As Francis Fills it Up, Adrian Record Falls
January 17, 2020
By Doug Donnelly
Special for Second Half
ADRIAN – It’s hard to imagine a 15-year-old having a better week on the basketball floor than Joe Francis had last week.
In the span of seven days and three games, the Adrian High School sophomore scored 33 points in a victory over East Jackson, hit a half-court buzzer-beater to force overtime and scored 32 points in a victory over Monroe and broke the 20-year-old Adrian single-game scoring record with 42 points against Manchester.
On the doorway that leads into the Adrian Gymnasium, the school lists all the Maples’ basketball record holders. It may hold off a while before switching Francis’ name with the previous record holder for single-game points, Chris Howard. That’s because Francis has his eyes on breaking that record again. And again.
“I’m not really worried about it right now,” he said. “I’m not satisfied. I’ve got a lot I have to work on still. I feel like I can beat that record, but I just have more work to do.”
Jordan Kelly, an Adrian graduate, became coach of the Maples before last season. One of his first decisions was to put the then-freshman Francis on the varsity. Francis had a steady season with the Maples, concluding it with a season-high 11 points in their Division 2 District loss to Chelsea.
That set the tone for this season.
“Over the summer we had a team meeting,” Francis said. “We set goals and talked about what we wanted to accomplish this year. The seniors and the captains are just stepping up. We were missing the communication part, but we are better now.”
The three-game win streak was Adrian’s first in what has been a trying couple of seasons. But the Maples are 4-4 this winter, and Francis is leading the way.
“He’s the epitome of a gym rat,” Kelly said. “He gets guys together to play. He always wants to be in the gym. We sometimes have to make him take a rest day.”
Francis is from Adrian. His dad, Joe, played college basketball in Missouri and is an assistant coach with the Maples. His mom, Tammy, ran track at Saginaw Valley State University and is the boys and girls track coach at Adrian. Athletics always have been important in the Francis house.
“They’ve always pushed me hard,” Francis said. “That’s what I need.”
Francis has played summer travel ball for a couple of seasons now. Playing on the varsity last year as a freshman didn’t faze him.
“For my teams, I’ve always played up,” he said. “We played against some of the best players in the state.”
Francis not only has matured, he’s also grown up. He was listed at 5-foot-9 on Adrian’s roster last season. He’s almost 6-3 now.
“He’s maturing so much, even since September,” Kelly said. “He’s learning. He’s working on his leadership skills. It’s been very cool to watch him grow.”
Francis gives a lot of credit for his success to Kelly.
“We’re trying to start a new standard,” Francis said. “Coach Kelly keeps talking to us about turning Adrian basketball around, to turn it back to what it used to be. That’s very important.
“He works us hard. He knows how good we can be if we just do the little things and play together. I give a lot of props to him.”
Despite reaching double figures in three of Adrian’s first four games, Francis felt the start to his season wasn’t what it should have been. So, he did what he knows best – got into the gym.
“Over Christmas break I worked a lot with my dad on my shot,” he said. “I had been struggling with my 3. We got into the gym, and I found my groove again.
“We’d start with ball-handling, using the heavy balls for about 15 minutes, then we’d work on spot shooting and then shooting 3-pointers.”
Against East Jackson, Francis made 15 field goals – including two 3-pointers – in the first game back from the break. It was impressive, but four nights later he popped in 42 against Manchester, making 18 field goals, including four triples. Oddly enough, he didn’t score in the first quarter.
He went to the Adrian bench in the fourth quarter with 39 points, but came back in, converted a pair of fastbreak layups to break the record, then went back to the bench. Three days later, he had perhaps his finest performance on the road at Monroe.
He got off to a slow start but came to play in the fourth quarter and overtime, scoring 22 of his 32 points during the last 12 minutes. The halfcourt shot to tie the game brought Adrian back from what looked like a certain loss.
“I got the ball on an out-of-bounds play,” Francis said. “I knew I could hit that shot. I had a lot of confidence. I broke the press, and when I saw there was just two seconds left on the clock, I just shot it.”
The Maples were down 11 and missing three starters who fouled out, but got on Francis’ back and won the game in overtime.
Kelly said Francis has always had a lot of confidence in himself. Now, his teammates have that confidence and he has that same feeling about his teammates.
“He’s going to have a lot of success because of his work ethic,” Kelly said. “This is what he’s worked for. He gets guys playing. We challenge him. We have some good defensive players go up against him because we want to make him better.”
Playing in the rugged Southeastern Conference helps, too.
“There’s definitely some top-tier talent in the league,” Kelly said. “If he can hold his own in our league, he can play anywhere.”
