Three players reached double figures for Mendon Friday in a St. Joseph Valley League-opening win against visiting White Pigeon.
Marcus Craft poured in 19 points, Joe Gales netted 14 and Elijah Klepper had 10 to counter Mitchell Moore’s 31-point effort for the Chiefs. Gales also had four steals and eight rebounds, Craft snagged five boards, Klepper grabbed five rebounds and Zach Darmofal posted 10 points for Mendon, which is now 2-2 overall.
Kyle Wiswell added six points, Jordan Medich chipped in five, Erik Batten had three and Parker Cupp and Logan Slaughter each finished with two.
(Click to enlarge Mendon’s game statistics)
The Hornets shot 44.1 percent (26-for-59) from the field and White Pigeon was 15-for-38 (39.5 percent).
White Pigeon outscored Mendon 17-15 at the foul line but was outrebounded 41-15. Mike Crowl scored seven points for the Chiefs and secured a team-high five rebounds along with Mitchell.
“With the exception of roughly a two-minute lapse in focus, execution and court awareness in the second quarter, I thought that we played with great effort against a very talented, deep Mendon team,” White Pigeon coach Tony Cholometes said. “The obvious disparity tonight stat wise was our effort — or lack thereof — on the glass. We only had one offensive rebound. This is an obvious area where we need to work. Hopefully these young men remember this night and use this adversity to fuel their efforts and focus from here forward.”
Photos by Nicci Plummer