Class C-D Preview: Wait Over for Contenders
March 25, 2015
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
The majority of teams playing in this weekend’s Class C and D Semifinals have been waiting decades for this opportunity.
Six are seeking their first MHSAA titles. Three are playing for their first Finals berths, and two hope to appear in championship games for the first time since separate champions were awarded by peninsula in Class B, C and D during the 1930s and 40s.
All four Class C and D Semifinals will be played Thursday, with all four championship games Saturday.
Semifinals - Thursday
Class C
Boyne City (21-5) vs Grand Rapids NorthPointe Christian (20-5), 1 p.m.
Hanover-Horton (24-1) vs Flint Beecher (24-1), 2:50 p.m.
Class D
Morenci (23-2) vs Waterford Our Lady (25-0), 6 p.m.
Fulton (21-4) vs Powers North Central (25-0), 7:50 p.m.
Finals - Saturday
Class A - Noon
Class B - 6:30 p.m.
Class C - 4:30 p.m.
Class D - 10 a.m.
Tickets cost $8 per pair of Semifinals and $10 per two-game Finals session. All Semifinals will be streamed live on MHSAA.TV on a pay-per-view basis. All four Finals will be broadcast live on Fox Sports Detroit, the Class D and A title games on FOX Sports Detroit's primary channel and the Class C and B games on FOX Sports Detroit-PLUS. Free radio broadcasts of all weekend games will be available on MHSAANetwork.com.
And now, a look at the semifinalists in Class C and D. Click on the name of the school to see that team’s full schedule and results from this season. (Statistics are through teams' Regional Finals.)
Class C
BOYNE CITY
Record/rank: 21-5, unranked.
League finish: First in Lake Michigan Conference.
Coach: Nick Redman, sixth season (82-57).
Championship history: Lower Peninsula Class C runner-up 1933.
Best wins: 54-51 over No. 5 Iron Mountain in the Regional Final, 55-48 over honorable mention McBain in the Quarterfinal, 48-45 (District Final) and 57-42 over East Jordan.
Players to watch: Corey Redman, 6-5 sr. F (16.4 ppg, 5.9 rpg, 2.5 apg); Zach Napont, sr. G (10.7 ppg, 4.0 rpg, 2.6 apg, 3.0 spg).
Outlook: The Ramblers started this season 0-2 and then lost their final two regular-season games, but bounced right back to made their first MHSAA Semifinal since 1977. Boyne City proved itself winning a tight league race with three teams within two wins of the title, then beat Iron Mountain in the closing seconds to advance to this week. Redman has committed to play at Central Michigan University next season and leads a lineup starting four seniors.
FLINT BEECHER
Record/rank: 24-1, No. 1.
League finish: First in Genesee Area Conference Red.
Coach: Mike Williams, 11th season (207-69).
Championship history: Five MHSAA titles (most recent 2013), four runner-up finishes.
Best wins: 78-60 over honorable mention Southfield Christian in the Regional Final, 60-50 and 60-48 over Class B No. 4 Goodrich, 53-37 over Class B No. 7 Flint Northwestern.
Players to watch: Cedric Moten, 6-2 sr. F (15.1 ppg, 8.3 rpg, 2.2 spg); Samuel Toins, 5-9 sr. G (11.9 ppg, 51 3-pointers).
Outlook: The back-to-back champion in 2012 and 2013, Beecher just missed returning to Finals weekend in 2014, losing in its Quarterfinal. The Buccaneers stormed back this winter, in addition to the above-mentioned opponents defeating reigning Class C champion Detroit Consortium and solid Class A River Rouge. Moten and Toins are two of only three seniors; guard Malik Ellison is one of five sophomores and adds 12.8 points per game.
GRAND RAPIDS NORTHPOINTE CHRISTIAN
Record/rank: 20-5, unranked.
League finish: Second in Ottawa-Kent Conference Silver.
Coach: Jared Redell, third season (47-23).
Championship history: Has never played in an MHSAA Final.
Best wins: 48-36 over No. 3 Shelby in the Quarterfinal, 82-52 over Fennville in the District Final, 58-55 over Class B No. 3 Wyoming Godwin Heights, 93-53 over Class D honorable mention Baldwin.
Players to watch: Preston Huckaby, 5-11 sr. G (15 ppg, 3.3 apg); Kual Nhial, 6-6 sr. F (12.4 ppg, 6.0 rpg).
Outlook: NorthPointe is another team that enjoyed a fresh start in the tournament after losing three of its final four regular-season games – although the Mustangs did finish second to Class B semifinalist Godwin Heights in their league and are the only team to beat the Wolverines this season. This will be NorthPointe’s first Semifinal, and it’s a tough matchup for opponents in part because of its balance offensively; junior 6-5 guard Tyler Baker (11.3) and senior 6-5 guard Andrew Holesinger (10.1) also score in double figures, and Baker and Huckaby both have made more than 40 3-pointers this season.