Doug Donnelly has served as a sports and news reporter and city editor over 25 years, writing for the Daily Chief-Union in Upper Sandusky, Ohio from 1992-1995, the Monroe Evening News from 1995-2012 and the Adrian Daily Telegram since 2013. He's also written a book on high school basketball in Monroe County and compiles record books for various schools in southeast Michigan. E-mail him at [email protected] with story ideas for Jackson, Washtenaw, Hillsdale, Lenawee and Monroe counties.
PHOTOS: (Top) Adrian’s Joe Francis elevates to get a shot up over a Chelsea defender Tuesday. (Middle) Francis works to find an opening from the top of the key. (Photos by Mike Dickie.)
Breslin Bound: 2024-25 Boys Report Week 11
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
February 10, 2025
One of the most anticipated moments of every basketball season is coming up Sunday, when the MHSAA will publish this winter's Boys Basketball District brackets, this season for the first time with all teams seeded based on Michigan Power Ratings (MPR).
MPR is calculated using wins and losses for games played between teams entered into the MHSAA Tournament. Scores of games, margin of victory and location of games are not included in the MPR formula. The final MPR number is 25 percent of the team's winning percentage, plus 50 percent of its opponent's winning percentage, plus 25 percent of its opponent's opponent's winning percentage – the total rewarding both success and strength of schedule.
We're still seeing plenty of movement up and down our statewide MPR lists, and more is sure to come as teams continue to finish off regular-season schedules and play in league tournaments that will conclude over the next seven days (including three we've noted below).
“Breslin Bound” is powered by MI Student Aid 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. Warren Lincoln 66, Detroit U-D Jesuit 65 It wouldn’t be stunning to see both of these teams playing at Breslin Center next month, and Lincoln (15-4) can build on this boost as it plays for a Division 2 title repeat.
2. East Lansing 62, Lansing Waverly 60 East Lansing (17-1) made a major move toward securing the Capital Area Activities Conference Blue, adding to an earlier 10-point win over the Warriors (15-3) to take a two-game lead with three to play.
3. Marquette 76, Detroit Cass Tech 59 This has to be Marquette’s most significant win on a statewide stage in some time, as the Sentinels (15-2) met Cass Tech (16-2) at the Northern Michigan Showcase at Traverse City St. Francis and showed they’re capable of contending in Division 1.
4. Pewamo-Westphalia 56, Grand Blanc 39 P-W (16-2) opened a three-game week by putting more distance between itself and second-place Fowler in the Central Michigan Athletic Conference and closed it with this big win over the Division 1 Bobcats (11-7).
5. Grand Blanc 71, Flint Powers Catholic 69 Before the loss to P-W noted above, Grand Blanc moved into a tie for first in the Saginaw Valley League by handing Powers (15-1) its only defeat.
Watch List
With an eye toward March, here are two teams in each division making sparks:
DIVISION 1
Orchard Lake St. Mary’s (12-6) Despite losing Mr. Basketball candidate Trey McKenney to injury Jan. 9, St. Mary’s has climbed to No. 3 in statewide Division 1 MPR and gone 5-2 since the injury (not counting the team’s loss in the game during which he was injured). The two losses during that time were by one point to East Lansing (17-1) and two points to Bloomfield Hills Brother Rice (18-1), and the Eaglets face Brother Rice again Tuesday in a Catholic High School League Bishop Tournament semifinal. The third in-state loss was to Detroit U-D Jesuit, a potential Bishop championship game opponent. St. Mary’s handed Rockford (18-1) its only loss, Wayne Memorial (16-2) one of its two, and also downed Grand Rapids Northview (14-4) and Auburn Hills Avondale (12-7) among others.
Wayne Memorial (16-2) The Zebras have won 12 straight, losing only to St. Mary’s and Birmingham Groves (14-5) both in December. Wayne can clinch a share of the Kensington Lakes Activities Association East title against Westland John Glenn on Tuesday and has two wins over Dearborn (15-3) and a first over Belleville (14-4) in league play with that rematch coming up Friday. The Zebras also are coming off a 69-60 win over Traverse City West (14-3) at the Northern Michigan Showcase and will close the regular season with a crossover (and potentially overall KLAA championship game) against a counterpart from the KLAA West.
DIVISION 2
Grand Rapids South Christian (14-4) The Sailors opened this season 1-3 but have only one loss since mid-December – 57-55 to Grand Rapids Northview on Jan. 23. Northview leads the Ottawa-Kent Conference Gold and South Christian is just a game behind, with the rematch scheduled for Feb. 18. The Sailors most recently downed Belleville (14-4) at the Battle in the Igloo at Portage Northern, 58-46, and also owns wins over Pewamo-Westphalia (16-2), Holland Christian (12-6) and Grand Rapids Catholic Central (12-6). A possible District opponent is Grand Rapids Christian (11-7), which defeated South Christian in the season opener. The other losses came to Hudsonville Unity Christian (18-1) and Byron Center (13-6).
