Southeastern Makes Final Minute Count
March 22, 2013
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
EAST LANSING – Jovone Haynes saw a “weakness,” went after it, and Detroit Southeastern will play Saturday for the MHSAA Class A title.
Simple as that … and not at all.
With his team and reigning champion Saginaw tied and a minute to play in Thursday’s Semifinal, the Jungaleers senior made a steal at halfcourt and found teammate Leonard Harper-Baker for a go-ahead layup on the way to a 51-45 victory.
Four of the Jungaleers’ losses this season – including their 57-56 defeat to Saginaw in December – came down to the game’s final possession. Haynes wouldn’t let this one get to that point.
“I saw he had the ball over his head. I just went at it,” said Haynes of his gutsy last-minute swipe. “I was just confident I could steal the ball.”
But there’s much more to explain why he and his teammates moved on.
Detroit Southeastern (21-5) will face top-ranked Romulus for the Class A title at noon Saturday. Romulus is playing for its first championship since 1986; Southeastern for its first since 1926 and after finishing runner-up in 2011.
The Jungaleers probably weren’t the Detroit Public School League team expected to reach Breslin Center this winter – not with Detroit Pershing and Cass Tech ranked in Class A and Douglass ranked in Class B.
But Southeastern, an honorable mention in the final poll, benefited from facing them all and despite losing to two of the three.
Haynes and senior Kenyatta Singleton didn’t play in that first Saginaw game, but combined for 19 points, 10 rebounds and eight steals Friday. And they brought security to Southeastern’s offensive attack that was missing in the first matchup; the Jungaleers had only 12 turnovers this time.
“You’re not going to win a state championship in December or January, not in basketball. Us losing (those) four games, who cares?” Southeastern coach George Ward, Jr., said.
“We knew when we got these two on the floor, defensively or offensively, we could make something happen.”
For the first 31 minutes, the teams played to a stalemate. Although the Jungaleers jumped to an 8-0 lead off the opening tip, the margin was never more than four points over the 20 minutes prior to final minute, when Southeastern finished on a 6-0 run.
“They got us sleeping, forced a clean turnover,” Saginaw coach Julian Taylor said. “My guy took his eye off, he was trying to pay attention to the ref, and (Haynes) smacked it out of his hand. Then we had to play from behind, and we made another turnover.”
Junior forward Daryl Bigham led the Jungaleers with 14 points and six rebounds, and Haynes had 13 points.
Junior Keyon Addison scored 10 points to lead Saginaw, and 6-foot-6 freshman Algevon Eichelberger had nine blocked shots.
The Trojans entered the postseason ranked No. 6 and finished 23-4.
“It’s just a blessing to be in this position. They fought hard to earn their respect,” said Taylor of his players. “I love all of these guys. They worked their tails off for us. I’m on them to stay humble and stay focused, and I believe they did that. They’ve got nothing to hang their heads for.”
PHOTOS: (Top) Detroit Southeastern's Jovone Haynes (2) drives against Saginaw's Keyon Addison (15) and Algevon Eichelberger (42) on Friday. (Middle) Eichelberger gets one of his nine blocks. (Photos by Hockey Weekly Action Photos.)
Breslin Bound: 2023-24 Boys Report Week 1
By Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
December 4, 2023
We've got a long way to go before the stories of this season conclude with four MHSAA boys basketball champions crowned March 15 at Michigan State University's Breslin Center.
B
ut the first week of the 2023-24 regular season gave us plenty to fill our first installment of “Breslin Bound” – our official tip-off to following more than 700 boys basketball teams through those final buzzers in East Lansing.
“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. Flint Carman-Ainsworth 46, Flint Beecher 44 This was their first meeting since January 2022 and it provided a memorable start as the Cavaliers downed the reigning Division 3 champion.
2. Bloomfield Hills Brother Rice 75, Ferndale 66 These two both have several new contributors, but big things will be expected again as well as Brother Rice regularly contends in Division 1 and Ferndale is the reigning Division 2 champion.
3. Lansing Waverly 58, Detroit Martin Luther King 57 Waverly took major strides last season doubling its win total from 2021-22 and could be on the verge of more coming off this impressive victory at the Detroit Douglass Tip-Off Classic.
4. Norway 49, Munising 48 After the Knights gave Munising a tough final regular-season test last season, the Mustangs went on to claim the Division 4 championship. Norway will attempt to build off back-to-back 15-7 seasons starting with this win.
5. Wyoming Tri-unity Christian 64, Grandville Calvin Christian 44 These two combined to finish 46-9 a season ago, when Calvin defeated Tri-unity 63-42 in the regular-season finale (although the Defenders rebounded to finish Division 4 runners-up).
