NW boys riding four-game win streak, sit atop SOC II realm

Story byThe Portsmouth Daily Times, OhioKevin Colley, The Portsmouth Daily Times, OhioSat, January 17, 2026 at 2:21 AM UTC·4 min readThroughout the first two weeks of 2026, the Northwest Mohawks' boys basketball program has found different ways to win. Whether through an Aidden Armbrister buzzer-beater to take down conference rival Western at home or a balanced effort in a nonconference road win over Clay that saw Northwest's Brycen Montavon collect a double-double, the Northwest Mohawks' boys basketball program has come through with positive results. AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementAs a result, Rick Scarberry again has his group on track for another promising year in Mohawk Country, as Northwest now sits as winners of four consecutive games and, as winners of six of its last seven contests, now stands 9-4 overall and atop the SOC II standings as the lone undefeated team remaining in the league. In its latest win over Clay, Northwest didn't sleep on a much-improved Panthers' squad as the Mohawks bettered Clay, 60-22, in an impressive and complete four-quarter performance at Clay High School in Rosemount. From the outset, Northwest jumped out on Clay as the Mohawks took a 13-3 advantage over the first 3:15 of the contest as Montavon, a junior, showed off his hot hand early on by canning back-to-back-to-back treys. His nine first-quarter points, along with Parker Wamsley's three first-quarter assists, allowed Northwest to hold a 19-7 advantage after the opening quarter of play. AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementClay, behind a spirited 10-point effort from junior forward Corey Williams, drew within 10, 19-9, at the beginning of the second quarter, but the Panthers got no closer as Northwest proceeded to rip off a massive 27-4 spurt. During this run, which lasted from just underneath the seven minute mark of the second quarter to the 1:20 mark of the third, seven different Northwest players, including Montavon, Armbrister, Wamsley, Carson Christian, Jake Brown, Ivan Ealey and Nate Fry, all scored as the Mohawks were patient in letting their offensive sets develop and disciplined in running the sets themselves. The run turned what was a tight 10-point affair into a commanding 46-13 advantage as Northwest didn't look back from that point forward. Ultimately, Montavon led the Mohawks with 20 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists while Wamsley followed with 11 tallies and the three first quarter assists as the duo continued their steady play for Northwest head coach Rick Scarberry. AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisement"Brycen's had some big, big games for us," Scarberry said of Montavon. "He's been getting a lot of pressure out front, but he did a nice job handling that against not only Clay, but Eastern, too."Brown, Fry and Christian finished with seven, six and six points respectively to aid a balanced scoring lineup, while Armbrister and Ealey chipped in four each. Thatcher Webb's two tallies rounded out Northwest's scoring. In addition to Williams' 10, Clay got five points apiece from Evan Rider and Eli Bailey while Noah Woods finished with two. While Armbrister's game-winning bucket, which lifted Northwest past Western in a tight 44-42 decision with 1.3 seconds left, is what most individuals outside of the Northwest family have seen and absorbed, Scarberry has been most impressed with how Armbrister has played in the games where he hasn't been the central scoring figure. AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementIn Northwest's 53-43 victory over Eastern Pike, Armbrister finished with two points offensively, but it was the junior's defensive communication and presence on that side of the floor that Scarberry believed greatly aided the Mohawks in that triumph."Against Eastern, Aidden only had two points, but I thought it was one of the best games that he played all year," Scarberry said.