Confluence Prep Academy sneaks past Woodland 66-64 in 6th Man Shootout

CHARLESTON —  While his players exited the court with their heads down, Woodland coach Shawn Kinder pondered a question about what type of season this has been for the Cardinals thus far.

“So far, so good,” Kinder said.

Korbin Kinder scored a game-high 23 points as Confluence Prep Academy Charter (CPA) knocked off Woodland 66-64 in the 6th Man Shootout on Saturday afternoon at Charleston High School

The loss caps off a rigorous four-game week that saw the Cardinals go 2-2 in the road stretch.

“It’s been a tough week for us,” Coach Kinder said. “Fatigue, I think it showed up a little bit. Shots didn't fall for us where they usually fall. We weren’t hitting free throws either and were always 1 for 2 every time we got to the line. We've got to get better at the end of the games and understanding the importance of each possession.”

Woodland lost two starters from last year's 21-6 team, but the Cardinals regrouped, retained some star power and remain a Class 3 title contender.

And while the loss does not necessarily reflect the type of special 2024-25 campaign his team is manifesting, Kinder wants his players to use it as a valuable learning experience moving forward.

“We’ve had some good games,” he said. “We beat some good teams, and we've lost some games that we probably should have come away with. But we're just taking it one game at a time right now. We're kind of banged up. Our big post player Kamren McCormick went down with an ankle injury two minutes into the game against Kennett last night. We're hoping he's okay and he can get back for district play, but we're just kind of banged up. We're going to take the day and get away from it for a while and then get back to work.”

Lane Lee added 14 points and Jackson Shock had nine for Woodland (18-3), which suffered its first two-game skid of the season.

Rebounding made the difference for CPA (9-12), which controlled the boards for the majority of the game and took advantage of Woodland’s turnover woes. Yabsa Ndiaye scored a team-high 20 points, while junior Brian Matthews added 14.

Kinder and junior Calvin Layton knocked down back-to-back 3s to close out the opening quarter as the Cardinals built a slim 18-17 lead.

After trailing 29-27 at the break, Woodland fell behind as much as 10 late in the third quarter before Kinder hit a slick pull-up jumper between two CPA defenders to cut the deficit to 54-51 with 4:25 left in regulation. Lee drained a corner 3 and senior Hayden Vangennip sunk a layup to hand Woodland a 61-60 advantage two minutes later.

That’s until CPA reverted to form and used its size and physicality to its advantage, with Ndiaye’s three-point play sealing the game for the Titans with 17.6 seconds remaining.

Peyton Meek gave Woodland some late hope after draining a 3-pointer with 6.7 seconds left to make it 65-64, but the Cardinals ran out of luck on their final possession.

The high-octane Woodland offense, which has scored 70-plus points in 15 games this season, was held to just 64 despite hitting nine 3s.

“I just told them that for us to get to the next level, we've got to get better mentally for possessions down the stretch in a close game,” Kinder said. “It's more of a mental toughness. It's got to take over. And we're hoping to get that the next couple of weeks.”

The Cardinals return to their home court on Monday when they host Meadow Heights (7-8) at 8 p.m.