McDERMOTT — Senior forward Tanner Bolin poured in 25 points to lead the host Mohawks to a 65-24 Southern Ohio Conference Division II boys basketball victory over Symmes Valley on Friday night at Northwest High School.

Bolin connected on 61-percent of his shots from the field, and swished eight of nine free-throw attempts.

“In the beginning, my shot was on but a little short, so I was just trying to get to the hole and get fouled to get to the free-throw line,” Bolin said. “I made some of the free throws and that kind of got me going from the field.”

Northwest (9-2, 2-0 SOC II) held Symmes Valley scoreless in the final quarter, and limited the visiting Vikings to seven second-half points.

“Our kids made good adjustments at the half, and we were quicker to the ball,” Northwest head coach Rick Scarberry said. “We seemed to get every loose ball and pushed the ball down the floor, and (Symmes Valley) got a little tired. That was our gameplan. I knew he only plays five or six players, so we just wore them down and got to the ball.”

Northwest jumped out to a 16-11 lead in the first quarter, capped off by a Caleb Lewis three-pointer.

Symmes Valley (5-5, 1-1 SOC II) stayed close in the first quarter, thanks to Ethan Smith’s eight points.

Smith finished the game with 17 points and four rebounds.

Northwest’s Jay Jenkins applied defensive pressure, and limited Smith to five second-half points.

“He’s quick,” Jenkins said about Smith. “He has a quick first step and jumps and elevates high. Guarding him was not easy. But on their ball screens we made some adjustments and got the ball better and limited shots in the second half. We jumped out and trapped and got in the lanes and disrupted their flow and it worked.”

The Mohawks opened the second quarter with an 8-0 run, highlighted by another three-pointer from Lewis — and a Bolin spin move for the bucket with 3:07 to go and the 24-11 lead.

Lewis totaled eight points on the night for Northwest.

Connor Lintz then got the roll and the bucket, followed by a three-point shot from Payton Bell — and a basket inside off a baseline drive by Bolin put the Mohawks up 31-17 at the break.

Lintz — a six-two senior — finished the game with seven points and six rebounds and two steals, while Bell chipped in with six points (two three-pointers).

“Tanner (Bolin) played well and showed good leadership,” Scarberry added. “Jay (Jenkins) played well on defense and Connor (Lintz) is Connor. Overall, I thought we played well as a team. They went in a triangle and one and tried to stop Tanner but that didn’t work. We’ve been seeing a lot of zones because we haven’t been shooting that well. We came out of that tonight and hit shots.”

Northwest connected on 55-percent of its shots from the field, and made 11 of 13 free throws.

Bolin opened the third quarter with a defensive steal and went coast-to-coast for the layup, as that was followed by a Jenkins miraculous layup that was banked high off the glass for the goal.

Bolin nailed a three-pointer, and the lead was 39-17.

Northwest’s Logan Wolfenbarker then darted to the hoop, and scored off a nifty dish from Bolin for the 44-20 lead.

Wolfenbarker finished with four points and five rebounds.

The Mohawk defense then stiffened further, and did not allow Symmes Valley to score in the final quarter.

Jenkins — a six-foot senior guard — scored 10 points and pulled down six rebounds in the win, while Ivan Ealey scored three points and Aiden Armbrister added two.

“I was just glad we had everyone healthy,” Scarberry said. “We’ve all been sick the last few days. We’ve battled this bug, and everyone is good now. We have a big week ahead and some big games and this one tonight boosted our confidence.”

* * *

Symmes Valley 11 6 7 0 — 24

Northwest 16 15 16 18 —65

SYMMES VALLEY 24 (5-5, 1-1 SOC II)

Ethan Pinkerman 1 0-0 2, Ethan Smith 8 1-1 17, Will Jones 1 0-2 2, Ayden Taylor 1 0-0 3, Ethan Shaffer 0 0-2 0, Zayne Wilson 0 0-2 0; TOTALS 11 -17 24; Three-point goals: 1 (Ayden Smith 1)

NORTHWEST 65 (9-2, 2-0 SOC II)

Connor Lintz 2 2-2 7, Ivan Ealey 1 0-0 3, Caleb Lewis 3 0-0 8, Jay Jenkins 4 1-2 10, Tanner Bolin 8 8-9 25, Payton Bell 2 0-0 6, Logan Wolfenbarker 2 0-0 4, Aiden Armbrister 1 0-0 2; TOTALS 23 11-13 65; Three-point goals: 8 (Caleb Lewis and Payton Bell 2 apiece, Connor Lintz, Ivan Ealey, Jay Jenkins and Tanner Bolin 1 apiece)