Did Northville’s hoops team just do something that’s never been done? Probably

Official Michigan High School Athletic Association records aren’t kept for what the Northville boys basketball team accomplished Wednesday night because, well, the feat was so improbable.

Playing Jalen Rose Leadership Academy in their 2023-24 home opener, the Mustangs overcame multiple mountains of adversity and the talented Jaguars, 75-72, in a triple-overtime game that was worthy of every thrill-related adjective known to man.

What elevated the outcome to (more than likely) historic levels is it was Northville’s fourth straight overtime victory on its home court.

The team featured in Hollywood’s Hoosiers can’t even claim that — and some pretty good script-writers put that screenplay together.

Overtime adventures

Head Coach Todd Sander’s squad captured its second straight district title this past March with three consecutive overtime victories on its home court.

“So many things happened during the course of this game that will prove to be learning experiences for us, especially for our young guys,” said Sander.

“I mean, we had two of our senior bigs foul out in regulation, our starting point guard didn’t play in the second half or the overtimes due to an illness. The resilience our guys showed was amazing. We said after the game that even if we would have lost, it still would have been an invaluable experience.”

Following a lackluster first half (Northville trailed 28-18 at halftime), it appeared the Mustangs were headed to their second straight setback (they lost to Ann Arbor Pioneer in their season opener).

“Let’s just say we weren’t feeling good about ourselves heading into the second half,” Sander quipped. “But we played well in the third quarter and cut their lead to two.”

Watson’s big ‘3’

After never leading in the fourth quarter, Northville trailed  50-47 with 12 seconds left after the Jaguars drained two free throws.

“We had two sophomores on the court and everybody out there was poised enough to know we needed a three to tie it,” Sander said.

With just a couple ticks left on the regulation clock, junior Bennett Watson secured a pass outside the three-point arc and calmly stroked in a triple as the buzzer sounded to force the first OT.

Northville was down three points with 15 seconds to play in the first four-minute overtime when a Mustang was fouled at the rim. He made the second of two free throws, allowing the hosts to set up their full-court press.

“That’s when Simon Sondreal made what was possibly the best play ever in this gym,” Sander raved.

Play of the game

JRLA inbounded the ball to a wing player, who passed it back to the in-bounder. However, Sondreal deflected the second pass past the base line and — in one motion with his back to the court — managed to deflect the ball with a behind-the-back effort off a Jaguar player and out of bounds, giving the Mustangs possession and new life.

Sonny shines

After Northville misfired on a potential game-winning three, senior Sonny Rentz secured the rebound just inside the free-throw line and swished the putback with 1.2 seconds left to force the third OT.

“Great play by Sonny, but he played great the entire game,” Sander said. “He led by example with his relentless hustle. He’s not that big, but he led us with 13 rebounds.”

Thanks to two clutch free throws from sophomore Nate Imbuzeiro, Northville secured a three-point lead with 13 seconds left and hung on for the unforgettable victory.

The Mustangs were led by sophomores Brody Grezak (19 points) and Imbuzeiro (17). Watson finished with 14 while Chad Carney netted 12.

For all you thrill-seekers out there, the Mustangs’ next home game is Thursday, Dec. 14, at 7 p.m. against Rochester Adams.

Ed Wright can be reached at 734-664-4657 or edwright@hometownlife.com.