By Mike Moore
Staff Writer
Jackson — This was talked about in the offseason, the main goal the Western basketball team set forth.
Ryan Mulnix and his guys spoke about it at length during the regular season, reaffirming their ambition to bring a conference title back to the program that had, for so long, gone without one.
And then, in the days leading up to Friday night’s road trip to Northwest, Mulnix said he was tired of the talk, tired of the hope and mission.
Friday night, the Panthers’ sideline general remained somewhat speechless.
“I don’t know. I don’t even know if I can describe this right now,” Mulnix, struggling for words outside his team’s locker room, said following a 52-34 victory and co-conference championship. “It was a lot of hard work to do this. The coaching staff. The players, they are the ones that do everything.”
Western entered the game needing a win to clinch at least a share of the I-8 title, an accomplishment the program hadn’t done since 1995.
The nerves, the tension, the pressure, whatever it was, took its toll early on.
Western struggled to get much of anything going, scoring just three points in the first four minutes.
The Panthers did hold a 13-6 lead after the first, but just a 23-17 lead by halftime.
Then Northwest started the third quarter on a 6-0 run to tie the game.
Mulnix called timeout, and everything changed.
“We just needed to step up,” he said. “I didn’t say much. The seniors said something. We needed to play harder and get some things to go our way.”
“We manned up,” junior Steele Fortress said simply. “We came out flat in the third, and then kind of realized this was a championship game. This was going to be the biggest quarter of the year. We manned up.”
After Northwest tied things at 23-23, Western went on a 10-2 run to take control, and closed the game on a 29-11 stretch.
“It’s one play and getting some momentum,” Mulnix said of his team’s run. “I mean they’re still kids, I sometimes still don’t react that well, and I’m 20 years older than them. They’re kids. They go in the moment and (Northwest) still has good players over there, they hit some shots, and we just responded.”
Western led 38-27 after three and never gave Northwest a chance the rest of the way.
“We’re going in the right direction,” Mulnix said when asked what the title means to the program. “It’s been a long, long time. The first one is the hardest, so maybe this sets the expectations levels.”
Western improved to 15-4 overall and 11-3 in the conference.
Marshall defeated Harper Creek Friday night, also finishing 11-3 in conference play.
Desmond Price led the Panthers with 15 points in the win, while Fortress added 14 points and 12 rebounds. Connor Cottingham scored 11 points.
Gibson Wait led Northwest (3-14, 3-10) with 11 points.
“This is everything for us,” Fortress said. “We’ve been working at this since I was a freshman. To finally accomplish it is everything.”
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.