Hanover-Horton looks to get past Loyola in Class C quarterfinal round
By Mike Moore
Staff Writer
Horton – The field is down to eight, and with one more win, the Hanover-Horton boys basketball team will return to the Class C semifinals for the second season in a row.
But on Tuesday night, the journey to a potential Thursday game in East Lansing must make a detour through Tecumseh and over a powerful speed bump in the form of Detroit Loyola.
“And that’s a very good team,” Comets coach Chad Mortimer said simply about the 7 p.m. tilt.
Hanover (23-2) picked up a second consecutive regional title last week, using key defensive stops to upend Pewamo-Westphalia 58-49.
The win was the 17th in a row for the Comets, who reached last year’s semifinal round before falling to Flint Beecher.
Loyola’s tournament a year ago was drastically shorter. The Bulldogs were ousted in the district opener, but have more than rebounded this year, building a 20-5 record so far that includes the program’s first ever regional title.
“They are very good,” Mortimer said. “Some of the teams they’ve beaten up on are some big, Class A and B schools. They like to press and trap and push. We’re going to have our hands full.”
As Mortimer alluded to, Loyola is a team that likes to run, to trap and to apply pressure form start to finish.
It’s a recipe built on the team’s athleticism and overall lack of size.
Senior forward Ernest Adams is the tallest player on the Bulldogs’ roster, listed at 6’3” but just 180 pounds.
Still, Loyola finds ways to produce, averaging 60.9 points per game, thanks in large part to an offense that shares it awfully well (12.6 assists per game) and a defense that creates plenty of extra chances (12.9 steals per game).
“Take care of the basketball,” Mortimer stressed when asked what will be key. “We’ve seen teams pressure, but not like they press. It’s constant. They do it in a way we haven’t seen before.”
Loyola also attacks with great balance.
The team’s leading scorer, senior DeQuan Powell, averages 13.3 points per game. Senior Romari Ennis chips in 13.1 points, while sophomore Pierre Mitchell averages 11.
Loyola started the season 3-3, having gone 17-2 since then.
Still, Hanover’s in this spot for the second year in a row for a reason.
Mortimer is the definition of consistency, with 15 district titles in a row to prove it.
He’s got a team that graduated four starters from 2015 in a position to match what that team did.
“Each team and each year is different,” he said. “But the guys we have now have played in enough games to have the experience they need. They’ve been in some big games this year.”
Tuesday night’s winner advances to a 2:50 p.m. semifinal Thursday at the Breslin Center against Flint Beecher (22-2) or Ithaca High (23-2).
The Class C final is set for Saturday at 4:30 p.m.
“We’re looking forward to this,” Mortimer added. “You have to love this challenge.”
Mike Moore is a play-by-play commentator and Sports Writer for JTV Sports. You can reach him at mjm12@albion.edu. He’s also the author of ‘Love, Defined; A Dedication to the Love, Sacrifice, and Magic of Motherhood.’
Love, Defined is available at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Tate Publishing or by contacting Mike directly.