Standish-Sterling (16-2) The Panthers have clinched a share of a third-straight league championship, this time in their first season in the Jack Pine Conference Division 1 and thanks to last week’s 75-68 win over second-place Gladwin (15-3). Standish-Sterling is undefeated in league play, with its losses both during the first half of December to Ithaca (14-4) by two points and Saginaw Nouvel Catholic Central (12-5). The Panthers also have wins over Alcona (14-2) and Pinconning (15-3) and will see the JPC Division 2 champion Feb. 18. Gladwin also is in the District bracket Standish-Sterling will host.
DIVISION 3
Iron Mountain (16-2) The Mountaineers have a half-game lead in the Western Peninsula Athletic Conference East standings thanks to a split with second-place Ishpeming Westwood (14-5); Iron Mountain lost the first meeting 61-56 but won the rematch 58-32. The other loss was in December to Division 1 Marquette (15-2), and there are several strong wins including over Norway (14-4), Kingsford (13-5) and Negaunee (13-5). Iron Mountain has the opportunity to finish the regular season with plenty of momentum as well with rematches against Kingsford and Negaunee and a Feb. 20 meeting at Houghton (16-3) coming up.
McBain (15-1) The Ramblers are rolling again after missing out on the Division 3 championship game last season by a three-point overtime loss to eventual champion Niles Brandywine. Last week’s 79-64 win over Beal City pushed McBain into first place alone in the Highland Conference after the Aggies won their first meeting 57-48 on Dec. 13. McBain also finished a regular-season sweep of Evart (16-3) on Friday and has a second league game coming up against LeRoy Pine River (15-3) after winning the first one big Jan. 17. All 15 of McBain’s wins have come by at least 15 points, but the Ramblers could see Evart again in District play.
DIVISION 4
Battle Creek St. Philip (14-4) The Tigers have equaled last season’s 14 wins and lead the Southern Central Athletic Association West by a half game on Bellevue after finishing second to Bellevue last year. They’ve split their regular-season series, St. Phil winning the first game and Bellevue (11-3) the rematch, and they could see each other again at the District the Tigers are hosting. St. Phil also has a strong win over East Jordan (15-3) and a pair over third-place Colon (13-5) have provided a boost, as did a victory over Burr Oak (11-7) with that rematch coming up. The other losses were to Bronson, Union City (12-5) and Hillsdale Academy (14-4).
Clarkston Everest Collegiate (17-1) The Mountaineers have clinched their first league championship since 2021-22, in the CHSL Intersectional 1, and in a few weeks will attempt to add to a string of four straight District titles. The only loss this season came to Division 3 Jackson Lumen Christi (17-2), and 13 of Everest’s wins were by double digits – with one of the close ones a double-overtime victory over Division 2 Dearborn Divine Child. Everest will play in the CHSL St. Anne Tournament with Waterford Our Lady of the Lakes (12-6), Royal Oak Shrine Catholic (9-9) and Grosse Pointe Woods University Liggett (8-7) and also could see host Our Lady in District play.
Can’t-Miss Contests
Be on the lookout for results of these games coming up:
Tuesday – Freeland (15-2) at Bay City John Glenn (16-2) – John Glenn won the first meeting 70-65 on Jan. 14, and the winner of this rematch will be a massive step closer to claiming the Tri-Valley Conference Red title.
Friday – Catholic High School League Bishop Final at Detroit Mercy – Bloomfield Hills Brother Rice (18-1), Orchard Lake St. Mary’s (11-6), Detroit U-D Jesuit (17-2) and Warren De La Salle Collegiate (6-13) will play in Tuesday semifinals with a chance to advance.
Friday – South Haven (15-2) at Bridgman (12-5) – These two are both 7-1 in the Southwestern Athletic Conference Lakeshore with two league games to play and after Bridgman won the first meeting 55-53 in overtime.
Saturday – Charter School Conference Final at Schoolcraft College – Detroit Old Redford (16-1), Arts & Technology Academy of Pontiac (14-0), Romulus Summit Academy North (18-2) and Detroit University Prep (15-5) play semifinals Tuesday to reach the final.
Sunday – Detroit Public School League Final at Wayne State – Cass Tech (16-2), Martin Luther King (16-3), Renaissance (12-7) and Central (15-3) play in Thursday semifinals with hopes of advancing to the title game.
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PHOTOS (Top) East Lansing's BJ Windham (1) prepares to pass to a teammate during his team's win over Lansing Waverly. (Middle) Grand Blanc's Isaiah McCree (1) makes a move toward the lane against Flint Powers Catholic. (East Lansing/Waverly photo by John Johnson. Grand Blanc/Powers photo by Terry Lyons.)