DE LA SALLE HANDS UTICA FIRST LOSS OF THE SEASON
Utica knew that they’d have to put their undefeated record on the line in order to challenge themselves against high-level competition and, in turn, get better.
Enter the De La Salle Pilots.
De La Salle welcomed the Chieftains to Warren on Tuesday night and sent them home with their first loss of the season, defeating their Macomb County foe 62-41.
The Pilots scored the first 10 points of the game and never trailed, and their 15-2 run to open the evening allowed them to lead by double digits for most of the game.
Though De La Salle celebrated senior night for Nick Spenser and Nnaemeka Ikechi along with manager Holden Hernandez, it was their youngest starter who sparked the fast start: sophomore Julius Wilson.
“(Wilson) just dominated on the boards,” said DLS head coach Gjon Djokaj. “Made a lot of multiple efforts. Kept plays alive. Attacked the basket really well. Hit a 3. Julius is starting to trickle down into everyone else, so it was great to have him make sure that we didn’t get off to a slow start.”
Wilson was one of six Pilots to score in the 24-point first quarter and one of four to score multiple times. He finished with 12 points, tied with Armoni Portis for second most on the team behind junior Phoenix Glassnor’s 15.
Djokaj attributed the Pilots’ ability to start — and stay — strong on Tuesday to the level of competition they’ve faced all year long.
“We’re battle tested,” Djokaj said. “We’ve seen every scenario. We’ve been in three or four overtime games. We’ve been in five or six down-to-the-wire games. We’re prepared for just about anything that anyone can throw at us.”
De La Salle went into halftime leading 40-22. Utica could have used the first few minutes out of the break to gain significant momentum for the first time all night, but the Pilots made sure it didn’t happen — instead, they went on another run, this time 10-2, to extend their already large lead.
“All the credit in the world goes to De La Salle,” said Utica head coach Dave Hinkle. “They’re the first team all year that’s matched our team speed. They sped us up. We had a lot of open looks. We didn’t knock them down. … They came out, they hunted us, they dialed up their defense which they’re very capable of doing with that crew that they have over there. Credit goes to their coach. They were ready.”
The Cheiftains’s 41 points scored is a new season-low. Their problems on offense mainly boiled down to one thing: shot making. Strangely, Utica had several shots roll in and out, bounce around the rim or flat out sit on the back of the hoop before eventually deciding to fall off.
They found high-percentage looks — they just didn’t convert. And sometimes, Hinkle said, it’s that simple.
“We had a ton that went in and out,” he said. “It was weird. … If we hit half those — even a third of those — it’s a different game.
“This doesn’t take away from anything. Okay, we’re 20-1. We still have a MAC league championship. We still have a MAC tourney championship. We still have our next goal in front of us which is a district championship. We’ll have to play obviously better than tonight. … They (the players) may be down, but I’m smiling still. I’m proud of these guys. They’ve done so many great things.”
With the win, De La Salle ends the regular season 16-7. It’s the same amount of losses they had in 2022 when they won the state championship — a fact Gjokaj is well aware of.
“We used the regular season as scrimmages to challenge ourselves and test ourselves against the best in the state,” he said. “Don’t really get hung up on wins and losses. I’ve been through plenty of those. Just trying to instill in our kids (that we) just got to get better every opportunity. I value practice more than games and I think that’s what we’re starting to do.”
The Pilots’ next game will come on Wednesday, Feb. 28 against either Lakeview or Warren Woods Tower as part of the District 22 tournament.