TOPEKA – The Warsaw boys basketball team has proven capable of playing well at times this season.

There just were not enough of those times Saturday night for the Tigers to get their first signature win of the season.

Warsaw, done in by about 12 minutes of inconsistent play, dropped a tough 57-50 final at undefeated Westview in a non-conference tilt.

The meeting was the first-ever regular-season tussle between the pair of tradition-rich programs. They had split the previous two games, both coming in regional play before class basketball.

The host Warriors, who are ranked No. 2 in Class 2-A, started strong and finished fine from the line to put away a resilient Warsaw squad.

Warsaw, which drops to 3-6, simply did not have at the end to upset the Warriors.

Westview, which raced to an 18-4 lead after the opening period, hit 17 free throws in the final quarter as the Tigers were forced to foul late in the contest.

Junior guard Elijah Hales hit 9-10 charity tosses in the final frame to pace the winners, who scored 28 points in the fourth stanza. Hales father Ross, who is the Westview JV coach, was a former basketball and football star at Elkhart Memorial. The elder Hales went on to play football and basketball at Indiana.

Nolan Groninger had a big night for the Tigers. The junior guard canned 21 points, 17 in the second half. He also dished out seven assists and had four rebounds.

It was the second straight stellar showing for Groninger, the most experienced returnee from a Warsaw team that lost eight seniors from a year ago. Groninger had 11 points and 13 assists in a 67-49 home win over Whitko Wednesday night.

Warsaw led 31-29 entering the final frame before Hales and Charlie Yoder got going for Westview. Yoder, a smooth sophomore who led his team with 21 points, hit a trey to put his team ahead for good at 35-33. That bucket keyed a 9-0 run that put the Warriors in control at 41-33.

“It was a combination of things in the fourth quarter that hurt us,” said Warsaw coach Doug Ogle. “We had some defensive breakdowns and some offensive miscues with turnovers and bad shots. It just got away from us.

“Westview is a handful to defend. The combination of Yoder, Hales and Rensberger is pretty darn good. I thought that their rebounding won the game for them tonight. Yoder had a huge rebound and one play in the fourth quarter for them.”

Westview blazed to a 7-0 lead as Warsaw had three early turnovers. The hosts were up 18-4 after the opening frame as Hales buried eight points, including hitting two from distance.

“I don’t know if it could have been a worse start for us,” remarked Ogle. “We talked about being patient and we weren’t patient at the start. We had like three turnovers in our first five or six possessions.

“Hales had not been shooting many threes and he comes out tonight and hits two in the first quarter.”

Warsaw showed its mettle in the second quarter. The Tigers outscored Westview 14-0 to pull even at 18-18 at halftime. Zach Riley scored six points to pace Warsaw and a jumper by Brian Elliott with just five seconds to play before intermission tied the contest.

The Tigers inched ahead by outscoring Westview 13-11 in the third frame. Groninger had eight points in the period to lead the charge.

“The second and third quarters were encouraging,” Ogle said. “We did a good job then to get back in the game.

“We’re just not consistent enough.”

Warsaw finished 18-39 overall from the field, including 3-6 from 3-point range. The Tigers were 11-14 from the free throw line and had 20 rebounds and seven turnovers.

Westview shot 16-38 fro the field, including a key 8-18 from distance. The hosts went 17-21 from the line with Hales finishing 9-10 and Yoder 5-5. Westview had 26 rebounds and 11 turnovers.

Senior Riley finished with 10 point for Warsaw. Junior Jaylen Reese had eight points and sophomore Elliott seven for the Tigers. Junior Tyler Metzinger added four points.

Yoder, a 6-4 sophomore, led Westview with 21 points. He scored 10 points in the final period. Hales had 17 points for the Warriors, who started two seniors Saturday night.

The Warriors, who were coming off a 57-41 win over Lakeland Friday night, are 8-0. Westview has wins over NLC teams NorthWood, Northridge and Warsaw.

Warsaw won the junior varsity game 56-33. Blake Marsh had 16 points to lead the Tigers. Wyatt Amiss scored 12 points and Keegan Larsh had nine. Connor Lennox added eight and Jaylen Coon seven for the winners. Drew Litwiller led Westview with 16 points.

Warsaw plays Zionsville and Fishers in the Champions of Character Classic at Grace College Dec. 30. Westview plays in the DeKalb Classic Thursday.