It took four tries, but the Marlboro boys’ basketball team finally got into the win column.

The young and inexperienced Iron Dukes, who got beaten quite handedly in the first three games of their season, turned the tables on the Webutuck Warriors, 62-23, on Wednesday night at Marlboro High School.

“There’s some relief, and they’re excited,” Marlboro coach Mike Koehler said. “Nothing beats the feeling of winning. They know that. I walked in (the locker room), and I asked them how it feels, and they said, ‘it feels amazing.’ No matter where, and no matter when, a win is fantastic. I think they enjoy that feeling.”

There hasn’t been much for the Iron Dukes to enjoy in the early going, as they lost their first three games by an average of about 33 points. If any one word describes the Iron Dukes this season, especially in the early going, it’s inexperience.

“We’re young,” Koehler said. “I just started two sophomores, two juniors and one senior, who had limited experience last year. You can see how young we are. We were nervous early on. We were getting open looks that we should take, and we were indecisive. The theme is ‘be decisive.’ Whatever you do, just be decisive. If you’re going to shoot, shoot. If you’re going to play D, step up and be decisive.”

Junior Miles Brooks led the Iron Dukes with a game-high 16 points, and Prince Owens, the only senior in the starting lineup, added 11. Brooks also grabbed five rebounds and three assists, while Owens had seven rebounds. John Ryder had 10 rebounds, and Chris DeNatale grabbed seven steals.

“I was happy that we rebounded the ball; that has been our big problem,” Koehler said. “We did a good job defensively. We rebounded, especially early on, but we really could not make much offense, but we were getting two or three opportunities, and eventually they dropped at the end of the first quarter. I was really happy with our energy and our rebounding. That’s a big step in the right direction for us.”

Another step in the right direction was a 21-6 lead after the first quarter of play. With the game tied at 4-4 about 3 minutes in, Owens hit a pair of jump shots, starting a 13-0 run to take command of the game.

The Iron Dukes cruised from there to their first victory of the season, in their last game before the Holiday Recess.

“We are improving a ton,” Koehler said. “We’re getting better on the offensive end. Today, we did a good job stepping up and taking charges. We’re learning to do things like that, and kind of do the dirty-work type stuff. We have to learn to do that. If we’re going to be successful, and have a shot to make the playoffs, we’ve got to do that all the time.”

The Iron Dukes will face a difficult test during the Holiday Recess as they spent this week at Our Lady of Lourdes High School for the Duane Davis Christmas Tournament. They were scheduled to open the tournament on Tuesday against R.C. Ketcham. The tournament continued Wednesday and Thursday.

“I want to see a willingness to compete,” Koehler said. “We open with Ketcham, and they have one of the best kids in the area. Don’t back down. Just step up to the challenge, no matter what. I’m not necessarily worried about the score. I’m worried about our attitude and how we handle a big kid coming in hard at us.”