The Northmor boys’ basketball team (11-4, 7-1) has been on a war path since the start of the new year, winning their last four games and sitting on top of the Knox Morrow Athletic Conference. On Jan. 24 the Golden Knights struck again, beating KMAC rival Mount Gilead 72-40 with Hunter Fulk and Grant Bentley putting up 20 points in the win.
Despite the scoring being lopsided in the end, Mount Gilead made a statement that they weren’t just going to lie down, tying the game 17-17 in the first quarter. Bentley was hot from the start with eight points, and Rowan Fitzpatrick hit a pair of threes and also had eight points for Mount Gilead.
Northmor put the pedal to the metal in the second quarter, outscoring Mount Gilead 15-5 to make it a 32-22 lead at halftime. Jax Wenger hit a pair of threes in the quarter, and had 11 points in the half that included three from downtown.
The third quarter was the Fulk show, as he scored 13 points to lead the Golden Knights to a 27-12 advantage. They finished with a 13-6 fourth quarter to secure what ended up being a blowout conference win.
Fulk was 6-for-9 from the free throw line, and his 20 points led the way. Northmor Coach Blade Tackett has been particularly impressed by his play in the month of January.
“We got great contributions from everyone tonight but would like to give hats off to Hunter Fulk for his play during this four game win streak,” Coach Tackett said. “He is all over the floor defensively and continued that tonight with about 8 steals (unofficially). He converted those steals to layups in transition and a couple and-one plays. He's been great from the line shooting nearly 70% from the strip in that span, and averaging nearly 10 free throws a game in January.”
Bentley also had 20 points with three makes from deep. Jax Wenger had himself an excellent night as well, putting up 18 points with four threes. He was 4-for-4 from the free throw line.
“Grant gave us is 20 a game again and Jax settled in from behind the arc has his jump shooting continues to improve now that he has his legs under him and is back in basketball shape,” Coach Tackett said.
Isaac Black scored five points, Drew Hammond had four points, Logan Caudill had a fourth quarter three and Bryson Keirns rounded out the scoring with two points.
Fitzpatrick and Hayden Somerlot each had eight points for the Indians. Gage Baker tallied seven points and Cam Vickers had six points in the loss.
Coach Tackett has been impressed by the play of his team from top to bottom during this nice stretch of wins.
“We are playing extremely well right now,” Coach Tackett said. “Our team has great chemistry, we believe in each other, we have all accepted the roles that we have, and it's been a fun month of basketball. We have to continue to go one game at a time as we got East Knox this Saturday who gave us a run for our money the first game and played Fredericktown competitively.”
Dynamic Duo
Bentley has been the star for the surging Golden Knights through and through, as he has been the team’s top scorer while hitting shots at an efficient rate. He has an overall field goal percentage of 49% (55% from two and 40% from three) and also has been the top free throw shooter in terms of attempts, free throws made and percentage (52-for-67 or 78%). On the season he is averaging 19.9 points per game, with a total of 278 points, which are both tops in KMAC.
“Grant has been an instrumental part of the program since I took over four years ago,” Coach Tackett said. “He earned a starting spot late his freshman year and has never looked back. He currently is leading the KMAC in scoring and leading our team on a daily basis in practice and in games."
Bentley has also been one of the top rebounders on the team at 4.4 per game, good for second behind Hammond’s 6.7 per game. Bentley is averaging 1.6 assists and 1.6 steals per game, as well.
“Most people see his 20 ppg but that is just the tip of the iceberg for Grant when it comes to his overall impact for our team,” Coach Tackett said. “I've never been around a kid that can bring positivity and energy to every single practice while still being competitive and improving as an individual. Even when we are down in game, we are never out, which was the case vs Centerburg last Saturday. Even down double digits in the third, Grant can step up in a timeout and remind his teammates that we have time and can make this comeback. It's truly been a pleasure to be his coach.”
Fulk is averaging 8.5 ppg, 3.6 boards, and an assist per game. His 41 steals are the most on the team, and 2.7 per game is second behind Wenger’s 2.8 steals. However, he has turned it up to 11 during the four game winning streak.
Over the stretch he has averaged 14 ppg, 4.5 boards, 3.5 assists, four steals and four deflections. Fulk has been getting to the foul line an average of nine times per game, and he has been making his shots at a 75% clip.
“He's grown into a mature, calm presence on the floor and he seemingly never gets tired,” said Coach Tackett. “With the basketball in his hand in the open court he's tough to guard as he can be faster with a ball in his hands than a lot of players without one. The kid has always loved basketball and it's been a fun sight to see him excel for us over the season but over the past month in particular.”
