Northland takes first three of '26
Vikes stop Westland, Whetstone, Beechcroft
The last time Winners Only wrote about the Northland Vikings, the team was licking its wounds. To paraphrase the legendary singer Dinah Washington, "What a difference a week makes."
On Jan. 3, the Vikings started their new year with a win over one of the hottest teams in central Ohio. Senior guard Diante James hit two miracle shots, one in the third quarter and another to win the game in the fourth, to lead Northland in a 58-56 win over Westland, at Columbus Academy. That win lifted Northland to an even 4-4 record and dropped Westland to 6-2. Since then Westland went on to beat Westerville South by 18 points on Jan. 9. Westland's win avenges two losses to Westerville South last season.
Northland moved on to visit Columbus City League North Division foe Whetstone which it dominated as expected in a Jan. 6 win. Scrappy guard Charle Johnson did his usual chaotic job on defense, while also surprising Whetstone on the offensive glass as he scored on a couple of put-backs while hitting three triples as well on his way to 13 points.
Jan. 9, was one of the biggest games of the year as Northland faced its biggest rival, Beechcroft, located just two miles away. Northland entered the game looking to win three games in a row for the first time this season. Beechcroft entered the game at 3-6, looking to continue its momentum after conference wins over Mifflin and International.
The Vikings had an unusual cold start against the host Cougars. Trailing 6-1 midway through the first quarter, Beechcroft played with confidence and hoped to hold off the much larger and deeper in talent Vikings. The Northland offense woke up and played its best basketball of the night, at least that the audience was allowed to see. More on that later.
After trailing 6-1, Northland exploded to a 20-3 run as Diante James and Owan Mburugu combined to hit five three-pointers. Northland led 21-9 to go into the second period.
A fun moment happened early in the second quarter as center Pharoahe Zaire entered the game for Northland. He spent the next four to five minutes taking on his former middle school teammate, forward Reuben Holmes who is currently the top player at Beechcroft. When Zaire and Holmes attended Woodward Park Middle School from 2021-2023, they dominated most of their opponents and were two of the most sought after players by local high school coaches.
Zaire used his size to contain Holmes who was limited to one rebound and zero points during that stretch. While Holmes was occupied with Zaire, it allowed Mbrugu to get a basket against a smaller player as Beechcroft's front-court talent starts and ends with Holmes. A heads-up play by Holmes got Zaire out of the game before the half. As Zaire executed a spin move in the post and appeared to score, Holmes put himself into the position to take a charge which led to Zaire's second foul.
The Cougars and Vikings were even 15-15 in the second quarter, which led to a 36-24 halftime advantage for Northland. Beechcroft appeared to be a bit battered and outmatched as it entered the locker room for the half but head coach Raylon Almon found a way to get his players to hang tough and get back into the game.
In the third quarter, the Northland offense fell into a rut. Vandell Slade scored both of his only field goals of the game in the period that only saw the Vikings score nine points overall. Beechcroft guard James Sellers woke up and took advantage of the Northland defense that sometimes is prone to give up the three, hitting a couple of triples of his own. For the first time Beechcroft outscored Northland in a quarter, 11-9.
The Vikings entered the fourth quarter with a ten-point, 45-35 lead. While having to put up with Mbrugu who scored half of his 19 points in the fourth quarter, as well as Daneal Krylov scratched and clawed himself to 15 points, Holmes did all he could as he led all players with 20 points. The Cougars got the lead down to 58-52 late in the fourth. Shortly after, while still trailing by six, the Beechcroft gym was evacuated due to a fire alarm.
The crowd was not allowed to see the final 1:37 seconds of the game as the players closed things out with Northland holding off Beechcroft in a 67-56 win. James joined Mbrugu and Krylov with a double-figure effort of 15 points. Charle Johnson scored seven of his nine points in the fourth period for Northland. James Sellers scored 13 and Ziarre McCoy posted 10 for Beechcroft.
Coach Tihon Johnson will lead his Northland squad in action for a second straight day as the 6-4 Vikings will take on non-conference opponent, Delaware Hayes who enters the game at 3-8, today at Africentric High School. Beechcroft will host the Capital Cougars who are arriving from Charleston, West Virginia. Capital is 7-2.
With the win over Beechcroft, it enabled Northland to hold on to second place in the Columbus City League North Division with a 5-1 record. The Vikings trail division leader Centennial which is 6-0. Beechcroft, Mifflin, East and Linden-McKinley are all in a tie for third place with 3-3 division records. Whetstone is 1-5 and International is 0-6.
On Tuesday, Northland will host Mifflin in a return to City League North Division play.
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