Unity Rides Impressive Run Into Saturday
March 15, 2019
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
EAST LANSING – The last two weeks have seen Hudsonville Unity Christian thrust into the statewide spotlight with a pair of wins over teams expected to contend for this season’s Division 2 title.
But the Crusaders have belonged in that conversation all season as well, and showed why again Friday in clinching a spot in their first MHSAA boys basketball championship game since 1973.
Unity Christian ran its winning streak to 21 this winter with a 69-30 victory over Ludington in the night’s first Division 2 Semifinal at Breslin Center.
The impressive showing fit well following the Regional Final win over 2018 Class B champion Benton Harbor and Tuesday’s 36-point Quarterfinal win over Grand Rapids South Christian, which handed the Crusaders their last loss, by two on Dec. 21.
“We talked about flying under the radar because we’ve done that all year long, and that’s been a good thing – that’s fine with us,” Unity coach Scott Soodsma said. “I think we have just really turned it up a notch. These kids are just winners, and they were getting close to the end of their careers, and they want to go out champions. So I think they just actually on their own decided to turn it up a notch.”
Unity (25-2) will face River Rouge in Saturday’s 6:45 p.m. championship game. As noted, it will be the Crusaders’ first Final since 1973, and they also finished Class B runners-up in 1963.
But the program has been building toward this opportunity. Last week’s Regional title was its first since 2008, but Unity won its third straight league and District championships rolling toward the end of February.
The Crusaders led Friday for all but 59 seconds when the teams were tied early, and by double digits for the final 27 minutes. The lockdown defense added to a postseason effort that has seen Unity give up only 47 points on average over seven playoff wins.
“There was stuff we thought was open when we went in at halftime, but our offense was being played so far away from the basket and so far off the 3-point line that we had a heck of a time taking advantage of any of those things,” Ludington coach Thad Shank said.
“When you’re a team that can really pressure the ball like they do, you don’t even have to play great defense behind that ball pressure because it causes so much havoc.”
On the other side of the court, senior guard Noah Wiswary was the only Unity scorer in double figures with 17 points. But while 12 players got on the board, the team’s shooting percentage stayed at a sparkling 59 percent from the floor for the game. Unity also had 18 assists on 29 field goals.
“We just want to win. That’s all we want to do,” Wiswary said. “We just want to get the state championship. We want to win, and sharing the ball is the best way to do that, so that’s what we do.”
Senior forward T.J. VanKoevering added eight points and six rebounds for the Crusaders.
Senior guard Joshua Laman led Ludington with nine points.
Although ending on a tough note, the Orioles provided one of the surprises of the tournament. They entered the postseason 9-10, but defeated five opponents all with at least 13 wins to make it to the Semifinals for the second time in three seasons. Ludington finished 14-11.
“Going into the postseason 9-10 definitely isn’t easy when you’ve got a bunch of people looking at you, looking at the first game of Districts and thinking oh, they don’t have a chance,” Ludington senior Sam Bandstra said. “But in the postseason we came together as a team. It wasn’t about us, and we came out and played as a team, and we shocked some people. When we’re playing the intense defense we were playing and really moving the ball and playing as a team – we came together at the right time.”
PHOTOS: (Top) Ludington’s Joshua Laman (11) works for a shot against Unity’s Derek Slager (22) and T.J. VanKoevering during Friday’s Division 2 Semifinal. (Middle) Unity’s Grant Balcer pushes the ball upcourt.
Breslin Bound: 2021-22 Boys Report Week 2
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
December 20, 2021
No school for the next two weeks hardly means no basketball for many teams across the state.
Holiday showcases, classics, tournaments, etc., canceled last season because of the COVID-related late start are returning to close this calendar year, and they’ll surely clue us in more on the teams to watch once we return and turn to 2022.
“Breslin Bound” is powered by MI Student Aid and based on results and schedules posted for each school at MHSAA.com. Send corrections or missing scores to [email protected].
Week in Review
The countdown of last week’s five most intriguing results:
1. Richland Gull Lake 78, Kalamazoo Central 75 (OT) The Blue Devils are off to a 3-0 start, with this Central’s first home league loss since 2014.
2. Orchard Lake St. Mary’s 60, Clarkston 51 The Eaglets (3-0) continued their impressive start by dealing Clarkston (2-1) its first defeat.
3. River Rouge 61, Warren Fitzgerald 59 Rouge (3-0) won three times last week, two times by a bucket, beginning with this victory and followed by a 62-61 win over Belleville.
4. Benton Harbor 73, Flint Carman-Ainsworth 62 The Tigers (3-0) are revving again after last season’s trip to the Division 2 Quarterfinals, with this win coming at Grand Rapids Union’s Showcase Classic.
