WILMINGTON –Junior Hunter McGrath and 6-foot-6 senior Will Seward combined for 53 points Tuesday night as Class 8A Wilmington Hoggard defeated West Bladen 81-48 in non-conference boys’ basketball action.

McGrath drained a trio of first period 3-point shots and topped all scorers with 27 points. Seward, who tallied 26 points, also knocked down a trio of 3-balls in the opening quarter and tacked on two other baskets as the Vikings raced to a 28-6 lead.

Master sports schedule | Standings

Senior Jackson Pait fired in a 3-point shot to crack the scoring column for West after McGrath had staked Hoggard to an 8-0 lead. Pait bombed in a long 3-pointer from the volleyball line to trim the margin to 13-6.

The Knights had handed the Vikings a 67-53 defeat last season, but Hoggard connected on its first six 3-point shots to grab the big lead.

“They punched us in the mouth and we didn’t respond,” said Knight Coach Travis Pait. “We missed 17 lay-ups, and we didn’t crash the boards as we should have. We knew they were really good.”

The game was the opener for the Vikings, who are ranked No. 17 in High School OT’s state-wide rankings for all classes. West Bladen (2-1) will host East Columbus Tuesday night.

Pait connected on six of his 12 3-point shots and finished with 26 points, three rebounds and two steals for West. Senior Tylik McCall buried both of his 3-point attempts and collected eight points, four rebounds and three assists.

WEST BLADEN (48) – Jackson Pait 26, Demarion Bryant, Sayvion Covington, Tylik McCall 8, Kendell Lessane 5, Keonta Hill, Jaquan Lesane 2, Jamari Adams-Peterson 5, Carnell Lewis 2, Keon Whittington, Ethan Bourhill, Ahmbrie Cooper, Cyncere Jessup, Blake Britt, Justin Spaulding.

HOGGARD (81) – Hunter McGrath 27, Porter Morgan 10, Aidan Locklear 2, Aaron McIntyre 2, Levi Adams 2, Will Seward 26, Beau Beam 4, Lukas Batchelor 8.

JV Boys: Hoggard 66, West Bladen 61

Hoggard built leads of 37-26 and 53-38, then held on for a 66-61 victory over West Bladen.

Isaiah Minus bombed in a 3-point shot and scored 11 of his team-high 15 points during a 23-13 closing run by the Knights (1-1). Teammate Shyron Thompson powered in six of his 12 points for West in the 4th quarter.

WEST BLADEN (61) – Levi Velasco Garcia 8, Drake Gause, Jace Lesane 2, Isaiah Minus 15, Nehemiah Cordova 2, Ussiah Gause, Gaston Russ 5, Sincere McKinley 4, Isaiah Lloyd, Mark’kus Bass 7, Shyron Thompson 12, Sterling Davis, Jarvis McMillian, Jeremiah Bryan, Rylan Bordeaux 6.

HOGGARD (66) – Leadren 2, Adams 11, Sharpe 11, Bartlett 4, Sterner 16, Vithalani 2, Sawyer 7, Bennet 11, Sutton 2.

To report scores, email Sonny Jones at [email protected].