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'Regular Dudes' Earn Ultimate Opportunity
March 23, 2018
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
EAST LANSING – Holland West Ottawa may be a group of really talented athletes who are just as good – and in some cases better – playing other sports.
But Saturday, they could prove to be the best Class A basketball team in Michigan as well.
They’ve certainly earned the opportunity. For the third straight game Friday, the Panthers survived a nail-biting finish, this time 53-50 against Novi to earn their first trip to an MHSAA championship game in this sport.
The second matchup of the day at Breslin Center featured 10 lead changes, and neither team led by more than seven points at any point. The last lead change came with 3:24 to play, and Novi took a shot to tie the score again with 21 seconds to go.
“This whole tournament we’ve been saying this could be our last game if we lose – and we finally made it to our last game tomorrow,” West Ottawa senior forward Tyler Bosma said. “It’s nice to be able to say that, no matter what.
“It’s obviously a game. You never know what way it can go. … Having just a strong group of kids that’s stuck together for a while helps. We know we want this just as bad as everyone around us, and that’s what’s gotten us those runs in a close situation.”
West Ottawa (25-2) will face reigning champion Clarkston at 12:30 p.m. Saturday.
The Panthers opened their closing pursuit with a 56-52 overtime win over Muskegon in the Regional Final, then downed East Lansing 58-55 in Tuesday’s Quarterfinal.
They led Thursday’s game for 21 minutes and 45 seconds, but fell behind 43-42 on Tariq Woody’s basket with 4:19 to play.
Yet, West Ottawa then scored the next seven points and made 6 of 7 free throw attempts down the stretch.
“We’re really gifted with some good athletes. But the best part is they compete,” West Ottawa coach Steve Windemuller said. “As a coach, you wonder, ‘What am I going to get tonight?’ … Every time these guys bring it. They’re an amazing group about bringing it and playing hard no matter who we’re playing.”
The Wildcats (17-9), also seeking their first championship game berth, had won 11 of their last 12 games entering Friday, starting four seniors who had brought the team back from opening the season 1-5.
Novi outrebounded West Ottawa 39-28 and had one fewer turnover, but struggled to get in rhythm and made only 35 percent of its shots and 6 of 28 tries from 3-point range. Woody finished with 14 points and 16 rebounds, and senior guard Traveon Maddox, Jr., had 13 points.
“We weren’t prepared to lose; that’s the thing. We had a goal set to play tomorrow, and it’s tough,” Novi coach Brandon Sinawi said. “Sometimes throughout the course of a season you don’t play a great game. Unfortunately for us, it was today. They played the way they wanted to, and they had us playing their style, and that’s not what we wanted to do.”
Bosma had 13 points, 12 rebounds and five assists for West Ottawa, and Wade also scored 13 points. Senior Drew Pederson had 12 points.
The Panthers have less than a day to gear up for Clarkston and Mr. Basketball Award winner Foster Loyer – although they did defeat finalists Brandon Johns with East Lansing and Marcus Bingham, Jr., with Grand Rapids Catholic Central in the regular-season finale.
West Ottawa has a Division I baseball prospect in Bosma and a Division II football and basketball recruit in Wade, and as a unit they’ve found their way through to the last day of the season.
“With a baseball player and an all-state football receiver, and another all-state linebacker, we’ve just got a bunch of regular dudes,” Windemuller said. “Part of it is we’ve earned our respect right now. I told them in the locker room pregame, we’ve earned everything we’ve gotten so far. I think we deserve to be here.
“I think we’re going to come here and try to give our best and try to win tomorrow, and that was the message today too.”
PHOTOS: (Top) Holland West Ottawa’s Xavier Wade looks for an open teammate while guarded by Novi’s Brett Mackay. (Middle) Trendon Hankerson (1) gets a hand up as Wade drives to the basket.
![Cheboygan assistant boys basketball coach Scott Hancock offers some pointers during a scrimmage last week.](/sites/default/files/2022-12/221102_Cheboygan_2H.jpg)
'Invaluable' Hancock Nearing Half-Century of Service to Cheboygan Athletics
By
Tom Spencer
Special for MHSAA.com
December 2, 2022
When Cheboygan hosts Ogemaw Heights next week to kick off a new boys basketball season, those attending will see something special.
And really, for Cheboygan and its opponents, it’s nothing new. It’s been going on for five decades.
The special part? Scott Hancock, junior varsity coach and assistant varsity coach, is starting his 47th year coaching at the school. Forty-five of those years have been in the same role he has this season.
“It really just means I’m getting old, but I feel very fortunate to be able to do something that I love for this long,” Hancock, himself a Cheboygan product of 1976, reflected on his tenure. “To be honest, I never really thought about how long I would do it. It’s just something I love doing, so I never really put a number on how long I would do it.”
As the campaign starts, though, he has thoughts of coaching high school basketball for six and possibly seven decades before he hangs it up. He has coached his sons — Nick, who owns the Cheboygan career steals record; and Brian, the leader in career made 3-pointers — and now he’s looking forward to the possibility of coaching his two grandchildren, Landon Gahn and Lincoln Hancock.
