Boys Basketball: Worthington Kilbourne Wolves’ Parsons, Wolford won’t give in to injuries

Ayden Parsons and Luke Wolford have been battling injuries all season. The senior guards aren’t willing to let the pain get the best of them as they try to lead the Worthington Kilbourne boys basketball team.

Parsons has been dealing with an ankle injury sustained during summer ball, while Wolford has been playing through a nagging shin injury and a bruised tailbone suffered in a 64-40 loss at Hilliard Darby on Jan. 18.

“We’ve got to have both those guys on the floor,” coach Tom Souder said. “I’m just so proud of how (they’re) fighting through. It’s tough when your body hurts. Parsons has played (343.5) out of (384) minutes and Luke’s played (307) out of (384). In (12) games, that’s not a lot of rest.”

Wolford is no stranger to the trainer’s room, missing most of his sophomore season with a broken foot and the end of his junior year with a broken wrist.

“He’s battled a lot of adversity,” Parsons said. “I think it’s a testament to him as a person to come back this year and have a successful year and really contribute. It feels good to see him have a year he deserves because he’s had to battle through a lot.

“He’s tough. It’s admirable, him going out there and putting his body on the line every night. It shows everybody else he’s willing to do that, so we better pick it up.”

The Wolves snapped a four-game losing streak with a 56-33 win over Dublin Scioto on Jan. 25.

Kilbourne was 6-6 overall and 5-4 in the OCC-Capital Division before playing Delaware on Jan. 28. The Wolves also faced Thomas Worthington on Jan. 29 and played Big Walnut on Feb. 1 in a league game.

“We had a week there (in December) where we had no practice because guys were sick,” Souder said. “We just haven’t gotten it back. Just getting back to the basics and just getting back to being sharp, execution-wise, we’ve got to get back to taking care of the ball, defending and rebounding the ball.”

Parsons averaged 18.6 points, 5.1 rebounds and 2.7 assists in the Wolves’ first 12 games. He and Wolford have been playing together for the better part of a decade.

“We know how each other plays and we know how to pick each other up when we’re down,” Wolford said. “It’s a lot of chemistry built from a lot of years playing together.”

Wolford was averaging 10.7 points, 5.8 rebounds and 1.7 assists in 12 games.

“I just love my team, so I got to keep playing for them,” he said. “Even if I’m in a little bit of pain, I got to play through it anyway.”

The Wolves were down one in the final minute before falling to Westerville South 54-49 on Jan. 14.

“Really, we have to be able to close games and execute all 32 minutes,” Parsons said. “We’re right there with a lot of good teams. I think we can compete with anybody. But we’ve had a couple of things not go our way. ... That’s how it is. We just have to focus on closing in games like that.”

Parsons, who has played varsity all four years, moved to the point this season after the graduation of Cayden Dougherty.

“Just being able to distribute the ball and manage the game is something that I’ve worked on this year,” Parsons said. “The thing I like about it is that I get to pass it to my teammates and see them make the shots … knowing you helped you create a shot.”

Wolford plans to attend Ohio State or Cincinnati and said he might play club ball in college.

Parsons is looking at several Division III schools such as Ohio Wesleyan, Marietta, Capital and Otterbein.

“I’m not 100% decided on where I want to go, but I want to keep playing for as long as I can,” he said.

mrich@thisweeknews.com

@ThisWeekRich

This article originally appeared on ThisWeek: Boys Basketball: Kilbourne duo won’t give in to injuries