Breslin Bound: Boys Report Week 1
December 12, 2012
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Michigan’s top boys basketball teams traditionally waste little time each December seeing how they match up against the rest of the elite.
And last week proved no different, as major matchups and a few upsets in the Detroit and Grand Rapids areas no doubt caused some re-ranking in those regional pecking orders.
Below is a look at 10 teams who stuck out with their play last week. It isn't a state ranking – merely one of the week's notable performances.
Records and results are based on what has been reported to the MHSAA.com Score Center.
1. Detroit Pershing (2-0) – The Doughboys have been considered by most one of the top two teams heading into the season, along with Romulus. Pershing beat Romulus 83-76 and also downed River Rouge – another elite team – 68-48 during opening week.
2. Muskegon Heights (2-0) – Heights may have gone through a number of changes over the last year, but it remains elite on the court. The Tigers opened with a 74-50 win over Way Point, then defeated reigning Class A runner-up Rockford 60-59.
3. Grand Rapids South Christian (2-0) – The Sailors opened with a 54-42 win over Wyoming before notching a solid upset of 2012 Class A Quarterfinalist Grand Rapids Christian, 69-63.
4. Romulus (1-1) – The Eagles may have fallen to Pershing already. But they also opened with a 69-67 win over Dearborn Heights Robichaud – which earlier in the week beat Westland John Glenn, another considered among the elite heading into the season.
5. Holt (2-0) – The Rams have been more spoiler than contender of late in the powerful Capital Area Activities Conference Blue, but they could be back in the hunt. Holt opened with a 54-51 win over Lansing Waverly and followed by beating Lansing Eastern 69-60.
6. St. Joseph (2-0) – The Bears were a middling 11-10 last season, but opened this winter with two solid victories. They beat usual power Kalamazoo Central 73-65 and followed with a 53-37 win over Portage Northern.
7. Brown City (2-0) – Dan Blemaster was the point guard on the DeWitt team that made a surprise run to the 2004 Class B Final, and he has opened his coaching career with a pair of wins. Brown City beat Peck 37-33 and Armada 70-56.
8. Bloomfield Hills Andover (2-0) – Andover is playing its final season before merging with Lahser next fall. And after finishing 10-11 last season, the Barons got it going right last week with a 51-46 win over Farmington and a 78-48 victory over Cranbrook-Kingswood.
9. Muskegon (2-0) – The Big Reds are expected to do big things under coach Keith Guy, who came over from Heights this fall. So far, so good, with a 60-45 win over Holland West Ottawa and a 70-67 victory over Benton Harbor.
10. Grand Rapids Catholic Central (1-1) – The Eagles lost a tough one at the end of the week, 69-66 to Zeeland West. But they opened with a 77-67 win over Grand Rapids Christian.
PHOTO: Saginaw, last season’s Class A champion, opened last week with a 78-60 win over Mount Pleasant. (Click to see more at HighSchoolSportsScene.com.)
Cass Tech's Time Arrives as Technicians Claim Most Memorable Win
By
Keith Dunlap
Special for MHSAA.com
March 25, 2023
EAST LANSING — The Detroit Cass Tech boys basketball program no longer will have to look at all the state championship trophies and banners won by the football team in the school's halls and wonder when its time will be.
That time finally came Saturday.
After years of building toward this moment, the Technicians claimed to their first championship in boys basketball with a 78-63 win over Muskegon in the Division 1 Final at Breslin Center.
Cass Tech was in control throughout the game and for much of the season, finishing with a 27-1 record. The only loss was a one-point overtime defeat to Bloomfield Hills Brother Rice in the Operation Friendship title game.
Cass Tech’s previous best season was a Class A runner-up finish in 1974.
“We had established that as a goal,” said Cass Tech head coach Steve Hall, who won three-straight Class D championships from 2003-05 coaching Detroit Rogers. “It looks good on paper, but to carry it out and pursue it, it is unbelievable what we’ve been able to do.”
Cass Tech led most of the way, but then had to deal with some adversity after Muskegon took a 47-46 lead with 1:46 left in the third quarter.
The Technicians responded beautifully, first closing the third quarter with four straight points to take a 50-47 lead. Cass Tech then opened the fourth with a 9-1 run to take a 59-48 lead on a layup by Sean Hodges with 3:54 remaining.
Muskegon never threatened the rest of the way as Cass Tech broke defensive pressure for layups and hit free throws in the final minutes.
Sophomore Darius Acuff, who banked in a tying 3-pointer in the final seconds to force overtime in Friday’s Semifinal win over Grand Blanc, and senior Travon Cooper both scored 19 points to lead the way for Cass Tech.
Cooper also pulled down eight rebounds, and senior Kenneth Robertson added 15 points for Cass Tech.
The Technicians dominated along the interior, collecting 40 points in the paint to just eight for Muskegon.
“In the fourth quarter, we had to come together and talk to each other as a team,” Acuff said. “Just talk to each other and listen to Coach, and just respond. We didn’t want to go out like that. We had to make a run, and everyone contributed.”
Senior Jordan Briggs scored 19 points, and senior David Day added 15 to lead Muskegon (26-3).
“There was no flow to the game,” Muskegon head coach Keith Guy said. “But in these games there is going to be adversity, and the teams that handle it best are going to win.”
After Cass Tech took a 45-36 lead with 6:15 left in the third quarter, Muskegon made a charge, going on an 11-1 run to grab a 47-46 advantage with 1:46 remaining in the third after a 3-pointer by Justin Watson.
Cass Tech held a 14-11 lead after the first quarter, and then the second quarter was a high-octane period more reminiscent of an NBA game.
Muskegon scored 20 points in the second, but Cass Tech was even better, scoring 27 in the frame to take a 41-31 lead at halftime.
PHOTOS (Top) Detroit Cass Tech players celebrate their Division 1 championship win Saturday along with a last-second 3-pointer by teammate Mathieu Collins (30). (Middle) The Technicians’ Kenneth Robertson (14) makes his move toward the basket. (Below) Cass Tech’s Darius Acuff (5) works to get a shot up over Muskegon’s Anthony Sydnor III.