HANOVER-HORTON
Record/rank: 24-1, No. 8.
League finish: First in Cascades Conference.
Coach: Chad Mortimer, 17th season (327-82).
Championship history: Lower Peninsula Class D runner-up 1941.
Best wins: 50-48 over No. 9 Monroe St. Mary Catholic Central in the Quarterfinal, 58-48 over No. 4 Hillsdale in the Regional Semifinal, 63-61 over No. 6 Jackson Lumen Christi in the District Semifinal,
Players to watch: Stefan Young, 5-9 sr. G (13.2 ppg, 4.3 apg); Brock Spink, 6-4 sr. F (11.3 ppg, 4.1 rpg, 2.5 apg).
Outlook: Hanover-Horton will play in its third Semifinal and first in since 2003 and after winning its 14th straight District title. The Comets have advanced with a pair of two-point wins over ranked opponents, avenging their lone loss by beating Lumen Christi. Senior 6-2 forward Preston Reiff (9.4 ppg, 7.1 rpg), junior 6-5 forward Preston Laketa (8.5/4.5) and senior 6-5 forward Lucas Crisanti (8.7/7.0) fill out a balanced lineup.
Class D
FULTON
Record/rank: 21-4, unranked.
League finish: Second in Central Michigan Athletic Conference.
Coach: Todd Walden, 18th season (231-172).
Championship history: Class D runner-up 2011.
Best wins: 72-67 OT over honorable mention Frankfort in the Quarterfinal, 64-60 over Mount Pleasant Sacred Heart in the Regional Final, 55-53 over Pewamo-Westphalia, 75-71 over Class C honorable mention Ithaca.
Players to watch: Gregg Jones, 6-0 sr. G (16.9 ppg, 3.6 apg, 2.5 spg, 54 3-pointers); Colton Antes, 5-11 jr. G (13.9 ppg, 2.7 apg, 74 3-pointers).
Outlook: The Pirates have won two straight close calls to return to the Semifinals, but no doubt benefited from playing against mostly Class C teams all season – all four losses were to Class C programs including two to No. 7 Laingsburg. Fulton is dangerous from the perimeter, making 209 3-pointers entering this week at nearly 38 percent success – sophomore guard Zach Walden had made 47 3-pointers heading into Tuesday. Fulton has won at least 20 games five the last six seasons.
MORENCI
Record/rank: 23-2, unranked.
League finish: First in Tri-County Conference.
Coach: Jim Bauer, 10th season (141-84).
Championship history: Has never played in an MHSAA Final.
Best wins: 60-43 over Wyoming Tri-unity Christian in the Quarterfinal, 48-36 over Hillsdale Academy in the Regional Semifinal, 60-51 over Adrian Madison, 58-49 over Clinton.
Players to watch: Austin Sandusky, 5-5 sr. G (14.1 ppg, 4.1 rpg, 4.0 apg); Alex Thomas, 6-3, jr. G (10.8 ppg, 4.6 rpg).
Outlook: Morenci is playing in its first Semifinal after winning in its first Quarterfinal appearance since 1954. The Bulldogs avenged both of their losses this season, and Tuesday extended a run to eight straight wins by at least 12 points by beating perennial power Tri-unity Christian. The team has 10 players, and all contribute with seven averaging at least five points per game. They also can shoot; seniors Tucker Stover and Hunter Borton both make better than 42 percent of their 3-point attempts, and Sandusky strikes at 39 percent success.
POWERS NORTH CENTRAL
Record/rank: 25-0, No. 1.
League finish: First in Skyline Central Conference West.
Coach: Adam Mercier, ninth season (130-78).
Championship history: Class D champion 1984.
Best wins: 63-51 over No. 6 Hillman in the Quarterfinal, 69-53 over No. 7 Lake Linden-Hubbell in the Regional Final, 48-44 (Regional Semifinal) and 45-43 over No. 5 Munising, 46-41 and 84-50 over No. 8 Crystal Falls Forest Park.
Players to watch: Jason Whitens, 6-4 soph. G (16.4 ppg, 6.7 rpg, 6.1 apg, 3.2 spg, 1.1 bpg); Rob Granquist, Jr., 6-1 sr. F (14.2 ppg, 4.2 rpg, 4.1 apg).
Outlook: North Central has made three straight Quarterfinals and now two Semifinals in three seasons, with a combined record of 73-5 in that time. The Jets average nearly 72 points per game despite a schedule that has included six against top-10 teams. The team has only two seniors, and Granquist starts alongside a junior and three sophomores. Sophomore Dawson Bilski adds another 13.9 points per game.
WATERFORD OUR LADY
Record/rank: 25-0, No. 3.
League finish: First in Detroit Catholic League Intersectional 1.
