Halfway through the season, it’s apparent Newark’s Dylan Long has flipped the switch.
A long, lean and lanky 6-foot-3 senior guard, Long has become double trouble for opponents, leading the Norsemen into contention for the top spot in the Little Ten Conference.
He’s nearly doubled his scoring average of 12.5 points from last season to 24.2 this winter.
“Offensively, it’s obvious to watch,” Newark coach Kyle Anderson said. “He is the key. Everything we run goes through him. Other teams are finding out. We’ve faced multiple box-and-ones.
“He’s taken a huge jump in leadership this year that I had hoped for, but I’ll be honest, I didn’t really expect (the scoring). He’s impressed me.”
He was definitely impressive Tuesday night at home as Newark routed DePue 76-33.
Long scored 13 of his game-high 29 points and tallied four of his five steals in the first quarter for Norsemen (9-7, 5-0), which jumped to a 30-9 lead and cruised to the win in keeping pace with conference co-leader Hinckley-Big Rock (12-4, 5-0), a 54-43 winner over Indian Creek.
Every Newark starter was involved too as senior forward Payton Willis scored 11 points and freshman guard Jimmy Kath added eight. Junior forward Cody Kulbartz tallied 12 rebounds and four blocked shots and junior point guard Reggie Chapman chalked up seven assists.
Long added seven rebounds and six assists and was a disruptive force out front in a 1-2-2 zone press that stymied the Little Giants (2-15, 0-5). And being at home didn’t hurt, either.
“Absolutely, I like playing there,” Long said, flashing a grin. “One thing because I don’t have to run all the way back on defense.
“If they skip it and we get a steal, I’m gonna be at the top on the break, and I’m pretty good at finishing around the basket.”
Long also has added some physicality.
“He’s athletic, long and knows the game,” Anderson said. “I think that’s his biggest change this year. He’s had skill. He’s got a good feel for the game and he’s annoying to play against.”
Long’s effort Tuesday lifted his season point total to 387, matching the 387 he had last winter in 31 games. He also averages 5.6 rebounds, 2.1 steals, 1.9 assists and 1.1 blocked shots.
Long has grown up in nearby Lisbon and has three older sisters, including his twin Addison, a middle hitter in volleyball who gave up basketball this season.
He doesn’t play travel ball but credited summer workouts with the team and a lot of shooting, often with his dad, Mark, an Aurora firefighter, at their church.
“It has a gym and it’s about two minutes away,” Dylan said. “I went there pretty much every night and put up shots. I didn’t want to have a decline over the summer.”
He also worked on ballhandling with his cousin Brayden Long, a redshirt freshman for Olivet Nazarene who played on Yorkville Christian’s Class 1A state championship team in 2022.
His uncle, Eric, has coached at Dwight and Lincoln-Way West, assisted Aaron Sovern at Yorkville Christian and currently is an assistant at Bradley-Bourbonnais.
“Dylan has always been around basketball,” Anderson said.
Long, however, doesn’t dream of playing at the next level.
“As of now, no,” Anderson said. “We’re trying to convince him. But he started a landscaping company and wants to go to work right away.”
What started primarily with mowing has expanded.
“I bought a skid steer for doing gravel and dirt jobs, and I’m trying to expand to more excavating and digging things like pools,” Long said. “I’d rather go with that side but equipment is expensive.
“I’m not gonna go to the NBA, so I don’t see anything else there. After four years, I’d have a degree but it wouldn’t be the smarts degree because I’m not very smart.”
He might get an argument there.
“He’s a good story in that every year he’s gotten better, and this year, he took off,” said Anderson, who believes his star should be in the conversation for the best player in conference.
“He’s creeping up the way he’s been playing. He’s just a matchup nightmare. He’s tough.”
