Inside Reaching Higher - Interactive
August 7, 2013
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
You've hopefully heard of the Reaching Higher basketball showcases put on each summer by the MHSAA and Basketball Coaches Association of Michigan.
Now you've got a chance to see, literally, what all the buzz is about.
Check out this interactive set of photos, videos and further explanations to see what goes into an event that showcases more than 200 of the state's top college prospects while also teaching them a few things they will need to succeed at the next level.
Scroll over the photo below of South Lyon High School's gymnasium, and then over the many tags highlighting features of the event, which last month celebrated its fifth anniversary.
Moment: Beecher Practice Made Perfect
March 27, 2020
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
The Flint Beecher boys basketball team had prepared for situations like what it faced with five seconds left in its March 24, 2016, Class C Semifinal against Detroit Loyola.
And after watching a 15-point lead dissolve into a two-point deficit during the second half, the Bucs called on a big-time player to come through with a big-time shot to save their championship aspirations.
Malik Ellison took a handoff from teammate Aquavius Burks on the wing, took a dribble left, jutted back right and dropped a 3-pointer from five feet behind the line to give Beecher a 60-59 win. Two days later, the Bucs won another Class C title.
Said Ellison after: “In practice we run that play all the time. (Coach) gives us a situation, like we’re down two and we’ve got to get a bucket. At first on my pump fake, I was like, should I pass? Then I saw (the defender) jump, got a little angle with my arm, and knew it was going in. I felt it.
“Every day I go in the gym, either the Y or I stay after practice, and it’s shots like that just for times like this. I just pulled it through today.”
Click to read Second Half's coverage – Beecher Survives on Last-Second Shot – and watch the game-winner below with coverage from the NFHS Network.