5. Buckley 61, Maple City Glen Lake 59 It’s hard to imagine a better start for Buckley (1-0), defeating the reigning Northwest Conference champ after finishing 7-13 overall and seventh in the league last season.
Watch List
With an eye toward March, here are two teams in each division making sparks:
Division 1
Ann Arbor Huron (3-0) Last season’s Division 1 runner-up is up to a combined 43-2 since the start of 2019-20, with a couple of solid and close wins last week. After opening the season Dec. 10 with a 15-point victory over Ypsilanti Lincoln, the River Rats defeated Ann Arbor Skyline 48-42 and Saline 41-39 – the only losses for those latter two opponents so far.
Hamtramck (4-0) The Cosmos are now a combined 35-6 going back to the start of the 2019-20 season and coming off a Michigan Metro Athletic Conference Black championship last winter. So far, so good this season as well, with last week featuring a 54-52 overtime win over Canton and an 81-54 victory over Wyoming Godwin Heights at Cornerstone University. The first matchup with league rival River Rouge is Jan. 28.
Division 2
Olivet (4-0) The Eagles returned to their usual successful ways with a 13-3 run last winter, and they appear on that path again. The 59-32 opening win over Union City remains the Chargers’ only defeat, and Olivet followed that up with a 55-24 win over a Hanover-Horton team coming off a run to the Division 3 Semifinals. All four Eagles victories have come by at least 20 points.
Parchment (5-0) The Panthers broke a string of two straight sub.-500 finishes with a 14-4 run last winter, and they’ve already defeated Southwestern Athletic Conference Valley reigning champion Schoolcraft after tying for second in the league last season. Parchment will meet Grand Rapids West Catholic in Wednesday’s Cornerstone University Holiday Tournament Red championship game after defeating Wyoming Potter’s House Christian in Monday’s opener.
Division 3
Bad Axe (5-0) The Hatchets closed last season’s 12-3 showing with a District title, and expectations should be growing as four of five wins have been by at least 17 points. The only losses last winter came to league rival Reese – the Rockets also won the Regional matchup – and those teams meet for the first time this season Jan. 12.
Vandercook Lake (5-0) The Jayhawks appear ready to take the next step after winning four games two seasons ago and finishing 9-9 last winter. A 56-53 win over Homer on Dec. 10 avenged an 18-point loss to last season’s Big 8 Conference champion, and Thursday’s 70-56 victory over Michigan Center avenged a pair of 2020-21 defeats.
Division 4
Britton Deerfield (3-0) After two straight winning seasons, Britton Deerfield dropped back to 6-11 last winter. But the Patriots look to be putting that quickly behind them with three double-digit wins to start. Last week’s 68-56 win over Morenci was the Bulldogs’ lone defeat.
Hillman (3-0) Last season’s 12-8 finish broke a string of two sub-.500 seasons, and the Tigers are off and running again. Two of three wins so far have avenged losses from last winter – the 39-37 victory over Rogers City in the opener after Hillman lost last season’s meeting by a point, and a 65-31 win over Alcona last week after the Tigers lost last winter’s meeting by 12.
Can't-Miss Contests
Be on the lookout for results of these games coming up:
Wednesday – Bloomfield Hills Brother Rice (2-0) at Detroit Renaissance (3-0) Contenders from the Detroit Catholic League and Detroit Public School League help kick off two weeks of big-time nonleague holiday games.
Wednesday – Parchment (5-0) vs. Grand Rapids West Catholic (3-0) at Cornerstone University – These two will face off for the Holiday Tournament Red championship.
Dec. 27 – Flint Beecher (4-0) vs. Detroit Martin Luther King (1-1) at Ferndale – The Motor City Roundball Classic returns, and this matchup features the reigning Division 3 champ and a Division 1 contender.
Dec. 27 – Grand Rapids Catholic Central (1-0) vs. Detroit U-D Jesuit (3-1) at Ferndale – Both are recent Finals participants, GRCC the reigning Division 2 champion and Jesuit the 2019 Division 1 runner-up.
Dec. 28 – Williamston (5-0) vs. North Farmington (3-0) at Ferndale – This Roundball Classic game also features top teams in Divisions 2 and 1, respectively.
Second Half’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) Traverse City St. Francis opened last week with a 59-40 win over reigning Lake Michigan Conference champ Charlevoix. (Middle) DeWitt's Landen Poe (20) drives while being defended by Howell's Breven Weller (0). (Photos by Rick Sack and Cara Kamps, respectively.)