WATTSBURG — Warren’s boys basketball team had its third strong start in as many games, topping host Seneca, 74-61, on Saturday for its third straight win.

“It was a fast start offensively, fueled by their turnovers versus the press and solid half-court defense,” said Warren coach Jeff Berdine, whose Dragons led 21-9 after one quarter and 46-27 at halftime. “The kids did an excellent job getting out in transition early, which created a tempo that favored us. This was a great opportunity for us to get work in versus a 3A playoff team.”

Braylon Barnes had 13 of his team-high 17 points in a first half that gave Warren a 19-point lead.

“(Logan) Kibbe got hot in the third to get them back in it, however we had several very good possessions down the stretch, which is something we will have to get better at as the playoffs near,” said coach Berdine.

Kibbe had three 3-pointers and 13 points in a 23-16 Seneca third quarter to cut the deficit to 12. He finished with a game-high 24 points.

“It seemed like Braylon and Tommy (Nyquist) got us buckets in the second half once the game started to tighten up when we needed them,” said coach Berdine. “Brady (Berdine) had a big put-back on a miss late in the fourth to help seal the deal. We had four guys in double-digits, so we had good balance again today.”

In addition to Barnes’ 17, Nyquist and Owen Becker had 16 points each, and Brady Berdine 15.

“Owen had a great game on glass, ending with 12 rebounds (6 offensive and 6 defensive),” said coach Berdine. “Tommy had 7 assists and consistently pushed the tempo in our favor.”

Brady Berdine added 6 steals for Warren, which improved to 13-7 overall. Seneca is 11-9.

“Game flow allowed us to play some offense/defense substitutions at the end, which will help us in the (4A) playoffs due to our strengths and weaknesses,” said coach Berdine. “This game being rescheduled from December also worked out in our favor as it gave Parks (Ordiway) some more time to work back into things after being out a week.”

Warren’s final two Region 6 contests are on Tuesday and Friday this week at Oil City and Corry, respectively.

Earlier on Saturday, Warren’s junior varsity team fell to Seneca, 56-41. Chase Sitler led the Dragons with 25 points in the loss. Jacob McMeans added 9 points.

WARREN (74)

Ordiway 2 2 6, Berdine 7 0 15, Darling 0 0 0, Nyquist 5 4 16, Errett 1 0 2, Becker 6 3 16, Barnes 7 0 17, Hoffman 0 2 2. Totals 28 11 74.

SENECA (61)

Rupp 7 1 19, Johnson 0 0 0, Yost 0 0 0, Hoover 0 0 0, Seabury 5 1 12, Moffet 2 2 6, Kibbe 6 8 24. Totals 20 12 61.

3-pointers: Berdine, Nyquist 2, Becker, Barnes 3, Rupp 4, Seabury, Kibbe 4.

Warren 21 25 16 12 — 74

Seneca 9 18 23 11 — 61