SHELBY — A Whippet in the canine world — first registered by the American Kennel Club in 1888 — can sprint up to 35 miles per hour.
Amiable and gentle by nature, a Whippet is all business when given something to chase, armed with a keen and wide range of vision that gives it the ability to zero in on its prey.
This year’s Shelby Whippet version on the basketball court is on the hunt, but not for rabbits or other small game. This collection of Whippets is chasing a Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference title — and a postseason run in a stacked Division II district tournament field.
Shelby pressed and trapped and ran all night Friday to earn its 12th straight win. This one came against Ontario, 82-67, in an MOAC encounter.
Coach Greg Galloway said afterward his Whippets flourish on the attack, noting they collected 13 steals and scored 23 points off turnovers.
“I feel like we’re at our best when we pressure teams and we play at that high-tempo pace. We just try to make teams uncomfortable with our pressure and usually it rewards us offensively. Our guys did a great job executing that tonight,” Galloway said.
Shelby (12-1, 7-0), led by 6-foot-7 junior Alex Bruskotter and 6-5 junior Casey Lantz, led by eight at halftime before outscoring the Warriors 31-16 in the third quarter to blow the game open.
The All-Ohioan Bruskotter finished with a near triple-double, scoring 28 points to go with 10 rebounds and nine assists. Lantz had 21 points and nine rebounds. Junior Isiah Ramsey added 10 points and six rebounds.
The Whippets not only fast-break off opponents’ misses, Shelby does it after its foes score, taking 22 more shots than the Warriors (5-5, 4-3), who lost for the fourth straight time.
“That’s stuff we practice a lot. Our in-bounder, when the ball goes through the hoop, they are getting it out quick and then the rest of our guys are running,” Galloway said.
“When you play at an up-tempo pace like that, you’re gonna give up some baskets, but we still want to continue to play at that pace and our guys did a good job dictating the style tonight.”
Shelby outrebounded Ontario 41-21, including 19-3 on the offensive glass, and outscored the Warriors in second-chance points, 18-2.
“We have had some guys that had been out with some injuries and they stepped in tonight and continued to play at that high pace,” Galloway said.
“We practice a lot of this, to simulate as much of the up-and-down style as we can. The fun part about it is our guys want to play like that, too. So I think that motivates them to play more. When they want to play at that pace, they have extra energy on defense and offense,” he said.
Ontario coach Tim Mergel, who saw his team cut a double-digit deficit to just three at one point in the second quarter, said it’s impossible to replicate Shelby’s speed in practice.
“You’re not going to ever simulate it. Your JVs are not as good as that,” he said, though he pointed to little mistakes that hurt his team, especially in the third quarter.
“In the first half, I don’t think their transition hurt us unless we turned it over. In the second half, we scored and (Shelby’s) transition hurt us. We just didn’t have guys getting back.
“And when you’re scrambling to get matched up in transition, they shoot quick. That’s when you get your tails kicked on the glass, which is what happened,” Mergel said.
The Ontario coach said his own mistake in picking up a technical foul in the second quarter while arguing a call hurt his team’s efforts.
“I’m an idiot. I shouldn’t have got a technical. That hurt us. It took possession away from us and gave them two free throws. You look at that and that kind of put us in a hole,” Mergel said.
“The kids have got it a lot tougher than I do. They have got to go out there and play. I thought for the most part our responses were OK. But (Shelby) hit that second-half run and we have some guys looking for other answers. We work close, but as a group, we have got to learn to rally together a little bit in some situations.
“When we do that, I think we can win against some better teams,” Mergel said.
Senior Gage Weaver led Ontario with 17 points. Junior Carter Weaver added 13 and junior Grayson Purvis had 12.
UP NEXT: Shelby hosts Marion Pleasant on Thursday in another MOAC game. The Whippets have a one-game lead in the MOAC over River Valley (8-4, 6-1).
Ontario hosts Ashland Saturday night in a non-league game.
