The Littlestown High boys basketball team couldn't evade a number of things on Tuesday night.

For starters, it couldn't get past visiting Biglerville, who effectively squashed the Bolts' perimeter shooting with impressive defensive work en route to its 42-28 win at Littlestown.

But the Bolts (1-2) also couldn't work past shooting woes and turnovers, the latter which ultimately led to numerous fastbreak points for the Canners (2-1) and a relatively easy non-divisional win.

"I'm pretty happy with the defense," Biglerville head coach Mark Petrosky said. "We're still a work in progress. We're going to get better, hopefully."

Mike Wagner led Biglerville with 12 points and, along with Jared Picarelli and his eight points, provided an inside game that Littlestown couldn't match with Jerrod Reynolds out due to ineligibility.

Bolts head coach Kevin Schieler declined to comment on the situation of Reynolds, who is Littlestown's second-leading scorer through two games with 10.5 points per game.

"We have a big problem with offense right now," Schieler said. "In our first three games, if we don't create turnovers, we have problems with our offense. That's just something we need to figure out."

It was safe to say that, without Reynolds, the Bolts lacked an inside presence. Their leading scorer, Ryan Wickline (15.0 ppg), was held scoreless until there was one second left in the first half. He nailed a 3-pointer as the clock expired and followed

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early in the fourth quarter with another three from the corner.

The rest of the night, however, was a nightmare. Wickline went 2-for-12 from 3-point range, failed to get to the free throw line and only managed one shot inside the arc - though he was only a step away from another three in that instance.

With Wickline held ineffective, the Canners' staunch defense controlled tempo with its intensity.

Early in the fourth quarter, after Littlestown went on an 8-5 run to open the frame, Matt Guise dove on the floor after poking the ball clean from Austin Reynolds.

He gobbled up the loose ball before calling a timeout. Plays like that essentially won the game for the Canners.

"We start five seniors," Wagner said. "And that's how we've played for six years now. This is how we play."

Ryan Callahan gave the Canners a third option and scored 11 points on the night. More than once, Callahan drove past his defender with a dribble drive before finishing at the hoop.

After trailing in the first quarter, 10-7, Biglerville began to claw its way back by going on a 9-0 run to start the second frame. Callahan finished the run with a fastbreak layup for a 16-10 lead.

Had the Canners not allowed Wickline's last second 3-pointer to find net, they would have held a 15-2 advantage during the frame.

"We have a pretty diverse leadership here," Petrosky said. "We have a couple of players who spread their leadership in different ways."

Contact Cory Mull at cmull@eveningsun.com.