HOLMES TOWNSHIP — Mohawk coach Paul Dunn related a story that changed the course of Mohawk basketball for the better.
Three years ago, the Warriors traveled to Wynford and dropped a tough 73-69 decision in double overtime. It was a moment that changed the Warriors.
“We hang our hat on defense,” Dunn said. “The kids take great pride in that.
“Actually, we talked about that right here three years ago,” Dunn added. “We got beat here and they were sophomores at that time, seniors now, and they talked about how we want to play better man-to-man defense. They’ve taken that and really focused on it and emphasized it as they’ve gotten older.”
This season, the unbeaten Warriors have been dominant defensively, permitting just 29.5 points per game.
The Wynford Royals did nothing to hurt that average Friday night.
Wynford made just 10 of 37 shots from the floor and didn’t score more than nine points in any quarter as Mohawk came away with a 62-26 win.
With the win, the Warriors improved to 4-0 in the Northern 10 Athletic Conference, 5-0 overall. The Royals are 1-6 overall, 1-5 in the conference.
Mohawk, on the other hand, made 24 of 46 shots from the floor and after leading 7-4 in the first period, scored 17 of the next 19 points to take a 24-6 lead midway through the second period.
Wynford coach Adam Guinther said that the Warriors just wear a team down throughout a game.
“I don’t want to compare them to Michigan State but they kinda play like Michigan State when you look at them,” Guinther said.
“I think the score was 7-4 and we were doing what we wanted to do,” he added. “We were playing a 3-2 zone and sagging in at the top. And they missed one or two threes. (Mohawk point guard Boomer) Cleveland hasn’t shot a great percentage on the season and he has been hurting everyone by getting penetration and getting to the rim. We were concerned about him doing that.”
But it was Cleveland who dictated the flow of the game. The Mohawk guard knocked down five threes and finished with 21 points.
“They are just so balanced,” Guinther said. “You can’t guard it all. We’re not equipped in man to handle them. I thought we had a pretty good approach. The problem I had with my guys is that they weren’t contesting shots. And we had talked about that. When a shooter sees the ball go through the hoop a time or two, then they get comfortable.
Kahne Hayman backed up Cleveland with 12 points, as the Warriors held a 35-11 lead at the break and took a 52-20 lead into the fourth period. A running clock ran for the final four minutes of the game.
The fact that the entire Mohawk roster is seniors has been a source of valuable experience, according to Dunn.
“They’re brothers,” Dunn said. “We’ve talked about that, getting better and working on our skills. We do a lot of things in the summer and be there for each other and I think they all do that. That makes practice fun, games fun. Nobody’s worried about who is getting what. They all play for each other and any coach wants that.”
Freshman Drew Stanek and Weston Prenger paced the Royals with seven points each.
“We have such a thin margin of error and when we don’t do the little things, it just compounds and it just wears on it,” Guinther said. “That game went from 7-4 to 21-6. I thought we fought in the third quarter and came back. We tried to work a little bit. We were going to go into a 1-3-1 zone and extend it out a little bit.”
Box score
Mohawk 12 23 17 10 — 62
Wynford 4 7 9 6 — 26
Mohawk (5-0, 4-0 N10): Shots 24-46; 3-pt. shots 9 (Boomer Cleveland 5, Kahne Hayman, Ben Bogner, Hunter Haynes, Marty Justen); Free throws 5-7; Rebounds 25, Turnovers 5. Scoring: Kahne Hayman 5 1 12, Ben Bogner 1 0 3, Kaleb Bish 3 0 6, Boomer Cleveland 7 2 21, Hunter Haynes 3 0 7, Garrett Rinehart 0 2 2, Marty Justen 1 0 3, Connor Flood 4 0 8.
Wynford (1-6, 1-5 N10): Shots 10-37; 3-pt. shots 3 (Drew Stanek, Weston Prenger, Drew Johnson); Free throws 3-6; Rebounds 20; Turnovers 12. Scoring: Drew Stanek 3 0 7, Weston Prenger 3 0 7, Hunter Rouston 0 2 2, Jaxon Vance 2 1 5, Drew Johnson 2 0 5.
JV: Mohawk 53-29.