HOLMES TOWNSHIP — It’s not the House of Thrills — yet. But the new Dr. Michael A. Johnson Gymnasium may need a similar nickname if these types of games continue in the future.
Upper Sandusky got double-figure performances from four players and defeated Wynford in a thrilling Northern 10 Athletic Conference boys game Friday night, 57-52.
The visitors led 17-12 after one quarter, had a slim one-point margin at halftime and held the Royals to just 6 fourth-quarter points to take home the win and further tighten the league standings.
Holden Daris returned to the Rams lineup and while he didn’t score, he helped in other ways including 4 assists and a steal.
“What he enjoys the most is defending. He’s a great defender,” Upper Sandusky head coach Jeff Winslow said.
“He didn’t force anything. He got guys open looks. He doesn’t care how many points he scores and that just shows the maturation of our team when your leading scorer, who averages nearly 17 points per game, doesn’t play one night and the next game he plays and doesn’t score, and you win both games against quality opponents.”
Junior Kaimen Iles scored 17 points, Justin Heilman 15, Brock Montgomery 12 and sophomore Josh Heilman 11 for the Rams, who improve to 9-6 overall, 4-5 in the N10.
“Josh and Kaimen really got us going in that first quarter. Holden is a smart kid. He sees Iles inside and he goes to the guys that were hot,” Winslow said.
Heilman had 9 and Iles six in that period.
“It’s nice to see other kids step up. And that’s what is dangerous about this team. It doesn’t have to be Holden who is scoring. It can be anybody.”
Earlier in the week Upper knocked off Galion 65-62 in a non-league game.
Wynford (11-4, 5-4) was without the services of post Sam McMillan, who had an injured ankle.
Head coach Mike Smith said that wasn’t the difference, however.
“They were a lot better than the first time we played them. I don’t know if that would have made that much of a difference.
“Their ball movement was awesome, and they defended a little bit better than we did. We couldn’t guard the ball. They had too many dribble-drive lay-ups. You’re not going to beat anybody when you let people score easily at the hoop.”
With McMillan, a 6-foot-6 senior, out of the lineup, the Upper Sandusky trio of Iles, Daris and Justin Heilman combined for 15 rebounds and controlled the glass 23-17.
The two teams traded baskets in the third quarter, which ended on a 35-foot bank shot by Justin Heilman that tied the game at 46 as Upper Sandusky went on a 7-0 run.
The Royals went ice cold in the final quarter, managing just two field goals and two free throws.
“We took a couple bad shots and couldn’t defend. We have had that trouble all year where we get a lead and can’t hold it. Maybe that’s my fault for the style of play we run,” Smith said.
“We may need to work on that more. We always seem to take ill-advised shots in those situations instead of working the ball around and getting the best shot.”
In the fourth quarter Montgomery had a field goal and three free throws, including a steal and a lay-up that put Upper on top to stay at 57-52.
“He’s come up with big plays for us all year and that was probably the biggest one,” Winslow said.
The Rams missed 4 free throws down the stretch that kept the game close. On the night they hit on just 4-of-11 from the charity stripe.
Ashton Warren led Wynford with 17 points, 6 rebounds, an assist, and a pair of steals. Wes Prenger had 16, including 4 threes, and Grant McGuire chipped in 11 points, 4 boards and a steal.
“We’re a good shooting team. For some reason we struggled early on and now we’re shooting it well, and it’s opened up a lot of things for us.”
“Wynford is really good. They’ve got 5 guys who can shoot the ball well and are long and athletic. They just pose a lot of problems. It’s always a tough place to win. To come over here and get a quality win on their floor is a really big win for our program,” Winslow said.
Smith hopes McMillan will return next week.
“You play with what you’re given. You can’t help injuries. We didn’t take care of business tonight. Hats off to Upper. They were the better team tonight,” he said.
“I’m not making any excuses. We’ve got to get better and go down to Elgin tomorrow. Forget this one and move on. We’re 11 and 4 and we can still have a really good season.”
Upper Sandusky hosts Seneca East on Thursday.
Box score
Upper Sandusky 17 13 16 11 — 57
Wynford 12 17 17 6 — 52
Upper Sandusky (9-6, 4-5 N10): Shots 24-58; 3-pt. shots 5-7 (Josh Heilman 3, Justin Heilman, Brock Montgomery); Free throws 4-11; Rebounds 23 (Holden Daris 5, Justin Heilman 5); Turnovers 11. Scoring: Justin Heilman 7 0 15, Gavin Frey 1 0 2, Brock Montgomery 4 3 12, Josh Heilman 4 0 11, Kaimen Iles 8 1 17.
Wynford (11-4, 5-4 N10): Shots 20-60; 3-pt. shots 9-24 (Wes Prenger 4, Ashton Warren 3, James Rindfuss, Drew Johnson); Free throws 3-6; Rebounds 17 (Ashton Warren 6); Turnovers 4. Scoring: Ashton Warren 6 2 17, Drew Johnson 1 0 3, James Rindfuss 1 0 3, Wes Prenger 6 0 16, Grant McGuire 5 1 11, K.J. Kotalik 1 0 2.
JV: Wynford 46-31.