Watch List
With an eye toward March, here are two teams in each division making sparks:
DIVISION 1
Rochester Adams (2-0) The Highlanders provided one of the best late-breaking stories of last season, reaching the Division 1 Quarterfinals after finishing fourth of five teams in a strong Oakland Activities Association Red that also featured North Farmington and Ferndale. The momentum started rolling again with wins last week over Milford 52-48 and Macomb L’Anse Creuse North 74-59.
Utica (2-0) Last season’s co-champion in the Macomb Area Conference Blue defeated MAC White reigning champion Port Huron Northern 68-49 in their opener and then Utica Eisenhower 56-41 at the MAC Champions of Champions event at Center Line. Utica improved to 15-7 last season after finishing 7-14 in 2021-22.
DIVISION 2
Dundee (2-0) After holding its own last season in a strong Lenawee County Athletic Association and finishing 13-12 overall, Dundee is hoping to turn a fast start last week into a climb up the standings with league play starting Friday. The Vikings doubled up East Jackson 52-26 and downed Milan 67-37 to start things off.
Goodrich (1-0) A 22-5 finish last season included a shared championship in the Flint Metro League Stars and a run to the Division 2 Quarterfinals, where the Martians fell by only five to eventual champion Ferndale. The second-to-last of those five losses came to Flint Beecher, 70-55, but Goodrich avenged it Friday with a 58-55 win over the Bucs.
DIVISION 3
Hillsdale (2-0) The Hornets finished just 4-19 last season, their second sub-.500 in a row. But the turnaround may be starting. Hillsdale is halfway toward last year’s win total after defeating Union City 53-45 and Jonesville 50-40 – and after losing to Union City 52-36 and Jonesville 39-23 last season, with Jonesville going on to finish 19-6.
Royal Oak Shrine Catholic (2-0) This is another team well on its way to bettering last season’s success by Jan. 1. After going 3-19 last winter, Shrine defeated Bloomfield Hills Roeper 48-30 and Utica Ford 55-52 in overtime last week. Ford had defeated the Knights 63-50 last season, and the 55 points Shrine scored this time would have been their second-highest total of 2022-23.
DIVISION 4
Adrian Lenawee Christian (2-0) Lenawee Christian finished last season on an 11-5 run after a 2-7 start, and might be rolling that right into this season as well after opening with a 74-60 win over Blissfield and 73-58 overtime victory over Hanover-Horton. Blissfield was among teams to deal the Cougars a loss during last season’s tough early stretch. Lenawee Christian is playing in the Tri-County Conference this winter after playing previously as an independent.
Wakefield-Marenisco (2-0) The Cardinals were a solid 13-10 last season, with the final week including a third win over Bessemer as they faced off in a District Semifinal, followed by a third loss to Ironwood in the District championship game. This season’s first week saw the same schedule, but a better outcome – Wakefield-Marenisco edged Bessemer 60-57 and this time defeated Ironwood 48-30. Ironwood was first and W-M third last season in the Copper Mountain Conference Porcupine Mountain.
Can’t-Miss Contests
Be on the lookout for results of these games coming up:
Tuesday – River Rouge (1-0) at Ferndale (1-1) – As noted above, Ferndale was last season’s Division 2 champion, and defeated Rouge 72-60 in last winter’s meeting.
Friday – Kalamazoo Central (0-0) at Battle Creek Central (0-0) – These longtime rivals finished first and third, respectively, in the Southwestern Michigan Athletic Conference East last season.
Saturday – Detroit Cass Tech (0-0) at Holt (1-0) – The Rams host the reigning Division 1 champion Technicians in the 4:30 p.m. game of the Moneyball Classic.
Saturday – Grand Rapids South Christian (0-0) vs. Rockford (1-0) at Calvin University – This will be the 10 a.m. opener of The Invite at Calvin University, with the reigning Division 2 runner-up Sailors taking on a Rockford team coming off an 18-win season.
Saturday – Grand Rapids Catholic Central (0-0) vs. Grand Rapids Northview (1-0) at Calvin University – This will cap off The Invite tipping approximately 7:35 p.m. and pitting last season’s Ottawa-Kent Conference Gold co-champion and White outright champion, respectively.
MHSAA.com's weekly “Breslin Bound” previews and reviews are powered by MI Student Aid, a part of the Office of Postsecondary Financial Planning located within the Michigan Department of Treasury. MI Student Aid encourages students to pursue postsecondary education by providing access to student financial resources and information. MI Student Aid administers the state’s 529 college savings programs (MET/MESP), as well as scholarship and grant programs that help make college Accessible, Affordable and Attainable for you. Connect with MI Student Aid at www.michigan.gov/mistudentaid and find more information on Facebook and Twitter @mistudentaid.
PHOTOS (Top) A Westland John Glenn player gets to the basket during U-D Jesuit's season-opening 83-48 win over the Rockets. (Middle) Bath defenders surround a Charyl Stockwell player during the Sentinels' 63-55 victory. (Top photo by Olivia B. Photography; middle photo by Click by Christine McCallister.)