Ryan Murken

Your Prep Sports

SOLON – Playing in tight games that are filled with tense seconds and aren’t determined until the final few possessions can be uneasy for many basketball players.

Over the past two seasons Ben Cusick and his Solon teammates have made themselves comfortable in those uncomfortable moments.

“It seems like every game comes down to the very last minute,” Cusick said. “We’ve been doing that pretty much all of the last two years and it’s something that we’ve grown pretty comfortable with.”

The reason it seems as if every game for the Spartans the past two seasons has come down to the wire is because many of them have.

During a 7-15 season last year Solon had half of its games decided by eight points or less including seven two-point games.

Solon went 3-8 in those games and was just 2-5 in games decided by two points.

Turning those close losses into close wins this season has been the biggest reason Solon (10-1) is one of the top turnaround stories in the state this winter.

“We learned so much from last year,” Cusick said. “We learned something from all those close games and we were a little extra motivated to win those close games this year.”

After opening the season with a five-point loss to Central DeWitt the Spartans have rattled off 10 straight wins while climbing to No. 7 in the Class 3A Associated Press poll.

Solon has won five games by single digits during its current 10-game winning streak after snapping a three-game losing skid to rival Mount Vernon on Friday with a 74-70 overtime win.

The Spartans scored the final six points in the win over Mount Vernon in what was the fourth straight win by seven or fewer points for Solon.

“Last year we were on the opposite end of where we are now,” Solon senior Carson Shive said. “We lost all those close games, this year we are finding a way to make the plays to win those games.”

After all the close losses last season it seemed Solon was due to win a few tight games this year.

First-year head coach Jared Galpin has another explanation for the Spartans’ success in tight games that starts with the work put in to prepare for those moments.

“You could say they were due or you could say that they have worked so hard that they can overcome those things,” Galpin said. “That just shows their experience and how hard they have worked.”

Past experience in close games has certainly helped this season but so too has overall court experience for a veteran Solon squad.

Three of the top three scorers for Solon are seniors and six of the eight players in the Spartan rotation are seniors that returned with some varsity experience.

“We’ve all played, we’ve been in those moments and if we are in a tight situation we aren’t panicking anymore,” Cusick said. “We are all pretty good with it.”

Another element that has helped Solon prevail late in games is its balance.

Senior David Bluder is the only Spartan scoring in double figures, averaging a team-high 15.5 points per game, but five other players score between 5.6 and 9.6 points per game.

Shive, Cusick, Bluder and senior guard Will Noonan all scored double figures in the win over Mount Vernon and another senior Bo Janssen had eight points.

“We have guys that we are confident in having the ball in their hands or taking big shots,” Galpin said. “We have confidence in any guy that we have on the floor to make a big play.”
Close games aren’t likely to end anytime soon for the Spartans.

Solon has three games this week against teams that have played the Spartans to two or fewer points in the last meeting beginning with road trip to Marion (6-6) on Tuesday.

Solon defeated the Indians 49-48 last month in Solon.

A home games against West Delaware, who Solon defeated 54-52 earlier this month in Manchester and Regina round out the week.

Solon won 62-60 on a last-second shot at Regina last season.

“We know we are going to have close games so we keep working on it,” Shive said. “We go through situations every day what we do when we are up five or down five. It’s all paying off.”

Did you enjoy this subscription free article? Help keep Your Prep Sports free by donating.