BUCHANAN — It was not a work of beauty, but the visiting Brandywine was able to take advantage of an inexperienced Buchanan squad in a BCS Athletic Conference Red Division clash Friday night.

The Bobcats squared their Red Division mark at 1-1 with a 39-16 win over the Bucks. Buchanan drops to 0-1 in the division.

Brandywine and Buchanan both struggled to put the ball in the basket throughout the first half as the Bobcats led just 10-6 after one quarter and 16-8 at the intermission, after outscoring the Bucks 6-2 in the second quarter.

Buchanan (2-1, 0-1 BCS Red) got off to a good start in the second half, and cut the lead to 16-14 early in the third quarter.

That would be as close as the Bucks would get, as the Bobcats finished the third quarter on a 10-0 run and opened up a 12-point cushion (24-14) heading into the final eight minutes of action.

Buchanan was hindered by the loss of standout Jayla Bibbs to foul trouble. She would eventually foul out and the Bobcats took advantage of it outscoring the Bucks 13-2 in the final quarter.

While other struggled to find the basket, Brandywine all-state point guard Zakiyyah Abdullah had no such trouble, as she scored a game-high 21 points.

“We don’t build our offense around one player, but obviously, she [Abdullah] is a great player who gives us a lot of options,” said Brandywine coach Josh Hood. “We have four sophomores and a freshman in our varsity lineup, so we don’t have a lot of depth right now. We’re still taking it day by day, but Zak provides a lot of [stability] for our young players. She teaches by example.”

No other Brandywine player had more than three points.

Bibbs meanwhile, was held to four points as the Bobcats smothering defense and foul troubled limited her effectiveness.

“Jayla getting in foul trouble (four, including a technical) didn’t help us,” said Buchanan coach Gabe Miller. “We have a lot of new kids learning their roles, and I’ve told her, she has to step up in the meantime.”

Emma Carson also had four points for the Bucks, who host Covert Tuesday night.

Brandywine will be back on the road as it travels to Fennville for a non-conference contest this week.

Niles at Portage Northern

PORTAGE — The Vikings picked up their first victory of the season with a 30-28 SMAC West Division win over host Portage Northern Friday night.

The two teams were deadlocked at 10-10 at the intermission.

Niles took a 21-18 lead into the fourth quarter and then held on for the victory.

Alycia Patterson led the Vikings with 12 points, while Lajan Mitchell added six points.

The Vikings (1-2, 1-0 SMAC West) host Kalamazoo Loy Norrix Tuesday night.