WHEELERSBURG — Hit me with your best shot.

The Ironton Fighting Tigers poor shooting was directly related with taking bad shots as they fell 63-52 to the Wheelersburg Pirates Tuesday.

Ironton made just 17 of 61 field goals attempts for 27.9 percent, and that was only aided by a 7-for-15 effort in the fourth quarter. Through three quarters, Ironton was 10-of-46 for 21.7 percent.

“We didn’t shoot well, but I blame that on our shot selection,” said Ironton coach Mark LaFon. “We didn’t show any patience. We didn’t make their defense work. As the coach, I can’t let that happen again.”

Conversely, Wheelersburg shot 23-of-44 for 52.3 percent. The Pirates were 3-of-7 in the fourth quarter but converted 11-of-15 at the foul line.

“I was disappointed in our defense. At times played hard and at times we just went through the motions. We had a few guys who got after it, but there were some of the guys who stood around. That’s going to change, too,” said LaFon.

Marc Carter hit a 3-pointer with 5:37 left in the first quarter to give Ironton a 3-2 lead. It was the Fighting Tigers only lead of the game.

Ironton was 2-of-11 from the field in the first quarter as the Pirates used 6 points by Drew Spradlin to take an 12-5 lead.

Tyler Lang hit a pair of 3-pointers to open the second quarter as Wheelersburg went ahead 18-7.

Ironton (1-2) was down 24-13 on a layup by Dustin Green, but a 3-point play by Lang with 10 seconds left gave the Pirates a 27-13 halftime lead.

A 10-footer by Spradlin extended the Pirates lead to 46-23 late in the third quarter. Foul shots by Rob Webb and Lukas Morris along with a steal by Erin Edens and layup by Carter cut the spread to 46-27 as the quarter ended.

Ironton closed to within 48-32 with 5:28 to play on two free throws by Carter, but two quick turnovers and a couple of missed shots allowed the Pirates to take a 20-point lead

with 1:33 to play.

Carter had 22 points, six rebounds and three steals to lead Ironton.

Spradlin led the Pirates with 22 points and seven rebounds. Lang added 16 points, Andy Stegman had 10 rebounds and Matt Stegman pulled down six boards.

Ironton581425=52

Wheelersburg12151917=63

IRONTON (1-2): Marc Carter 3 4 4-5 22, Zach Christensen 0 0 0-0 0, Jon Schweickart 3 0 0-0 6, Dustin Green 1 0 1-2 3, Nick Lewis 0 0 0-0 0, Bub Johnson 3 0 3-5 9, Geoffrey White 0 0 0-0 0, Rob Webb 1 0 1-2 3, Lukas Morris 1 0 3-4 5, Brandon Klaiber 0 0 0-0 0, Erin Edens 0 0 1-2 1, Cory McKnight 0 1 0-0 3, Bryan Brammer 0 0 0-0 0. Totals: 17-61 13-21 52. 3-point goals: 5-21. Fouls: 21. Fouled out: Green (4th 1:33). Rebounds: 11-14=25 (Carter 6, Morris 3, White 3). Team rebounds: 4. Assists: 4 (Morris 2). Steals: 11 (Carter 3, Morris 2). Turnovers: 19.

WHEELERSBURG (3-2): Matt Jenkins 2 0 3-5 7, Drew Spradlin 6 2 4-6 22, Tyler Lang 4 2 2-3 16, Andy Stegman 2 0 0-0 4, Matt Stegman 3 0 2-2 8, Dustin Cook 1 0 0-0 2, J.T. Conley 1 0 0-0 2, Dustin Robinson 1 0 2-2 4, Daniel Armstrong 0 0 0-00, Kyle Blevings 0 0 0-00, Dusstin Proehl 0 0 0-0 0. Totals: 23-44 13-18 63. 3-point goals; 4-10. Fouls: 20. Fouled out: A. Stegman (4th 2:10). Rebounds: 5-31=36 (A. Stegman 10, Spradlin 7, M. Stegman 6). Assists: 6 (Spradlin 3). Steals: 5 (Spradlin 2). Turnovers: 25.

RESERVES: Ironton 25, Wheelersburg 19. Ironton scoring: Ethan Preston 13, Erin Edens 6, Brandon Klaiber 4, Tommy Waginger 2. Wheelersburg: Cole Miller 7, Brandon Shankweiler 5.