Grant Mullins Goes Kobe Mode In Last Two Games

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BURLINGTON,ON–Last night in a game that would decide on a qualifier to represent the Halton region at the All Ontario Catholic Classic, the Notre Dame Fighting Irish had their fists held up all game against the Holy Trinity Titans as they prevailed in a 62-57 win.

It was just another day in the office for Grant Mullins. He lit up the score board contributing in a major way in the win for the Fighting Irish, with 40 points in the contest. This would be his second 40+ game in a matter of four days. The Columbia commit, went off for 42 on Saturday against the St. Mary’s Eagles.

Whether he’s being closely defended or creating a shot for himself, the 6’2 point guard has the green light to shoot at any point.

“He’s the floor general and he can score, Columbia is very fortunate,” commented Coach Brian Miller, taking pride in Mullin’s performance.

Mullins had 24 at the half, which was more than the Titans whole team combined, as his team took a 32-23 lead going into the third quarter, where HT would go on a run of their own.

Although Trevon McNeil (22 points), Nolan Mackenzie and Paul Bray are the trio you would normally hear about when Holy Trinity is mentioned, neither of these guys created the turning point in this game. Instead, it was lead by the 6’3 guard, Regis Ivaniukus, who was all over loose balls and gained extra possessions for his team in time of need by grabbing defensive boards.

There was a sequence of plays where Ivanikus was directly involved in every made basket for the Titans.

McNeil assured me that “He can play like that all the time, its just a matter of having the confidence in himself and not getting down when he misses a few shots.” This isn’t the first time Ivaniukus has come out of his shell, we’ve seen him do this in OBA’s during the summer as well.

The titans would need more consistency from him throughout the remainder of the season and it all starts with a boost in his confidence.

Mackenzie had a highlight in the game before Mullins would continue his rampage in the fourth, beating the buzzer at the end of the third quarter after grabbing a rebound and taking it coast to coast. This had put his team up 47-43.

With 2:30 to play, Mullins hit back-to-back three balls and showed trust in his teammate Daniel Dooley who had a three of his own.

Coach Miller cared to comment on Dooley’s play after the game, stating “he sees the floor well, he looks for openings and he’s really working on defense. The harder he works the better he’s going to get, he just loves the game.”

We’ll be keeping an eye on Notre Dame and see how well they can fight against some of the other top teams in the province. We wish them a successful tournament and learning experience at the All Ontario Catholic Classic.