SOUTH WHITLEY - For three quarters, it looked as if the Whitko Wildcats were headed for their third loss in as many games to start the season. Then Zach Henson and the rest of the Wildcats woke up.

Trailing by 28 points midway through the third period and by 16 heading into the fourth, Whitko capped off a furious comeback with a Henson jumper with three seconds to play to defeat the Northfield Norsemen, 68-66, Friday.

For 20 minutes, Whitko was beaten everywhere. They had 17 turnovers, shot 40 percent from the field, and were outrebounded 20-13 through the first two and a half periods. Consequently, it trailed 52-24. Over the final 12 minutes, Whitko outscored the Norsemen 44-14 with just two turnovers and shot 54 percent from the floor.

"At halftime, we were just trying to regroup and save ourselves the embarrasment," Whitko head coach Dave Henson said. "It looked like a team that had not practiced in two weeks. We never want to roll over and play dead. Our goal was to try to get it down to ten points in the third quarter. It didn't look good, but all of a sudden it just started clicking."

Down 52-24, Henson began to heat up. He knocked down one of his two three-pointers on the night to get the ball rolling. Henson scored 9 of his game-high 36 points in the final four minutes of the third quarter to help Whitko get within 16 points at 57-41.

With 6:13 to play, Whitko got to within 10 points after Henson hit a free throw to complete a three-point play.

Contrary to popular thought, the Norsemen did not begin to stall after Whitko got back into striking distance.

"That's not their game," Coach Henson said. "Their game is to keep attacking the basket."

With 3:18 to play, the Wildcats still trailed by eight when Henson knocked down two more free throws. On the inbounds pass, Northfield threw the ball away and Bo Mullins hit a layup to get Whitko to within four.

After a layup by Northfield's Jamie Swihart, Henson came back with a three-pointer to make the score 63-60. Whitko finally tied the score with one minute to play on an offensive rebound and put-back by Mullins.

After Northfield missed a shot, Whitko put the ball in the hands of their hot shooter, Henson, who knocked down a 15-foot baseline jumper with just three seconds left on the clock to give Whitko the victory.

Henson, who shot just 2 of 13 in the first half, was 11 of 14 in the second half and added 8 rebounds, 6 assists, and 5 blocks. Mullins also played well, adding 15 points and 8 rebounds. Mullins also played a part in helping foul out Northfield's 6-foot-7 senior center, DeWayne Krom, with four minutes to ply.

"I want to give Mullins a lot of credit," Coach Henson said. "That kid was really a force on the offensive boards in the second half. He completely dominated the offensive board."

Krom was held to just 9 points and 6 rebounds. Bernie Schuck was the big scorer for Northfield, with 15 points and 11 rebounds.

"Our philosophy is that a team will give you the game if your just willing to take it," said coach Henson. "Basically, the whole idea is don't beat yourself. I'm real proud of the kids."

Whitko (1-2) hosts Central Noble today. [[In-content Ad]]