Following losses to Mount Baker on Dec. 1 and Bellevue Christian on Dec. 3, South Whidbey boys basketball coach Mike Washington knew the Falcons needed a third scorer.

Too much burden was being placed on the shoulders of seniors Lewis Pope and Maxfield Friedman.

The Falcons may have found the answer they were looking for in sophomore point guard Kody Newman, who led South Whidbey with 21 points in a 80-45 win at Coupeville Saturday night. He eclipsed Pope’s 16 points and was the Falcons’ (3-2 overall, 1-0 in the Cascade Conference) top scorer for the first time this season; Pope has led the Falcons in baskets in the other contests.

Newman, Pope and Friedman combined to score 49 points in the win. Newman’s breakout performance came as a relief to Washington.

“That’s really promising,” Washington said. “We’re looking for a third scorer so hopefully that will continue.”

But, while the Falcons may have an answer to one problem, another arises. If Newman’s solid play continues, he will be identified by their opponents as a threat and efforts will be made to neutralize his effectiveness.

“Sometimes you have a breakout game and then the next couple games you start to struggle because the scouting report gets out on you,” Washington said. “What he’s going to have to do is adjust his game a little bit more.”

The Falcons played Archbishop Murphy after The Record’s deadline on Tuesday night. They travel to Port Townsend on Dec. 19 and return home for a cross-island matchup against Oak Harbor at 5 p.m. on Wednesday, Dec. 21.