Benefield: Dylan Hayman is powering Healdsburg's boys basketball team to early success

HEALDSBURG - Dylan Hayman, once again, led the Healdsburg Greyhounds' boys basketball team in their 54-41 win Thursday night against the visiting Piner Prospectors, but his biggest contribution won't show up in the box score.

Fresh off of his MVP performance at the Redwood Empire Invitational Basketball Tournament last week, Hayman had 15 points to lead all scorers, but he also - in the span of about 60 seconds in the waning moments of the first half - drew four personal fouls that capped a quarter in which the 'Hounds outscored the Prospectors 17-5.

Hayman single-handedly put Piner's leading scorer, senior Adonis Gutierrez, in foul trouble in the first half.

“He's the best player I've ever coached,” 'Hounds coach Yasha Mokaram said. “He takes a beating every day in practice. We throw multiple guys at him, we tell them to foul him, hang all over him - and he just takes a beating and keeps going.”

It's toughness, yes. But there is also guile. Gutierrez, for one, is super athletic. He led the Prospectors with 13 points. He's not likely to reach unless Hayman invites it, unless there is no other way to stop a pure shooter who is listed at 6-foot-5 and 210 pounds.

“He's the kind of kid where we'll come into a huddle at the end of the game and I'll go, ‘Dylan, what do you want to do?'” Mokaram said. “He sees the game just like any of us do; he's very smart.”

This one wasn't as close as last season's 41-40 'Hounds win (with Hayman hitting a buzzer-beater), but it was closer than the final score suggests.

And it was a grind. Healdsburg senior guard and all-out defender Xzavier Vasquez finished the game with what appeared to be flecks of blood on his shorts. And more than once, referees had to pause play to have copious amounts of sweat wiped from the floor. This was a battle.

“It was a tough game. Piner is always really tough; they defend really well,” Mokaram said.

And man, can they run a press. Granted, they had to. The 'Hounds had a huge height advantage at every position, including with sophomore center Graham McDonald, who is listed at 6-foot-8. He scored just six points, but he drew enough Piner attention down low that the 'Hounds shooters had some breathing room outside.

After the 'Hounds ran away with the second quarter, the Prospectors opened the third with a full-court press that led to quick turnovers and points at the other end. The press, and the Prospectors' hustle, was clawing them back into it.

“I probably should have pressed earlier in the game. I think that's more on the coach,” Piner coach Mike Erickson said. “Get us going a little bit.”

“I think our energy picked up as the game went along,” Erickson added. But he credited Mokaram and his 'Hounds.

“They executed well; they shot the ball well,” he said. “They played better; they coached better.”

But that Prospector press was an eye opener for Mokaram.

“We can't simulate their athleticism and speed,” he said.

But the fact that the 'Hounds withstood it in the end is a huge takeaway at this early point in the season.

“It's important for our guys to know that they can play against any team around here and that they can play against athletic guards with pressure, but I already know that. It's important for the guys in there, that they know it, too,” Mokaram said.

Although this was a key, early matchup and had the tenor that comes with a bit of a rivalry, it was still pre-league. And there was plenty of evidence of some early-season jitters. There were more missed layups than either coach will want to see six weeks from now.

The Prospectors came into the game 8-0 with wins over Albany, Encinal and Novato. Most notably, perhaps, is the Prospectors' 57-43 win over fellow North Bay League-Oak team Montgomery on Dec. 13.

The 'Hounds, who move to 8-1 with the win, have a 55-43 win over the NBL-Oak's Windsor High on their record, and have now beaten another Oak squad in Piner.

That's huge for a team that had some frustration last year with their placement in the less-robust Redwood Division. And it's huge for the 'Hounds' postseason prospects.

“This is a big win for us because they are a D3 team,” Hayman said. “It's a big win for our seeding, mostly.”

The 'Hounds will have more of the same before they know it. On Saturday, they travel to Santa Rosa to face a Panthers squad that is 6-3 and hosts Acalanes Friday at 7 p.m. The Panthers are a Division 2 squad, so Hayman and the 'Hounds could make a statement if they knock off another higher-seeded program.

“We just want to take this momentum into the rest of the season and get another league pennant and hopefully an NCS pennant,” he said.

You can reach staff columnist Kerry Benefield at 707-526-8671 or kerry.benefield@pressdemocrat.com, on Twitter @benefield and on Instagram at kerry.benefield.