Trio nearing end of journey

Cornerstone’s Ferrell, Wheeler and Bothwell want another state title before run that started in sixth grade is complete

The first high school basketball practice for Titus Wheeler, Martel Ferrell and Michael Bothwell was a reality check.

During their middle school years, the trio completed a perfect three seasons.

Bothwell, Ferrell and Wheeler went 54-0 on Cornerstone Christian’s middle school teams.

“We never were nervous before any game,” Bothwell said. “We knew we was going to blow out anybody. We thought it’d be the same way in high school, kind of. It wasn’t going to be as hard as it was, practice and coaching is tougher. We was too confident.”

Seven years after they began playing together, the trio leads Cornerstone into a regional semifinal against Rittman March 12 at the Canton Fieldhouse. The winner advances to a Division IV regional final March 16 against the winner of Mansfield St. Peter’s and East Canton.

The Patriots are pursuing their second state title in three years. Alongside fellow seniors Jeremy Owens, Dontavius Henry and Kendall Saunders, the plan to send out Cornerstone’s senior class is clearly defined.

“The only way we know how to,” Ferrell said. “A ring.”

Bothwell and Wheeler have known one another since they were 4 years old. Ferrell was a fast friend when he met his new teammates in sixth grade.

“I was always quiet, a quiet kid,” Ferrell said. “When we got to know each other more, they became my best friends.”

A photo from early in that school year reminds quickly Ferrell became close to Bothwell and Wheeler.

“There’s a picture of me like fake-kicking him,” Bothwell said. “He’s like bent over, looking like a nerd because he had thick glasses, and when I look back at that picture I really realize, dang, that was only a month into sixth grade and we were super close already.”

Since, there’s been countless hours spent off the court going to see movies and playing Madden or NBA 2K.

At school, the Patriots have shared a table during their lunch period for years. The unanimous, simultaneous choice for their favorite lunch table story involves packets of Crystal Light.

On the court, their bestloved

memories aren’t necessarily related to games. Nearly all of the 54 wins were by double-digit, if not 20-point margins. The closest call was an eight-point, overtime win in a seventhgrade championship game.

Wheeler recalls a sequence in which a former teammate tried to pull off an ostentatious spin move in a seventh-game game against Hawken.

“First off, he looked off Mike on the fast break,” Wheeler said. “Then he carried, it was funny. That was one of the most memorable games.”

Bothwell’s favorite middle school game featured Ferrell’s first dunk. The Patriots played after the girls team on a Saturday night, which drew a crowd and taste of the high school atmosphere Bothwell, Ferrell and Wheeler would compete in later.

Ferrell remembered a choice moment that involves Bothwell. He scored 33 points in the championship game of a tournament. But Bothwell was awarded the tournament MVP award after he also won a contest to pick the score of Ohio State’s Orange Bowl contest the same day.

Bothwell, committed to play at Furman after this season, readily acknowledges the role Wheeler and Ferrell have played in his growth as a player. They both run the Mr. Basketball candidate through his paces in practice, Wheeler as a quick, stocky guard and Ferrell’s a rangy, athletic wing.

“They can get in my head, in a good way or bad way,” Bothwell said. “They know how to guard me, they know how to make me better. If they’re locking me up, they’re going to let me know about it so it makes me want to be my best every day.”

Knowledge of each other’s preferred style of play helps the Patriots on the floor. The players know where the others will be on the court and what they want to do in particular situations.

Although Bothwell travels the country during the summers competing against the nation’s top talent on the AAU circuit, he always anticipates his return to the Patriots’ gym.

“It’s more like business with AAU,” Bothwell said. “With this team, I always love coming back in the summer from a long AAU trip and coming to a workout with my guys, I can just talk to them about everything. They know all the same people I know so it’s just more comfortable. Being more comfortable with each other just helps us on the court.”

Such a level of comfort also allows for improved communication.

“Say we’re not playing the way we know we should play,” Wheeler said. “We’re able to talk to each other.

We know how to talk to each in a way to get each other going, say certain things that other players may not be able to say all the time.”

This season, Bothwell’s teammates and coaches implored him to become a more vocal leader as a senior.

“Mike is a tremendous leader,” Ferrell said. “Even though me and T are captains also, he helps us to better ourselves from spiritual standpoint, mental and physical. Toward the middle school days, he was kind of quiet, didn’t really have to speak up. Now he is a good leader, a great leader.”

Coach Andy Weybrecht had watched the ascent of Bothwell, Wheeler and Ferrell since their first middle school games. He remembers the sheer jubilation on the Patriots’ faces when they won the 2016 D-IV state title.

“I want that for those guys,” Weybrecht said. “I want it for everyone, but those guys haven’t been here since sixth grade and working hard day-in and day-out. They’ve earned that.”

Four games separate the longtime friends and teammates from their goal.

“There’s really not a second option,” Bothwell said. “It’s that or bust. I’m going to be disappointed if we don’t win. It’s got to be states.”

DAVID TURBEN — THE NEWS-HERALD Martel Ferrell (1), Titus Wheeler (11) and Michael Bothwell have been playing together since sixth grade and are determined to finish their senior seasons with a state championship.