SOUTH WHITLEY - The Class 3A No. 10 Whitko High School boys basketball team has bounced back nicely following a buzzer-beating loss at Columbia City in the season-opener.
Since that game, the Whitko Wildcats (6-1) have won six-straight, the latest being an impressive 59-41 win over the visiting Plymouth Pilgrims (2-5) Wednesday.During the six-game win streak, Whitko has defeated its opponents by an average score of 65-48, and have won every game, except an 80-75 win over Wawasee, by double digits. The loss to Wawasee, which was ranked No. 8 in Class 3A at the time, was also the only time a team broke the 50-point mark against the Wildcats.
Hosting Plymouth, Whitko coach Rob Irwin knew he was going against a team that has been struggling this year, and was also without one of their top players, as 6-foot-8 senior Sean Smith sat the game out after breaking the school's code of conduct.
"It would have given them another shooter, but they're still going to play the same way," Rob Irwin said about playing Plymouth without Smith. "We played them the same way, whether he was there or not. I didn't know he wasn't going to play until tonight."
Plymouth coach Kevin Stuckmeyer knew Smith wasn't going to play, but players not being on the floor hasn't been anything new to him this year.
The loss of Smith, coupled with senior Brock Smith not seeing the floor because of a football injury, has forced him to go deep into his bench. Against Whitko, Plymouth started sophomore Joe Knapp and brought sophomore Gabe Vervynckt and freshman Mack Mercer off the bench, even though none of the three were included on the varsity roster.
"It's a battle that we need to figure out," Stuckmeyer said. "We can't use it as an excuse, and we're not going to. We need some guys to step up, and unfortunately, we didn't have a lot of that tonight."
Going against a team led by junior point guard Logan Irwin makes it tough for inexperienced players to step up.
On the night, Logan Irwin netted 21 points, but also got others involved, recording eight assists, while also posting four rebounds and a steal.
"I thought Logan did a nice job of getting guys the ball," Rob Irwin said.
One of the main benefactors of Irwin's penetration and kick passes was senior reserve Mitch Yeager, who hit four three-pointers en route to a 12-point, three-steal game.
"We knew if he started hitting shots, it would be tough for us," Stuckmeyer said about Yeager. "But we didn't do a very good job of rotating and seeing everything on the backside. We were just a step slow tonight."
An understated Rob Irwin was also pleased to see Yeager find his shot, as the 5-11 guard missed just three of his seven three-point attempts.
"When Mitch knocks down shots, we're not bad," he said.
Senior Zac VanDeWater also had another good all-around game for the Wildcats, finishing with 12 points, six rebounds, three steals and two assists.
VanDeWater also had the task of guarding Plymouth's strong, speedy point guard Houston Hodges.
Using his lean, 6-5 frame against the stout, 5-11 Hodges, VanDeWater limited the senior to 3-of-13 shooting for eight points.
"Zac did a really nice job on Hodges," Rob Irwin said. "He made it hard for him to really do anything."
Whitko's next game is Dec. 29 at North Miami High School, where the Wildcats square off against 6-0 Maconaquah in the opening game of the Miami County Tournament.
The other side of the bracket pits Class 3A No. 1 Peru (6-0) against North Miami (2-4), setting up a potential meeting between two Top 10 teams in the Dec. 30 championship.
Despite the potential matchup, Rob Irwin isn't looking ahead.
"I'll start looking at Maconaquah," he said. "This group has done a nice job of just focusing on the next game, next game, next game. I think we're still getting better. As long as we keep getting better, I'm happy."
