Salem Basketball Tops Northville Mustangs in KLAA Opener

- Submitted by S. Patrone

Northville High School's boys varsity basketball team kicked off its 2012 KLAA Central Division league opener last Friday against the Salem Rocks. The Rocks came into the game with an undefeated 6-0 record and a team with size, depth and experience.

The Mustangs would be challenged in the first quarter as the Rocks’ starters averaged 6’-5” and their inside presence would be difficult to defend. The Mustangs stepped up with a tough man-to-man defense with the Stangs’ creating multiple turnovers led by senior forward Andrew Poterala. Nick Raad dropped in the Mustangs’ first field goal and Brett MacDonald nailed the first points beyond the arc. Although Salem had team size, it was their outside shooting from the arc that caused the Mustangs' problems and saw the Rocks take the first quarter lead 20-12.

Northville welcomed the long awaited return of senior point guard Jeff Gertley from an early season injury. Jeff would enhance the offensive ball control taken over by junior Nick Raad and senior Jeff Hewlett. After a Poterala took a defensive charge, Gertley found himself weaving into the lane for a 10-foot jumper and his first points of the season. Defense was the highlight of the second quarter as senior forward Brett MacDonald prevented a Salem player from dunking with a hard foul. Salem outscored Northville 9-8 in the quarter to take a halftime lead of 29-20.

The Mustangs started the second half pounding the ball inside the paint to sophomore Andrew Meacham. Meacham posted up and had Salem on their heels drawing multiple fouls on post moves. Meacham capitalized on Salem’s defensive mistakes and dropped in 7-for-8 from the charity stripe. The Mustangs’ managed to stay within reach of Salem by holding the Rocks to only 5- and 3-point quarter scoring differentials, although Salem’s size was too much for the Mustang’s to overcome their offensive boards and secondary shots. Salem expanded their third quarter lead 50-36 and ended the game with a 68-51 victory.

Nick Raad led the Stangs’ with 14 points. Meacham had 9 points. MacDonald and Gertley followed with 8 points each. Hewlett and Poterala scored 5 points each. Poterala proved to be the defensive threat with five rebounds, three steals and one blocked shot.

Northville will look to rebound against the Stevenson Spartans on Jan. 10. Hope to see you there. GO MUSTANGS!