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Ryan Mulnix, Ryan Mulnix

By Mike Moore                            (Photo by Ryan Kerwin, JTV Sports)

Staff Writer

 

Parma — There were hugs, high fives, some congratulatory waves and even a group photo.

 

If Ryan Mulnix had his way, all this commotion would have taken place Tuesday night.

 

“Better late then never,” the Western boys basketball coach said with a smile Friday after his guys rolled to a 61-47 home victory over Lumen Christi.

 

The win was a key one for Western, over an in-conference rival in front of a packed house.

 

But for Mulnix, it was something more, win No. 100 in his varsity coaching career.

 

“Pretty cool. Pretty cool,” he said. “I have to thank my wife, my family, the girls I coached at Reading, and there are a lot of them. But I’m so thankful. I’m so proud to be here and working with this school.”

 

The win pushed Western to 8-2 on the season and 3-1 in the Interstate 8.

 

“Very good win for our guys,” Mulnix said. “It was a huge one.”

 

The Panthers needed to get back on the floor following a forgettable 52-27 Tuesday night loss to Marshall.

 

And while Friday’s game started a bit slow, and was slowed even further by foul after foul being called, the Panthers took a 9-7 lead late in the first quarter and surged to a 21-11 advantage by the end of the frame.

 

With Lumen’s offense all out of sorts, Western never looked back.

 

“We got to run a little bit. We got some defensive stops and got some easy shots,” Mulnix said.

 

The Panthers led 38-26 by halftime and 50-33 entering the fourth.

 

Lumen was never able to seriously threaten the Panthers’ lead.

 

“They played hard, but they didn’t have a ton of shooters or scorers,” Mulnix said of the Titans. “That was key.”

 

So too was his team’s shooting.

 

After going 0-for-15 from 3-point land in the loss to Marshall, Western hit seven 3’s Friday night.

 

“We were due,” Mulnix laughed. “That really helped.”

 

Connor Cottingham, who made three 3-pointers in the first half, led the Panthers with 19 points in the win.

 

Steele Fortress added 11.

 

Dayton Keller led Lumen, scoring 15 in the loss.

 

Troy Kutcha added 11 for the Titans, who fell to 2-7 overall and 2-4 in league play.

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Mike Moore is a play-by-play commentator and Sports Writer for JTV Sports.

 

He’s also a Real Estate agent with Real Estate One, specializing with buyers and sellers throughout Michigan, from the Jackson area to metro Detroit. You can reach him at mjm12@albion.edu or by calling (313) 770-6365 with any inquiries.

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