HOWELL — His team having passed the Senior Night test, Howell boys basketball coach Nick Simon thought it passed another important test on Tuesday night.
“As a coach, you can’t get a better game than this,’ Simon said after his team pulled out a 48-46 win over Northville on Howell’s home floor. “It was chippy and it was physical. It ws close the entire way. That’s how you prepare for the playoffs. for hte c lose physical games you play in the playoffs.”
It wasn’t decided until the last shot, when Northville’s Matt Gorski put up a 3-point shot from the baseline that rattled out at the buzzer.
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“They’re incredibly well-coached. They always do stuff the right way,” Simon said of Northville (10-6 overall, 7-5 KLAA West). “They threw a lot of different things at us offensively and defensively. They really made us work to score.”
Adam Jones, one of nine seniors honored in a pregame ceremony, led the Highlanders with 16 points, eight in each half. Danny Honkala had seven of his nine points in the fourth quarter.
“My teammates found me in open spots and our defense just locked them up,” Jones said. “(The win) meant a lot to us seniors. It paves the road for us in the playoffs.”
Howell (10-6, 9-3) moved into a second-place tie with Hartland in the KLAA West. The Highlanders’ sweep of Northville was the first in several years.
“We haven’t gotten them twice in a year in a few years, so getting them twice this season) was huge for us,” Simon said.
Now. the Highlanders turn their focus to Friday,when they got for a sweep of Brighton on the road.
“We’re excited to go in there with some momentum.” Simon said. “It ought to be a heck of a game.”
Carter Bandemer had 10 points for Howell. Gorski led Northville with 15.