Coach: Paul Robak, second season (42-6).
Championship history: Has never played in an MHSAA Final.
Best wins: 58-29 over No. 4 Allen Park Inter-City Baptist in the Quarterfinal, 52-35 over Southfield Bradford, 58-45 over Harbor Beach.
Players to watch: Nick Robak, 6-4 sr. G (23.6 ppg, 7.3 rpg, 63 3-pointers); Andrew Kline, 6-4 jr. G (13.2 ppg, 5.8 rpg, 6.6 apg, 3.2 spg, 42 3-pointers).
Outlook: Our Lady has advanced to its third Semifinal and first since 1993 keyed by a sizable and sharp-shooting backcourt. Nick Robak scores the most but also makes 47 percent of his shots from the floor, 38 percent from 3-point range and 86 percent from the free-throw line. Although the list of opponents might not impress in terms of state rankings, Our Lady went undefeated in a league that also includes three Class B and a Class C team and then won the Catholic’s League’s Class C-D Tournament. Only three wins were closer than 10 points.
PHOTO: Boyne City's Derek Willis launches the game-winning shot against Iron Mountain during last week's Regional. (Click for more from Jarvinen Photos.)
'Retro' Award Rewards 1st Hoops Legends
January 4, 2017
By Ron Pesch
Special for Second Half
Before the start of the MHSAA’s 2009 Boys Basketball finals, Basketball Coaches Association of Michigan director Tom Hursey stopped by my seat at Michigan State University’s Breslin Center to say hello.
Our chat would alter a decade of my Michigan winters.
Somewhere between hello and goodbye, our chat included conversation on one of my favorite BCAM ventures. In 1981, the Michigan High School Basketball Coaches Association, as BCAM was once known, named its first “Mr. Basketball.” I was two years out of high school when Lansing Eastern’s Sam Vincent edged Eric Turner of Flint Central for that first award. Designed to honor the state’s top senior, the award was named in honor of Detroit Free Press writer Hal Schram. “The Swami,” as he was nicknamed, Schram began covering high school sports for the newspaper in 1945.
The 2009 selection was 6-foot-9 Derrick Nix of Detroit Pershing. I mentioned my affinity for the Mr. Basketball program to Tom, but stated that I always thought it a crime that the award didn’t start years earlier, at least when Michigan hoop fans became infatuated with a kid nicknamed “Magic.”
Earvin Johnson prepped at Lansing Everett and was the talk of the state in basketball circles before becoming a household name during his time at Michigan State and with the Los Angeles Lakers. Earlier this year, ESPN named Johnson the greatest point guard to ever play the game. Tom noted that “Magic” was really the inspiration for the “Mr. Basketball” award.
Then I posed a question to Tom.
What about creating a “new” award, designed to honor those greats from the past?
As my hobby of researching the history of high school sports in Michigan and beyond had grown over the years, I’d found the Great Lakes state had always produced shining stars on the basketball court. The crime was that the “Mr. Basketball” award hadn’t been launched many years before.
Harry Kipke, was perhaps the state’s first true basketball star. He won 12 varsity letters at Lansing Central and guided the basketball team to the semifinal round of the state tournament in 1920 as a senior, before heading to the University of Michigan where he earned letters in football, basketball and baseball. After stops at the University of Missouri and Michigan State, Kipke would serve as Michigan’s football coach, guiding the Wolverines to two national gridiron championships.
As a junior, the basketball antics of Grand Rapids Union’s Royal “Red” Cherry captured the state’s attention when he led Union to the state basketball championship. Considered the best all-around player of the tournament, Cherry led the team to a second consecutive title as a senior. He, too, attended Michigan, earning laurels on the basketball court and the baseball diamond.
Many other legends of the hardcourt populated Michigan’s past: Saginaw’s Ernie Thompson; the Burton brothers, M.C. and Ed, of Muskegon Heights; Detroit Pershing’s Ralph Simpson and Spencer Haywood; Dave DeBusschere of Detroit Austin Catholic; Willie Betts and Blanche Martin of River Rouge; Ron Kramer of East Detroit; Benton Harbor’s Chet Walker and L.C. Bowen.
After a few weeks of research, discussion and thought, Tom agreed, and over the next several months the framework for the “Retro Mr. Basketball” project was developed
The idea was to try and mimic the current model. Only seniors, and their high school basketball careers, should be considered. While any “senior” player would be eligible, a ballot of the state’s elite would comprise the candidates for the award. Like their modern-day equivalents, where the events of life that would follow high school graduation had yet to occur, post-high school life would be disregarded as much as possible for “Retro” candidates.
Finally, the program would follow a 10-year arc, kicking off in the spring of 2010. This December marks my eighth year of research tied to the mission. Two more will follow.
