By BRIAN CUNNIFF

Staff Writer

WILDWOOD – If the Wildwood High School boys basketball team proved anything Monday afternoon, it is this: the Warriors might be a very difficult out when the South Jersey Group I Tournament begins next week.

Playing against a competitive Group IV team in Mainland Regional, the Warriors reeled off a 27-9 second-half run to turn a two-point lead early in the fourth quarter into a commanding 82-65 victory, the team’s 15^th in its last 16 games.

Wildwood was a model of efficiency offensively, particularly in the second half. The Warriors made 33 of 36 free throws (91.7 percent), recorded assists on 14 of their 22 field goals and scored an incredible 56 points after halftime, including 32 in the fourth quarter. Wildwood committed only 12 turnovers, just three after halftime.

“We played very well,” Warrior coach Scott McCracken said. “We executed well down the stretch, which is very important this time of the year.”

Junior guard Francis Christian was brilliant in the victory, posting 26 points, seven assists, five steals and four rebounds. He went 10 for 10 from the foul line.

Teammates Zak Barrett and Wes Hills also eclipsed the 20-point mark. Barrett, a recent 1,000-point scorer, scored 16 of his 22 points in the second half, going 10 for 10 from the foul line and shooting 6 for 12 from the floor. He also produced a team-high 11 rebounds. And Hills sank 11 of 13 foul shots and shot 5 for 11 from the floor for 21 points and also added six rebounds and three blocked shots.

Wildwood trailed by three at the half after being forced to sit a handful of its starters for long stretches of the second quarter due to foul trouble. But the Warriors went on a 24-12 surge to start the second half to open up a nine-point lead and never trailed again.

“We went in at half and just told the kids we needed to execute,” McCracken said. “We’re at our best when we share the basketball and we really did that in the second half.”

At one point, Wildwood made 24 straight free throws in the win. The Warriors, who squandered a couple of games early in the season partly due to poor free-throw shooting, have shot much better from the free-throw line over their last 10 games.

“We make them shoot 25 (foul shots) when we get here at practice and then 25 more at the end, and that goes for every kid, varsity and JV,” McCracken said. “The kids realize how important the free-throw line is in close games.

“Obviously, to go 33 for 36, that’s a tremendous number for us.”

While certainly not a powerhouse, Mainland (8-16) is a large Group IV school nonetheless and possesses victories over teams such as Middle Township, Millville and Egg Harbor Township. The 82 points allowed by the Mustangs against Wildwood were 15 more than they had previously permitted in any game this season.

“This was an extremely big win for us,” McCracken said. “Any win for us is a big win, but when you have a Group IV team coming in that beat a team like Middle Township, it’s a game you want to get. Whenever we have a big school come into our gym we want to compete and we want to win it.”

The regular season now complete, Wildwood (18-5) is gearing up for what it hopes is a long run in the South Jersey Group I Tournament. The Warriors are the No. 2 seed and will play at home for the first three rounds as long as they stay alive. They open with 15^th-seeded Camden Academy Charter on Monday at 5 p.m.

“I really believe we can compete with a lot of teams this year, and I think we’ve proven that,” McCracken said. “We were 3-4 after the Christmas tournament but the kids have really come around and they believe.”

BASKETBALL SHORTS: Barrett, who scored his 1,000^th career point in a road victory at Pennsville last week, was honored prior to the game for reaching the milestone. … Mainland, which was forced into 26 turnovers by Wildwood’s defense, got 26 points from Dionis Gonzalez.