From staff reports

MARSHALL – The Niles boys’ basketball team picked up its third straight victory Tuesday night with a 62-52 decision over Marshall in Big 16 Conference non-divisional action.

Austin Parks and Myles Busby scored four points each in the first quarter to help Niles to a 14-13 lead.

David Garner’s six points in the second quarter allowed the Vikings to take a 26-24 lead into the locker.

Niles then came out in the third quarter and scored 26 points, while holding the host Redhawks to nine.

“We really ran the floor well in the third quarter,” Niles coach Todd Pawielski said. “We showed some poise on the offensive end and threw the ball inside and then back out and made some jump shots. When Marshall missed we were off and running and scored quite a few easy baskets.”

The Vikings had a balanced night scoring as Garner would lead the way with 15, Busby and Mitch Peterek both had 11, Austin Parks had nine and Matthew McLaughlin added eight.

Quintin Irby scored four points and had five rebounds, while Parks added three steals and three assists. Peterek led the team with seven rebounds on the night.

Shooting totals had Niles at 27-of-56 from the field and 3-of-4 from the free throw line.
“This was a good game for us. We had lots of kids play well. We did a nice job of running the clock in the fourth quarter. Our transition offense in the second half is the way we need to play all the time. We did not defend real well early but played tough in the third quarter. I thought we took about seven charges tonight, but the whistles were kind of on lockdown as the officials really let a lot of contact happen,” Pawielski said.
“There are not a whole lot of games where we only shoot four free throws. Our kids did a nice job of just playing basketball tonight and not getting worried about things beyond our control,” he added.

“Mitch Peterek continues to have a solid season and scored a career-high 11 points tonight. He did not miss a shot and was in the right place all game. It is nice to see that his hard work in the off season is paying off.”

The Vikings will host the Portage Northern Huskies in a girls and boys homecoming doubleheader on Friday.

NILES 62
David Garner 15, Myles Busby 11, Matthew McLaughlin 8, Austin Parks 9, Jordan Potthoff 3, Mitch Peterek 11, Quinton Irby 4, Riley Robson 0, Nate Lucero 0. TOTALS: 27 3-4 62
MARSHALL 52
Jamar Wimberly 4, Caleb Vincent 6, Aaron Borsum 16, Mike Sayers 5, Brian Meyers 6, Chris McAllister 6, Dave Klingman 4, James Wimberly 5. TOTALS: 21 6-8 52

Niles 14 26 52 62
Marshall 13 24 33 52
3-point goals: Niles 5 (McLaughlin 2, Peterik, Pothoff, Parks), Marshall 4 (Borsum 4). Total fouls: Niles 11, Marshall 12. Fouled out: None. Varsity records: Niles 6-3, Marshall 3-6. JV score: Niles 52, Marshall 37