Northmen finally return home, pull away from Titans for Big North win
PETOSKEY — Home is where the wins are.
Though of course the heart as well for the Petoskey boys’ basketball team.
On Tuesday night, the Northmen got the change to finally return home for the first time in 30 days when Traverse City West visited and their heart was fulfilled with another home victory.
Petoskey improved to 6-0 at in the PHS gym this season by pulling away from the Titans in the second half, leaning on fast breaks and defensive stops to earn a 58-48 win.
For Petoskey coach Matt Tamm, being home for the first time in a month was of course nice, especially following a pair of road losses last week.
“It feels really good,” he said. “Last week we played two really good teams and we were right there in both games. One on the buzzer beater in overtime and then the other we were up seven with four minutes to go.
“We finished tonight with just seven turnovers. That’s an area of the game, where, in games we’ve lost, we’ve had a lot of turnovers. So that’s a good sign.”
The Northmen improved to 8-3 overall and 3-1 within the BNC with the victory, while West dropped to 5-7 and 2-2 within the league.
After a tight first half, Petoskey pulled away from the Titans in the second half after back to back 3-pointers from West’s Ben Habers, which made it a two-point game in the third.
Petoskey then closed the third on a 13-2 run, picking up key baskets from Jimmy Marshall and Shane Izzard from beyond the arc, while Dylan Odenbach also nailed a three inside 30 seconds to play in the third.
“I thought we got much better guard play out of Shane, Brady (Odenbach) and Evan (Rindfusz),” said Tamm. “Dylan came in and hit a three. Jimmy had another good offensive performance. As his defense continues to improve, he will become an outstanding all-around player.”
The third closed with Petoskey up 47-33 and the comfortable lead stayed with the Northmen throughout the fourth. It remained a 15-point game up until West’s Winslow Robinson hit back to back 3-pointers with the final seconds ticking off.
“We started sharing the ball more and got locked in on defense,” said Tamm on the change from the first half. “For some guys, there was no sense of urgency on the defensive end. For us to be a really good team and go to the next level, we’ve got to buy into the defensive end a bit more.”
The Northmen led in a 13-7 game after the opening quarter then traded shots with the Titans all the way to a 3-point barrage in the second quarter.
Habers hit a three for the Titans, Petoskey’s Cade Trudeau answered with a three for the Northmen, then back came West’s Ian Robertson with a three, which was then answered by Izzard from deep. Habers then completed the combined five straight threes with another, closing the half with the Northmen leading 30-23.
Trudeau led on the night with 19 points, eight rebonds, four assists and two blocks, while Izzard scored 16 points and Marshall had 14 points.
Habers led for the Titans with 17 points, Quentin Gillespie had 10 points and Robertson scored seven.
Petoskey (8-3, 3-1 BNC) will return to action for a second straight home game on Friday, Jan. 20 when Traverse City Central visits.
It’ll come as a big night for the Northmen in a tough league slate, though also as the annual Pink Game for Breast Cancer Awareness.
Tamm knows how key Tuesday’s game came in not only returning to the win column, but doing it in this TC conference stretch.
“This was a really big win in the Big North Conference with Central coming in Friday,” said Tamm. “Then we go back to West the following Thursday. It’s a big stretch here.”
This article originally appeared on The Petoskey News-Review: Northmen finally return home, pull away from Titans for Big North win