Since the Schram “Mr. Basketball” award began in 1981, the “Retro” award would honor basketball players from the years 1920 through 1980. That first year, a ballot comprised of players from the years that ended in zero - 1920, 1930, 1940, 1950, 1960, 1970 and 1980 – was created. A senior for each year would be named the winner of the “Retro” award. That meant with the selection of “Mr. Basketball” and the six “Retro” winners for the years 1929, 1939, 1949, 1959, 1969 and 1979, scheduled for the spring of 2019, BCAM would be able to point to a combined list of Mr. Basketballs totaling 100 of the state’s finest.
To identify each year’s award winner, a committee of veteran BCAM members was formed to study a ballot of candidates and select a winner.
Technology, combined with scanning old-fashioned reels of microfilm, has helped with research of potential candidates. In those very early years, personal statistics were rarely kept. Rather, an assessment of a player’s skills, tied to the position he played, often served as a means to identify an area’s top athletes. Tournament play was often the only time an athlete’s abilities were on display to a larger audience. Scouring newspaper articles for all-tournament teams and yearbooks for additional details and years of study helped uncover the state’s top senior players. Understanding the game and its evolution was important. The center jump after each basket emphasized the importance of a tall, skilled center in those games played before the winter of 1938-39.
Beginning in 1935, all-state teams began to appear in state newspapers. Eventually, the Detroit Free Press, the Detroit Times, the Detroit News, The Associated Press and even United Press International became involved in identifying the state’s top basketball players and naming all-state squads. Much work is involved in parsing the 15,811 names (not including honorable mentions) found in those lists. When duplicates are removed, the names of 8,430 prep players remain spread over the 61 years that mark the “Retro” field of possible candidates.
Research to identify seniors, players named by multiple media outlets, and mini biographies are compiled for the top players. The field of candidates is then narrowed to 10 or fewer. Over state championship weekend, the ballots are brought to the BCAM committee for discussion, and finalists are named for each year. Finally, one player is named for each eligible season.
Like the modern day award, the selection may create some controversy. Some amazing ballplayers have landed on the finalist list, but were denied the Hal Schram Mr. Basketball award: Traverse City’s Dan Majerle, Roy Marble of Flint Beecher, Detroit Southwestern’s Jalen Rose, Detroit Northern’s Derrick Coleman and Draymond Green of Saginaw are among a few.
The same applies to the “Retro” list. Fennville’s Richie Jordan, Robert “Bubbles” Hawkins from Detroit Pershing, Dennis Bankey of Detroit St. Thomas, Bill Chmielewski of Detroit Redeemer, Highland Park’s Terry Duerod and Detroit Kettering’s Lindsay Hairston all have been honored on the finalist lists, but fell short of the top prize.
In many cases, Michigan was loaded with prep talent – it’s tough to name Roy Marble Mr. Basketball when Flint Northwestern’s Glen Rice was on the same ballot, or Rose the state’s best when Country Day’s Chris Webber was another candidate. While the “Fennville Flash” amazed the state with his eye-popping statistics in 1965, Bowen led Benton Harbor to back-to-back Class A titles. Named an all-state basketball player as a junior, Hairston grew an inch and improved his game as a senior, but Pontiac Central’s “Campy” Russell dominated headlines that season, and was the “Retro” Mr. Basketball selection for 1971.
In some cases, it’s a challenge to look at the final balloting results without judging selections based on future basketball success. That certainly is the case with 2008. That season, Michigan’s Mr. Basketball award went to 6-foot guard Brad Redford, who posted incredible back-to-back high school seasons at Frankenmuth. Runner-up to the award that year was Saginaw’s Green. Considering Green’s success in the NBA, that’s hard for many to believe.
While the debates may never be settled, the beauty of Schram and “Retro” Mr. Basketball balloting can be found in the argument. With those disputes, people recall, research and learn about Michigan’s incredible prep basketball past.
The remaining three years of the “Retro” project will include many more legends of Michigan High School basketball, including, among others, DeBusschere, Walker, Haywood and Simpson.
This season, that “Magic” kid will be one of the names among the mix. Forty years after high school graduation, will he earn the honor that eluded him in high school, only because the honor didn’t yet exist?
Ron Pesch has taken an active role in researching the history of MHSAA events since 1985 and began writing for MHSAA Finals programs in 1986, adding additional features and "flashbacks" in 1992. He inherited the title of MHSAA historian from the late Dick Kishpaugh following the 1993-94 school year, and resides in Muskegon. Contact him at [email protected] with ideas for historical articles.
PHOTOS: (Top) Lansing Everett’s Earvin Johnson drives around a defender during his celebrated high school career. (Middle) Grand Rapids Union’s Royal “Red” Cherry. (Below) Detroit Austin Catholic’s Dave DeBusschere drives to the hoop as an opponent gets in position to rebound. (Photos from MHSAA and Ron Pesch historical files.)