Coaches Return With College Knowledge
By
Tom Markowski
Special for Second Half
February 24, 2016
North Farmington boys basketball coach Todd Negoshian is not so vain to believe he’s at the top of his profession.
After all, he’s nearing just his fifth season running what is considered one of the top programs in the Oakland Activities Association.
What Negoshian is certain of is that he is a better coach now than he was during the early 2000s when he entered the profession as an assistant at North Farmington under his father, Tom Negoshian.
In addition to Todd Negoshian’s years as a high school coach, he spent three seasons (2004-07) as an assistant coach at Oakland University under coach Greg Kampe. Having worked at the college level has not only added to his knowledge as a coach but also given him an opportunity to work with different people under different circumstances but with similar goals.
“I learned a lot from Kampe,” Negoshian said. “I learned a lot about relationships. He has the uncanny ability to (scold) a kid and then 30 seconds later have your arms around him. It’s about building relationships.
“It’s his approach to coaching. There’s so many things you learned outside of coaching.”
This brief stint at the collegiate level gave Negoshian, 35, a whole new perspective on how to coach and how to be a coach. Building relationships takes time, and to those committed to being a coach who cares about his or her players, it’s paramount to allow for that time.
Some coaches, like John Beilein at University of Michigan, start out coaching at the high school level, move on to college and remain there. A number of others statewide have taken paths similar to that of Negoshian.
LaMonta Stone at River Rouge and Steve Hall at Detroit Cass Tech started coaching at the high school level and have recently returned to their roots after each spent several years as a college coach.
Stone played for the legendary Lofton Greene at River Rouge and then coached the Panthers to a Class B title in 1999. Stone ambitiously sought a position at the next level and was quite successful. He spent two seasons at Eastern Michigan, two at Ohio State and 10 at Bowling Green before returning to River Rouge last season as head coach.
And he has no regrets.
“At that point, I had goals,” Stone said of making the jump to college. “There were things I wanted to do. I still have goals. People ask me, would I go back to college? I don’t know. If the situation was right, I might.”
Stone, 49, returned for two reasons: family and community. Last season he was able to coach his oldest son, LaMonta, Jr., his senior year. Stone also has two other sons, ages 6 and 9.
Basketball is king in River Rouge. Greene won a record 12 MHSAA titles and the program has won two more since his departure. But the Panthers relinquished their claim as a state power soon after Stone left and haven’t been much of a factor in the tournament since. Stone intends on changing that.
“It’s a situation where, I’d been (coaching in college) for 14 years,” he said. “I’d reached all my goals. The only one I didn’t was to become a head coach. But you’re an assistant in the Big Ten. You can’t get much higher than that.
“The opportunity to come back to that community, I just couldn’t pass up. I get to be more of a part of my sons’ lives.”
In addition to the high school season, Stone said he enjoys coaching during the summer, in camps and individually.
“I can, within the (Michigan High School Athletic Association) rules, work with kids outside of Rouge,” he said. “I get calls all the time saying can you work with my son. I work with them but they can’t come to Rouge. I like it that way. There’s no pressure on me or them.”
Hall, 45, was one of the state’s top players when he graduated from Cass Tech in 1988. He played four years in college (Washington, Virginia Tech) before playing professionally overseas. In 1996 he became the head coach at Detroit Rogers, an all-boys school in the Detroit Public School League. Hall spent nine seasons there and won three MHSAA titles before the school closed.
Hall went to Detroit Northwestern in 2005 and spent three seasons there, winning one PSL title, before accepting a position as an assistant coach at Duquesne University in Pittsburgh. He spent four seasons there before becoming an assistant coach at Youngstown State. On Aug. 25, Hall officially came back to Detroit as athletic director and boys basketball coach at Cass Tech.
Like Stone, Hall was looking for a more stable lifestyle. Family came first, and the opportunity to coach his alma mater was too good to pass up.
“A lot had to do with my life at this stage,” he said. “I have two young boys (ages 7 and 4) and to be more a part of their lives is important. If I wanted to spend time with them, we’d go to a game where I was recruiting a kid and that would be our time together on that given day.
“And I have a passion for this school. This whole year has been learning on the fly. At Rogers there was a lack of numbers. Here football is huge. We didn’t have a football team at Rogers. And here I have a surplus of numbers. It’s a different dynamic. Rogers was the smallest school in the PSL by enrollment. Cass is the biggest.”
Hall said he doesn’t miss the hours of travelling on the road, going into countless gymnasiums recruiting players and trying to convince them and their coaches that his university was the right one. It’s not that his responsibilities as athletic director and coach are less demanding. But being able to go home every night and see his children and sleep in his bed has its rewards.
Hall said he had more than a few conversations with Stone on returning home.
All three coaches agree that experience has its benefits. It’s not that coaching is any easier at this time. The challenges are still there and in many ways demand different approaches.
