Season Review: Men’s Basketball displays defensive improvement in 2022-23

By Wes Mayberry

ADA — The Ohio Northern men's basketball team finished with an overall record of 10-15 in head coach Neal Young's first season in Ada in 2022-23.

Despite the sub-.500 record, Young saw things to build off of. The team's defensive play was a particular bright spot, as Northern led the Ohio Athletic Conference in allowing just 69.9 points per game, marking its lowest average since 2011-12.

"I was really pleased with our effort on the defensive end," Young said. "So much of being competitive defensively is just having guys who are willing to play extremely hard. I think by mid-season there was a shift to defense being something they had to do in order to play to something guys really bought in to and enjoyed. We have to continue to build that momentum going forward."

ONU finished 6-12 in OAC play, capping the year with a victory at Muskingum to go into the offseason on a positive note.

Senior C.J. Napier (Miamisburg/Bishop Fenwick) led the Polar Bears all season long, scoring in double figures in 21 of his 23 games and recording four double-doubles.

He led the team in scoring (17.9 points per game) and rebounding (7.3 rebounds per game) in 2022-23, ranking fourth in the OAC in both categories.

Napier was a two-time OAC Player of the Week honoree during the season and was an All-OAC Second Team, College Sports Communicators Academic All-District and Academic All-OAC selection. He is now a four-time All-OAC and three-time Academic All-OAC honoree.

Napier has started 73 of his 75 career games at ONU and ranks 19th all-time with 1,279 points and is 18th all-time with 584 career rebounds, averaging 17.1 points and 7.8 rebounds per game.

"C.J. had a fantastic year for us and was exactly who we needed him to be," Young said. "Everyone talks about his offense, and rightfully so, he was our guy that kept us in games with his scoring, and when we needed a bucket, we went to him. Everyone on both teams knew it, but he was still able to produce in those big moments. But what I think was even more valuable to our team and building this program back up was how hard he worked outside of practice and how much he bought in to being as good of a defensive player as he could be. When your best player buys in, you have a chance to maximize your potential as a team, and I think that was the case with C.J. and our team."

Seniors Landen Long (Mason) and Michael Berner (Springboro) joined Napier as CSC Academic All-District and Academic All-OAC honorees this season.

Long ranked second on the team in scoring (10.9 points per game), assists (41) and steals (20) and finished with a team-high 33 made 3-pointers on the season.

A three-time Academic All-OAC selection, Long has averaged 10.6 points per game and scored 890 points in his four-year career.

"What Landen brought to us was more than stats. He brought a desire and a hunger to compete that we really needed. He became our voice and bought in to what I was selling from day 1," Young said. "He's a guy that other guys will follow because of his personality and makeup, so that was big for us. We will miss his personality in the locker room next year for sure, and we will need a collection of guys to really step up vocally on the floor now that he is gone."

Berner finished the season averaging 5.6 points and 4.7 rebounds per game while leading the team with 21 blocked shots, which ranked ninth in the OAC. He is a three-time Academic All-OAC selection and ranks 11th all-time at ONU with 49 career blocks.

"I know Mike didn't have the offensive success that he wanted to, but he became, I feel, the best individual post defender in our league," Young said. "We never had to double guys when Mike was in the game, and that was key for us."

Other standouts this season included senior Adam Scott (Wapakoneta), sophomore Ethan Bell (Marion/River Valley) and freshman Will Miller (Ottoville).

Scott averaged 10.4 points and 5.0 rebounds per game in 2022-23 and has 621 points and 335 rebounds in four years at ONU.

"I was appreciative of all our seniors with the way they bought in to me from day 1, but I am extremely proud of Adam this year and the growth he showed on and off the court. He really worked hard on his game and developing his body this past offseason, and we needed every bit of that," Young said. "He grew a ton as a leader and in how he handled adversity. He developed a consistency as a person that allowed him to step into that role as emotional leader of our team. He was always excited, loved to work and compete and wasn't afraid to let you know that you should be excited too. Guys like him make everyone's experience better."

Bell finished 2022-23 with a team-high 56 assists while averaging 5.2 points per game.

Miller led ONU with 43 steals on the year, which was tied for fifth in the OAC, to go with 7.7 points per game.

"Will turned into our primary perimeter defender and, I feel, one of the best individual defenders in the OAC," Young said. "He has great instincts and elite lateral quickness and closing speed. I am really excited to see him continue to grow as a player."

Junior Carson Conley (Newark/Licking Valley), senior Heath Jeffries (Newark/Catholic) and freshman Mason Studer (Galion/Colonel Crawford) also played in 20-plus games this season. Additionally, sophomore Markus Malleschitz (Hythe, U.K./Oak Hill Academy) earned Academic All-OAC recognition.

Now well into the offseason, Young is excited to see what his second year in Ada has in store.

"The answer for what comes next is simple — work. Our seven returners have to have the best offseason of their lives, and the incoming guys we have need to follow their lead. We can talk all we want about culture and camaraderie, but the truest test of those things in my mind is how they play out in the offseason," Young said. "Our guys need to stay connected with each other and stay competing with each other regarding how much work they can put in and how much they can improve. We know it's going to be a process to get back to where we want to, but every part of that process involves being faithful to the work, each other and the tradition of ONU basketball, and this offseason is no exception. I am excited to see our guys accept that challenge because I know they all have it in them."