Tramble-led Canton hits gas pedal early in victory over Salem

In the days leading up to his team’s pivotal showdown Friday night against 5-0 Salem, first-year Canton Head Coach Jordan Nobles used a boxing metaphor to get the Cobras in the right mindset.

“Our motto coming into the game was, ‘We need to punch first’; we needed to dictate the tone early before they could,” Nobles said.

The strategy worked as Canton rolled to a 25-11 first-quarter lead before knocking out the Rocks, 60-43. Canton improved to 3-2.

Tramble attacks early, often

Senior guard Jaylen Tramble was Canton’s first-half catalyst as he aggressively attacked the basket while scoring 18 of his team-high 19 points.

Senior Alex Wassel and junior Liam Wilson both added 10 points for the winners.

Four of Wilson’s points were the result of energizing dunks — one on a break-away, the other in a half-court set.

“J-Tram has been solid all season long,” Nobles said of his dynamic senior guard. “He worked hard over the summer and got better, and he’s confident in his abilities. He’s a primetime player and I’m ready for him to get some looks (from collegiate programs). He makes plays for us, not just with his scoring but with his defense, passing and rebounding, too.”

Fast start vital

Tramble doubled down on the importance of starting fast against the rival Rocks.

“We knew we had to come out with a lot of energy against Salem,” Tramble said. “They were 5-0 and a really good team, so we had to be aggressive from the opening tip.

“This was a great team win. Salem was giving me a little more attention defensively in the second half when I only scored one point, but my teammates really stepped up.”

Nobles emphasized how Wilson’s dunks changed the atmosphere in the Canton gym.

“It’s still just two points, but slams energize everybody — the players, the coaches, the crowd,” Nobles said.

Sizzling start

Both teams made their first four shots in an entertaining opening three minutes. However, Salem hit an extended cold streak and trailed 48-25 after three quarters.

Salem was led by Landen Stone and Liam Reynolds, both of whom scored nine points. Nye Turner added eight for the Rocks.

The game was part of a girls-boys basketball doubleheader. In between games, Canton’s second all-time leading scorer B. Artis White was honored as one of only two players in school history to exceed the 1,000-point mark.

“We absolutely wanted to win on the night we were honoring B. Artis,” Nobles said. “We didn’t want the celebration of B. Artis’s accomplishment end with a loss to Salem.”

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