“Every stop makes you better,” Negoshian said. “Anytime you coach kids, the more you are around them, it helps.
“The game has changed. Society changed. Kids don’t want to fight through tough times. That’s why you see so many transfers. Everybody wants to be the hero. They want the focus on them. And it’s just not them. It’s the family. I’m not sure all of the parents are committed. They don’t want to go to A, B and C to get to D.”
Hall said the expectations for incoming freshmen and their parents are so different than it was when he was in high school. Then students went to a certain school, whether it was a power like Detroit Southwestern or a neighborhood school like Detroit Mumford, to be a part of an established program.
“It’s a trickle down from college,” Hall said. “It’s not, ‘I want to send my kid to a great program.’ There’s the attitude that if my son isn’t a part of it as a freshman, I’ll go somewhere else instead of being part of the process.”
Tom Markowski is a columnist and directs website coverage for the State Champs! Sports Network. He previously covered primarily high school sports for the The Detroit News from 1984-2014, focusing on the Detroit area and contributing to statewide coverage of football and basketball. Contact him at [email protected] with story ideas for Oakland, Macomb and Wayne counties.
PHOTOS: (Top) Current River Rouge boys basketball coach LaMonta Stone returned to his alma mater after serving as a college assistant including at Bowling Green. (Middle) Todd Negoshian, LaMonta Stone, Steve Hall. (Top photo courtesy of LaMonta Stone.)
Breslin Bound: 2025-26 Boys Report Week 10
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
February 9, 2026
We’ve nearly reached the end of this boys basketball regular season, and District seedings and brackets will be released Sunday on this website.
But it’s never too late to make a move heading into the playoffs.
See two-time reigning Division 2 champion Warren Lincoln. The Abes are 5-15 but broke a 13-game losing streak Saturday with a 65-64 overtime win over Benton Harbor – one of the top teams in Division 2 this winter at 17-2.
Lincoln finds itself lined up as the second seed in its District if brackets were finalized today. Others have been racing up their respective Michigan Power Ratings (MPR) lists as well, and we’re tracking them all as a season’s worth of work goes into how teams are placed when playoffs begin.
“Breslin Bound” is powered by MI Student Aid and based on results and schedules posted for each school at MHSAA.com.
Week in Review
The countdown of last week’s five most intriguing results:
1. Grand Rapids Northview 63, East Lansing 46 Northview (13-4) put an end to reigning Division 1 champion East Lansing’s 40-game winning streak during the final game of the 2K26 Showcase.
2. Freeland 65, Hudsonville Unity Christian 60 A week that started with a loss to Alma for the Falcons (16-3) ended with a win over the Crusaders (14-3) in a matchup of the top two teams statewide in Division 2 MPR.
3. McBain 44, Beal City 40 The Aggies (15-1) entered undefeated and atop the Highland Conference thanks to a December win over McBain, but the Ramblers (15-1) are lined up now to at least share the league title.
4. Rockford 57, East Kentwood 55 For a few days, the Ottawa-Kent Conference Red had co-leaders as the Rams (14-3) avenged a one-point loss to the Falcons (15-2) from last month – but East Kentwood stands alone again after Hudsonville downed Rockford 62-55 on Friday.
5. Grand Rapids South Christian 50, Grand Rapids Northview 47 (OT) Although Northview’s week ended with a statewide rim-rocker, South Christian (15-2) started it by avenging a January overtime loss to the Wildcats to create a first-place tie in the O-K Gold.
Watch List
With an eye toward March, here are two teams in each division making sparks:
DIVISION 1
Ann Arbor Huron (17-2) A win over Dexter on Tuesday would set up a first-place showdown Thursday in the Southeastern Conference Red between Huron and Ann Arbor Pioneer, which won their first matchup 60-52 on Jan. 16. Huron’s only other loss this season came to SEC White contender Chelsea, by two points, and the River Rats closed last week with a 66-51 win over the leader of that division, Ypsilanti Lincoln – one of eight Huron victories over teams with at least 12 this winter. Huron has reached at least the Quarterfinals the last three seasons.
Kalamazoo Central (14-2) The Maroon Giants load up a tough schedule every season and are in the conversation among Division 1 teams to watch most winters. They made a loud statement with a 95-80 win over Muskegon on Jan. 31, and a 40-28 victory over Warren Fitzgerald at the 2K26 Showcase also complements well Kalamazoo Central’s lead in the Southwestern Michigan Athletic Conference. The Maroon Giants can clinch a share of the league title Tuesday at Mattawan, which would give them four straight. The lone losses this season were to Division 1 contenders Detroit Martin Luther King and Bloomfield Hills Brother Rice.