“Well, all I can say is I have a grandson that is 3 years old, and I would love to hang around coaching until he graduates,” Hancock said of how long he thinks he’ll stay in coaching. “I have loved every year.
“I have coached with a lot of great coaches who are all great friends to this day.”
Included among those coaches are his two sons, who served as assistants for Cheboygan, and Jason Friday, the current varsity coach who also played for Hancock during the early 1990s – a time when Hancock briefly stepped in to fill a varsity coaching vacancy after the sudden departure of the previous head coach.
Friday, who also serves as the school’s athletic director, is not at all surprised his former coach is still in the game. It became a factor in Friday’s decision to take over the boys program three years ago.
“If you're a boy who grew up in Cheboygan, there's a good chance that Scott coached you in something,” Friday said. “He has a grandson who is in eighth grade, and he wants to coach him.
“So yes, I knew he was going to be around for several more years.”
And next week, Friday will be thrilled to have Hancock alongside him on the court as Cheboygan opens up with the Falcons.
“Today, I don't look at Scott as one of my former varsity coaches — he's a friend,” Friday said. “We're friends more than anything, and that makes coaching even more fun for me.
“Most importantly, having someone on the bench that you can trust is invaluable.”
Hancock, who was helping with the boys program when Friday was coaching the Cheboygan girls team, began expecting to coach with his former player some time ago.
“I was very fortunate to have both my sons be assistant coaches for our varsity program,” said Hancock, who also has served decades coaching baseball and keeping stats for the football program. “But as far as being head coach, I always thought Jason would take over at some time.
“It’s awesome to have a former player running our program, but it is no surprise,” he continued. “Jason has always been a student of the game and is very detailed, and what he does, our program is in great hands.”
The mutual trust the coaches share has really benefited the Cheboygan student-athletes.
“I think it is important to have a JV coach who the head coach can trust that he has bought in to all of the beliefs of the head coach’s program,” Hancock noted. “Being loyal to your varsity coach and doing what’s best for your program is the most important aspect of JV coaching.
“And, getting kids to buy in to what it takes to play the game the right way.”
That’s one of the strengths Hancock brings to the basketball program, Friday singled out.
“Coach Hancock does a tremendous job teaching the fundamentals, but also does a great job communicating with the boys, making each one feel valued, even those who don't play as much,” Friday said. “He's at every practice.
“If there's an emergency and I need to step out for a minute and put my AD hat on, he can run practice and we don't miss a beat,” Friday continued. “He has a tremendous knowledge of the game and is a coach anyone would love on their bench.”
Hancock, who assists another former player, Kevin Baller, coaching the baseball team, has no thoughts of getting back into a varsity coaching position.
“I have no plans to coach at the varsity level, and the reason is because I have the best of both worlds by coaching JV,” said Hancock, who sees the 3-point shot as the biggest change in the game during his tenure. “Every coach that I have worked for lets me be involved with the varsity, so really I get to be involved in both.”
Friday recalls wishing as a player that Hancock had stayed at the helm when he took over temporarily. But, he loves having him coach with him today.
“After our junior season, we were told he was going back to JV,” Friday said. “We tried to convince him to stay for one more year, but he wanted to go back.
“There's no way I could be varsity basketball coach and athletic director without having a JV coach like Scotty.”
Off the court successes in life are just as importance as athletic endeavors, Hancock indicated. In fact, those give him the most pride.
“Probably helping kids with off-the-court issues makes me feel better than anything,” he said. “Also hearing from the kids that I’ve coached after they graduate and how much they enjoyed their JV year.”
There aren’t many – if any – parent, player or community member names on a complaint list from Hancock’s first five decades, and there’s not likely to be any more in however many years are ahead.
“When you’ve coached in the same small town for nearly 50 years, you’d expect to have a few people upset with you, but not Scotty,” said Friday. “You can’t find a person who says something bad about him.
“He’s extremely well-respected,” he continued. “You absorb his passion and love of the game just by being around him, and all of Cheboygan should be thankful (for) how much he's done for our community.”
Tom Spencer is a longtime MHSAA-registered basketball and soccer official, and former softball and baseball official, and he also has coached in the northern Lower Peninsula area. He previously has written for the Saginaw News, Bay County Sports Page and Midland Daily News. He can be reached at [email protected] with story ideas for Manistee, Wexford, Missaukee, Roscommon, Ogemaw, Iosco, Alcona, Oscoda, Crawford, Kalkaska, Grand Traverse, Benzie, Leelanau, Antrim, Otsego, Montmorency, Alpena, Presque Isle, Cheboygan, Charlevoix and Emmet counties.
PHOTOS (Top) Cheboygan assistant boys basketball coach Scott Hancock offers some pointers during a scrimmage last week. (Middle) Hancock, second from left, confers last season with assistant Matt Mylnarchek, head coach Jason Friday and player Dylan Balazovic. (Photos courtesy of Jared Greenleaf/Cheboygan Daily Tribune.)