Mohawk’s Glass sparkles
like Dad — except in PIG
By Joe Simon
New Castle News
One of the two goals Tim Glass Jr. set for himself and the team probably was different than most.
It wasn’t a section title or a WPIAL championship. He wanted something more community-oriented.
“Really, I wanted to get people back in the stands, and we’ve had that a lot,” said Glass, a senior for the Mohawk High basketball team. “There were a lot (of games) last year where we didn’t have too many people, and we’re getting a lot of people this year because we’re winning.”
That brings us to his second goal — winning — which he’s realizing goes hand in hand with the first.
“I’m starting to find that out,” he said.
Glass is doing all he can to make both aspirations stand.
The 6-foot-1 guard scored a career-high 30 points last week in a win over Western Beaver and added 13 in a loss to Beaver. Glass’ performance earned him Lawrence County Athlete of the Week honors, an award sponsored by Washington Centre Physical Therapy and selected by the New Castle News sports staff.
The main objective for Glass is being reached early on in the season. The Warriors own a 5-4 record, which is one more victory than all of last season. That may not fulfill all his ambitions, but it’s a step in the right direction for a team that was 4-16 in 2010-11 and 7-14 in ’09-10.
“It feels great this year,” Glass said. “Just to get that winning feeling, it feels phenomenal. It’s something I haven’t felt in a while.”
Not winning isn’t fun for anyone, but when your last name is “Glass” and you go to Mohawk, it’s almost unacceptable. Glass’ dad, Tim Sr., is the all-time leading scorer in Mohawk history and is 10th all-time in Lawrence County history with 1,661 points. The Warriors won section titles during the junior and senior years of the pure-shooting Tim Sr., who graduated in 1975.
Tim Jr. said if there’s one characteristic, from a basketball standpoint, that his father has instilled, it’s a competitive drive that never wavers.
“It’s like that in every sport I play, football or basketball, I just hate losing so much,” he said. “Part of that comes from my dad because he’s such a competitor. He’s always telling me losing is not an option. He actually told me that before.”
And Tim Sr. takes it seriously. He still routinely beats Tim Jr. in PIG.
“He doesn’t miss,” Tim Jr. lamented.
Tim Jr. is no slouch himself.
He moved from his natural position of guard to forward last season for the betterment of the team. He’s back at guard this year and is averaging a team-high 15.5 points per game. He said the time down low allowed him to develop a post-up game and learn different ways to secure position when going for a rebound.
Mohawk coach Rob Fadden said those are just two of the many areas in which he’s improved.
“Tim is definitely more of a slasher than a guy who is just going to sit out on the perimeter,” Fadden said. “He likes to attack the hoop, and he does a pretty good job of finishing.
“One of the more significant improvements he’s made is when he does penetrate, he is seeing the floor better and hitting open teammates.”
Glass’ ability to collapse a defense and pass the ball out to the open man has created more of an offensive chemistry for Mohawk. With other players more involved, teams can’t center their focus on Glass, who is starting to enjoy his role as the facilitator of the offense.
“It takes a lot of pressure on me,” he said. “We have more scorers, and it’s great to give myself some freedom and getting everyone else involved. They love scoring, too.”
While points may have come easy for Glass last week, he’s still struggling to hang with dad, who also starred at Westminster College, in PIG.
“I can’t win,” Tim Jr. said. “He’ll do jump shots from everywhere. I’m like, ‘You’ve got to miss some time,’ but he doesn’t miss.”
Like father, like son.
*****
THE TIM GLASS JR. FILE
POSITION: Guard
TEAM: Mohawk
GRADE: 12
KNOWN FOR: Glass is a two-year starter for the Warriors. He scored a career-high 30 points last week in a win over Western Beaver. The senior is averaging 15.5 points per game for Mohawk (5-4), which already has surpassed last year’s win total.
PARENTS: Tim Sr. and Brenda Glass.
FAVORITE PRO PLAYER AND WHY: Kobe Bryant, L.A. Lakers. “I love his will to win. He has five rings, and he’s still hungry. I love how he’s never satisfied.”
FAVORITE PRO TEAM AND WHY: L.A. Lakers. “I’ve liked them ever since Shaq and Kobe were together.”
FUTURE PLANS: Glass said he wants to play basketball in college, possibly at Westminster where his father played, and is considering studying engineering.