Whiteland head coach Nate Cangany talks to his team during a timeout against Mooresville on Friday night.
Rob Baker | For the Daily Journal
Even the most unselfish basketball players call their own number every now and again.
Kyson Jones buried a 3-pointer to open the game’s scoring Friday night, a not-so-subtle sign to Whiteland’s senior guard that it might be his time to shine.
And so he did, scoring a career-high 24 points to lead the host Warriors past Mooresville, 63-58, in a critical Mid-State Conference battle.
The victory pushes Whiteland into a first-place tie with the Pioneers atop the standings, each with a league 4-1 record. The Warriors are now 12-6 overall compared to Mooresville’s 9-5.
“Really, I just do what I can do to make the team win. It doesn’t matter if it’s assists, rebounds, off-the-ball screens, scoring some nights. It just depends on what the night brings,” Jones said. “When I hit that (last) 3, I knew that was for 20 (points), and I was just trying to get some free throws in and get us the win.”
The triple Jones references is the one he made from the right baseline with 3:57 remaining in the final quarter. It gave the Warriors their largest lead at 49-40, though Mooresville trimmed it to five on two occasions late.
Whiteland converted 8 of 9 free throws over the final 2:13 to ice it.
Jones, who played more of a forward as a junior and transitioned to point guard this season, made two of those charities. He finished 7 of 10 from both the field and free throw stripe.
“Kyson is a very unselfish player, and he’s a team-first guy,” Warriors coach Nate Cangany said. “We had our exit meeting last year, and I asked him about playing point. He was, like, coach, I know I can run the point, and I don’t care who gets the baskets.
“He said, I’m just going to find our guys and who have the hot hand and who are open. He’s run the point. Done a very solid job, but like in the Franklin Central game, he had 22 points. This is definitely what Kyson can do.”
Junior wing Austin Willoughby and senior post Max Sullivan chipped in 10 points apiece for the Warriors, with Drew Higdon and Wiatt McLaughlin scoring eight and seven, respectively. Backup forward Brayden Roy corralled a team-high six rebounds.
Higdon’s two free throws with 0.5 seconds remaining in the second period gave Whiteland a 28-27 halftime lead — its first advantage since Jones’ 3-pointer opened the game’s scoring.
In between, it was all Pioneers, who jumped out to a 19-12 lead through one quarter and tacked on a layup by junior guard Wes Reeves early in the second to make it a nine-point spread.
However, consecutive baskets from Willoughby and a free throw from Roy pulled the Warriors to within four points. Sullivan knocked down a triple from the left wing at 1:18 as Whiteland crept closer at 25-24, and Higdon’s hoop and charities late put the home team ahead.
“It’s kind of simple, but in a game, find what wins, and then keep doing it,” Cangany said. “Our guys have figured out that every single game, no matter who you’re playing, it wins when you play with energy and you play hard.
“Tonight, we got down, 19-12, and we fought back. Our guys are showing that they’re going to play hard the whole game, and they’re not going to quit. That’s what Whiteland basketball has to be about.”
Mooresville’s league-leading girls team defeated the Warriors in the first game, 60-23, to improve to 15-8 overall and 6-1 in the Mid-State Conference.
Senior guard Emily Reed delivered a pair of 3-pointers to lead the Warriors (6-16, 3-4) with six points.
The Whiteland girls now prepare for the Class 4A sectional at Franklin Central, where they’ll face Greenwood in a first-round game on Tuesday.
Next for the Warrior boys is Thursday night’s home game against Indian Creek.
