Vikings slide past Hayes
Northland wins fourth straight, Mifflin is ahead
In a period of seven days, Northland (7-4) has had two games that have been decided by a two-point margin.
The Vikings are 2-0 in those contests as seniors Diante James and Daneal Krylov have made big shots that won both games respectively. On Jan. 3, at Columbus Academy, James knocked down a shot with less than two seconds remaining to deliver Northland to its biggest win so far this season. On his way to 19 points, James has proven to be one of the most confident shot makers in central Ohio. His big time basket led Northland to a 58-56 win over Westland which is currently 7-2.
After controlling the game from the middle of the first quarter in a 67-56 win over arch-rival Beechcroft, Jan. 9, Northland had another neutral contest against Delaware Hayes on Jan. 10. This time playing at Africentric, Northland found itself in another grueling match-up as Hayes.
Despite being smaller, Hayes (3-9) was prepared. The Pacers spent much of the game patiently passing the ball and finding an opening to attack the basket which converted to successful layups. After a close first quarter that saw Hayes lead 19-17, Northland edged out Hayes in the second period to take a narrow 35-34 lead into the half. Daneal Krylov scored 15 of his 24 points in the first half as he played assertively while taking advantage of mismatches.
The second half saw both teams focus more on stopping the other. The combined scoring dropped from 69 in the first half to 39 in the second. Trailing 53-52 in the closing moments of the game Krylov, who scored the most of any player in the second half with nine, knocked down the game-winning three-pointer with 25.9 seconds to play. Northland held on to its 55-53 lead after Hayes' Cobe Holmes wasn't able to hit his two free-throws just before the end of the contest. Vandell Slade collected the final Northland rebound off of Holmes' final miss which closed the door on a Hayes win.
Slade also ended up with a steal to close Northland's win over Westland. The Hayes win saw James follow up Krylov's 24-point effort with 12 points. James also had the game-winning assist. Hayes was led in scoring by Mason Kelly's 16 points, Chase Toombs' 11 points and Zach Lemaster's 10.
On Tuesday, Northland will return to Columbus City League North Division action at home against Mifflin at 7 p.m. The visiting Punchers are working to keep their heads above water with a 5-5 record. As Northland sits alone in second place with a 5-1 record in conference play, Centennial is in first at 6-0. Mifflin finds itself in a four-way tie for third place as it is 3-3, just like Linden-McKinley, East, Mifflin and Beechcroft.
Northland is 4-1 at home, while Mifflin is 1-2 on the road. Senior guard and small forward Nashawn Mitchell is Mifflin's top scorer at 14.6 points per game. The Punchers have a two-headed monster as Myles Jarrett is not far behind Mitchell with an average of 14.2 points per game. Jarrett is the team leader at 6.2 assists per contest. Chernor Jalloh is also giving Mifflin some help with a team best 6.3 rebounds and one blocked shot per game.
Diante James is the top scorer for Northland with an average of 16.1 points. He is one of just two Northland players that have played in each of the team's ten games. Daneal Krylov is averaging 15 points, Owan Mburugu is third on the team with a clip of 12.8 points per game.
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