hard on each other in practice because we’re all sick of losing,” Powhatan junior Tyler Allen said.

Added Ratliff: “Everybody tells us we’re no good. It’s kind of frustrating because people don’t know what we go through. We showed tonight how hard we’ve been working.”

Washburn has had nothing but good things to say about his players’ effort. The Indians come ready to work hard and have embraced the challenge of getting a little better every day.

Their execution hasn’t always matched their hustle, though.

As part of his pregame preparation, Washburn noticed a troubling recent trend in the team’s statistics. The Indians’ free throw attempts had dipped dramatically and he emphasized the need to aggressively attack the basket instead of simply settling for perimeter shots.

“When the ball stops moving, we’re in trouble,” Washburn added. “Our offense is designed to create mismatches in the defense and when we can do that, it creates driving lanes and jumpers open up for us.

“Early in the year we were going to the free throw line 20 times a game. We made a concerted effort to get back to that.”

Leading 21-18, Ratliff converted a driving basket before Balcom turned a steal into a tough layup and Deleon split two Louisa defenders for a scoop layup.

Deleon added a free throw, then swished a heavily contested fadeaway jumper with one second left in the first half, capping a 9-3 run that gave Powhatan a 30-21 halftime advantage.

“We played man against them last time and did fine,” Louisa coach Brian Wilson said. “We knew what they were going to do, but we just didn’t play well on defense at all.”

Unable to contain the Indians’ penetration, Louisa opened the third quarter in a 2-3 zone. Powhatan answered with 3-pointers from Ratliff, Balcom and Deleon and led by 12 heading into the final period.

But the Lions finally found some offensive rhythm and opened the quarter on a 9-4 surge. Jamaal Robinson’s inside basket brought the visitors within 50-43, and after Powhatan turned the ball over on the other end, Washburn called timeout to settle his troops with 5:19 left.

“During that stretch, we looked like the team we can be,” Wilson added. “We have the capability to score when we execute properly, but we have to do it for 32 minutes, not four.”

Louisa got as close as six points on a free throw by Keon Winkey. The Lions’ leading scorer put up 31 points in the teams’ first meeting, but has been hobbled by a foot injury and finished with only seven on Friday.

Powhatan answered with a knockout punch. Ratliff had five points and Deleon added four in a 11-2 sprint, which was capped by Balcom’s driving basket and gave the home team an all-but-insurmountable 61-46 lead with a minute left.

“I was just trying to be as aggressive as possible and get to the line,” Deleon said.

Powhatan finished 12 of 19 from the free throw line Friday. After spending most of the second half bulling his way to the basket through double- and triple-teams, Deleon put the finishing touches on his career night by making 5 of 6 from the stripe to extend the Indians’ final margin.

Other than forward Kaleb Carle, who stepped up and drew one charging foul, none of Louisa’s defenders were willing to sacrifice their bodies to protect the basket against the hard-driving Deleon.

“I don’t blame them,” Allen said with a smile. “I wouldn’t want to take a charge from him, either.”