DIVISION 2
Kingsford (12-4) The Flivvers – Division 2 semifinalists a year ago – moved up seven spots to No. 7 in statewide Division 2 MPR this week thanks in part to a 51-49 win over Gladstone that has Kingsford a half-game back of the lead in the Great Northern Conference standings but controlling its destiny with home games against league leader Menominee and second-place Marquette next week. The Flivvers are the only team in the league to defeat Menominee, a statewide contender in Division 3, and they’ve put together seven straight wins after a midseason three-game losing streak that included a two-point defeat against Gladstone.
Michigan Center (17-1) The Cardinals have clinched the Cascades Conference East title after finishing second to Grass Lake a year ago, and they face Brooklyn Columbia Central on Saturday at Spring Arbor for the overall league championship. Michigan Center also is making for an intriguing team in the Division 2 race in its second year after previously playing in Division 3. The Cardinals’ only loss this season came to Marshall on Dec. 13, and they lead for the top seed in a District that includes Adrian and Columbia Central among six teams total and five with winning records.
DIVISION 3
New Haven (15-2) A 58-47 win over Warren Woods-Tower avenged a 41-39 loss from Jan. 20 and made those two tied atop the Macomb Area Conference Gold with one league game left for both. New Haven’s only other defeat this winter came against Adrian, a solid Division 2 opponent, and the Rockets already have their most wins in a season since 2022-23. Only three other opponents have come within single digits of catching New Haven, and tonight could see another test against MAC Silver co-leader Center Line; the Rockets defeated the other leader in that division, Eastpointe, by 10 in early December.
Ottawa Lake Whiteford (15-3) A 69-61 win over Adrian Lenawee Christian last week avenged a 61-60 loss from Jan. 9 and put Whiteford in position to at least share a first Tri-County Conference title since 2017-18. The Bobcats may need to win both of this week’s games against Britton Deerfield and Erie Mason, and total they have four games left before Districts begin – and need just one more win to tie last year’s victory total. Also among highlights this winter is a 55-48 overtime win over Huron League contender Monroe Jefferson that gave Whiteford its home New Year’s Tournament title.
DIVISION 4
Genesee Christian (14-3) The Soldiers have made a nice jump after going 10-15 last season but reaching the Regional Finals. They began this winter 0-2 but have lost only once more over the last two months, and all three defeats were to Division 1 or 2 teams. A 23-point win last week over International Academy of Flint (16-2) was among their best, and add victories over Dryden (10-7) Lenawee Christian (11-7), Maple City Glen Lake (12-3), Saginaw Michigan Lutheran Seminary (14-3) and Southfield Christian (13-5) to an impressive list.
Harbor Springs Harbor Light Christian (13-3) Harbor Light won 20 games two seasons and 19 last winter, and might be ready to make another jump after advancing to the Regional Finals last year as well. Two losses this time have come against Pickford and Traverse City Christian – both 17-0 – and the third came to Burt Lake Northern Michigan Christian (12-3), which Harbor Light should see again in a Northern Lakes Conference crossover. The Swordsmen have five wins over teams with at least 12, and a couple more big opportunities coming up starting with a rematch Thursday against Traverse City Christian.
Can’t-Miss Contests
Be on the lookout for results of these games coming up:
Tuesday – South Haven (13-1) at Gobles (14-0) – These are the leaders of the Southwestern Athletic Conference Lakeshore and Central, respectively.
Wednesday – Romulus Summit Academy North (19-1) vs. Arts & Technology Academy of Pontiac (12-2) at Ecorse – Although the Charter School Conference Tournament concludes Friday, this semifinal matchup pits last season’s Division 2 and 3 runners-up, respectively.
Friday – Auburn Hills Avondale (18-1) at Clarkston (15-3) – If Avondale also defeats Farmington on Tuesday, the Yellowjackets could be playing to clinch the Oakland Activities Association Red title – or Clarkston could be playing to tie or take over first place.
Saturday – Catholic High School League Central Final at Oakland – Bloomfield Hills Brother Rice (15-4), Detroit Catholic Central (13-5), Orchard Lake St. Mary’s (8-8) and Toledo St. John’s Jesuit remain in the mix with semifinals Wednesday.
Saturday – Grand Blanc (14-2) at Muskegon (14-1) – The Bobcats already have clinched the Saginaw Valley League South title, and Muskegon leads the O-K Green.
Sunday – Detroit Public School League Final at Wayne State – The final two contenders will face off for the city championship, with quarterfinals set for Tuesday and semifinals Friday.
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PHOTOS (Top) Felch North Dickson's Ty King is guarded closely by Marquette's Connor Fierstine during the Sentinels’ 68-34 victory Friday. (Middle) Flint Carman-Ainsworth defenders converge on a Davison player driving the lane during the Cavaliers’ 60-49 win Dec. 19. (North Dickinson/Marquette photo by Cara Kamps. Carman-Ainsworth/Davison photo by Terry Lyons.)