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by Mike Wachsman
When you're sitting atop the mountain warts are hard to find.
But Northland Vikings coach Satch Sullinger looks as hard at his team as
anyone does, and doesn't see a perfect unit.
"We have to learn how to play with a lead," Sullinger said. "It takes a
strong guard to run the offense when you've got the lead, and the only way
we can get experience is by getting experience in these situations. We've
let some teams off the hook and allowed them to get close, and we can't have
that at this time of the year."
This time of the year is tournament time, and for Northland that's doubly
important. The first order of business is winning a third straight City
League crown, which it can do with a victory over South Division champ
Eastmoor Academy this Saturday at 1pm at Mifflin High School.
The second, and more important in the grand scheme of things, is taking
home a state title. The Vikings are 18-1 (14-0 in North Division play) and
ranked No. 1 in the state among big schools, but are taking nothing for
granted. They were probably the best team in the state last year but fell in
the regional finals, so nothing is written in stone.
"We've gotten better as the season has gone on, but we still have some
moments here and there where we don't tend to our business," Sullinger said.
"This time of the year is one and done, so we have to stay focused and stay
hungry. I think a lot of the kids remember how we went out last year and
they don't want a repeat of that."
Leading the way -- in notoriety and on-court production -- is forward Jared
Sullinger, who averages 19.3 points and 14.4 rebounds per contest. Already
committed to Ohio State, the 6-8 Sullinger is considered one of the top
players nationally in the class of 2010. As good as he is, though, he's not
immune to learning some lessons.
When Jared was slacking on his schoolwork last season, his father sat him
down for a game -- which the Vikings promptly lost. It may have been a tough
pill to swallow, especially for the team's veterans, but it was something
the elder Sullinger felt had to be done.
"Some lessons have been learned from last year," Sullinger said. "This team
knows that it has to stay on top of things. I showed last year that I wasn't
afraid to sit Jared when I thought he was slacking. He got the message, and
the team understood that no one is above anyone else. In the long run it was
a benefit to everyone."
Jared Sullinger gets most of the pub, but the Vikings get contributions
from everyone. JD Weatherspoon, a Xavier recruit, has been a a consistent
offensive force inside while guard Trey Burke has dished out over seven
assists per game and has shown a knack for scoring during the season's
stretch run.
"I think we're a little more well balanced this season," Sullinger said.
"Jared gets a lot of the press, but JD and Trey have really helped out a
lot. Really, it's been a team effort. Anyone can carry us on a given night,
and that's why I think we've done as well as we have. We aren't just a one
man team.
There have been nights when the offense has waned, such as an early
February 55-40 win over Whetstone. Those have been few and far between, but
when baskets have been hard to come by the Vikings have been able to lean on
their defense.
"I think everyone knew coming into the year we'd be strong in the post and
a really good defensive team," Sullinger said. "These kids have worked
extremely hard on defense because I've told them that it's the one aspect of
the game they can control. You can't control if you're going to have an off
night scoring, but you can control your defense because it's about effort.
We do not want to get outworked by anyone.
"I think we're a confident team, but we can't get too high or too full of
ourselves because that's the surest way to defeat. I've always said you do
what got you here, and we're not going to change who we are."
Eastmoor Academy (14-5, 12-2 South Division) is a solid, athletic squad,
with four of its losses coming by a total of five points. The Warriors
likely don't have the firepower to stand up to the Vikings well-balanced
attack, but will dig in defensively and make Northland work for everything
it gets.
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