Both Mount Vernon and No. 10 Williamsburg had some adversity to overcome Friday night.
The Mustangs did it better and prevailed, 47-32.
Mount Vernon (8-2) played without all-Wamac forward Joey Rhomberg, who fractured his sternum in practice earlier in the week.
He’s out for 3 to 5 weeks.
“Our motto before we ever start practice is ‘sudden change,’” Mount Vernon Coach Derek Roberts said. “Stuff happens in life, you’ve got to adjust.”
The Raiders were without leading scorer Derek Weisskopf. The Iowa football recruit was in San Antonio for the All-American Bowl.
Things got more dire for the Mustangs midway through the second quarter when senior Jackson Kutcher slipped on some sweat and went down hard on a fast-break lay-up. He limped off the court.
“You never like to see that,” senior Cooper Parks said. “But we’ve already played without him this year … so, next man up mentality.”
“I was assuming we wouldn’t have him back,” Roberts said. “I told our guys ‘sudden change.’ They flipped a switch and played harder.”
Mount Vernon went into halftime with a five-point lead, 24-19. They got Kutcher back in the second half, and made Williamsburg (5-2) miserable in the third quarter.
“It was a good talk at halftime,” Parks said. “We wanted to run them out of the game. Make them lose their confidence and not even want to play anymore.”
Mount Vernon won the third quarter, 18-4. Parks had seven of his 10 points during the third quarter, but was more proud of the defense.
“I mean, if you can hold a team to 32 points, you’ve got a great chance of winning,” Parks said.
The Raiders opened the fourth quarter with a 9-0 run to cut the lead to 10 points, but Kutcher hit a 3-pointer with a little over two minutes to play to put the fire out.
“I know our offense wasn’t pretty, and we need to take care of the ball a little bit better, but anytime the defense plays that way, you’ve got a shot,” Roberts said.
Kellen Haverback matched Parks with 10 points. Joe Briesemeister had nine points and Kutcher and Oliver Hinrichs each added eight points.
One day earlier, the Mustangs beat Clinton, 50-41, in their first game without Rhomberg.
Haverback had 16 points, Kutcher 13 and Briesemeister 12. The River Kings are a 4A team, but winless.
Mount Vernon senior Oliver Hinrichs battles for a loose ball with a Williamsburg defender Friday, Jan. 5, in Mount Vernon.