Breslin Bound: Girls Report Week 7
January 16, 2017
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
The girls basketball regular season reached the midpoint last week with its share of surprises but also performances as expected so far.
Powers like Pittsford and Saginaw Heritage rolled through the first half 10-0 – the Hawks are discussed quite a bit in this week’s Breslin Bound report powered by MI Student Aid. But we also have more improved achievers to highlight, including one of our smallest schools that calls the northern Lower Peninsula home.
Week in Review
The countdown of last week’s five most intriguing results:
1. Marshall 41, Jackson Northwest 40 – A one-point win over its Interstate 8 Athletic Conference rival helped start Marshall’s surge last season to the Class B title, and history seems to be repeating itself to this point.
2. Pewamo-Westphalia 38, Laingsburg 31 – The previously-undefeated Wolfpack was the talk of the Central Michigan Athletic Conference and Class C statewide, but the Pirates have moved ahead in both conversations with this win.
3. Midland Dow 52, Midland 51 – One-loss Dow survived an early scare against the rival Chemics as it looks to challenge Saginaw Heritage again in the Saginaw Valley League North.
4. Detroit Country Day 67, Flint Hamady 28 – Handing Class C contender Hamady its first loss in this way was another indication that most of Class B is chasing the undefeated Yellowjackets.
5. East Kentwood 47, Caledonia 42 – The Falcons moved into first place alone in the Ottawa-Kent Conference Red with a win that should prove key even though it came near the start of the league season.
Watch List
With an eye toward March, here are two teams in each class making sparks:
CLASS A
Dearborn (7-2) – The Pioneers had a tough stretch over the holidays with an overtime loss to Belleville and another defeat to neighbor Dearborn Divine Child. But they opened the winter by handing Northville its only loss this season, and a 60-48 win over Robichaud on Friday was similarly impressive.
Saginaw Heritage (10-0) – After winning its first 15 games last season, Heritage is off to a similar start with nine wins by at least 25 points. Coming up Tuesday is Midland Dow – the team that broke last season’s streak and with which the Hawks shared the Saginaw Valley League North title.
CLASS B
Hamilton (8-1) – Aside from a four-point overtime loss to Hudsonville, Hamilton has been perfect as it looks to improve from last season’s runner-up finish in the O-K Green. A 50-37 win over second-place Holland Christian on Friday put the Hawkeyes in first alone.
Kalkaska (5-0) – The Blazers might be lined up for a special season after finishing second a year ago in the Lake Michigan Conference to Traverse City St. Francis. Kalkaska downed St. Francis 61-51 on Saturday to take over first place.
CLASS C
Adrian Madison (8-1) – A Regional finalist last season, Madison has been on a tear again since falling to Lenawee Christian in its opener. The Trojans are back in first place in the Tri-County Conference and have seven double-digit wins.
Blissfield (8-2) – Ida was one of our featured Class B teams last week, but Blissfield moved into first place in the Lenawee County Athletic Association by handing the now second-place Bluestreaks their first loss 52-49 on Friday. Blissfield's defeats were to 2016 Class B semifinalist Bay City John Glenn and one-loss Class A Utica Ford.
CLASS D
Engadine (7-1) – The Eagles have improved from three, to seven, to 11, to 14 wins over the last four seasons and could take another step this winter. The lone loss came in their opener to Munising, which they see again next week.
Bear Lake (6-2) – Friday’s 38-33 win over Pentwater gave Bear Lake as many wins as last season. And the Lakers should contend in the West Michigan D League as well, with a victory already over contender Custer Mason County Eastern.
Can't-Miss Contests
Be on the lookout for results of these games coming up:
Tuesday – Saginaw Heritage (10-0) at Midland Dow (8-1) – For all of the reasons mentioned above, this is one of the biggest games in Class A during the regular season.
Tuesday – Bloomfield Hills Marian (7-2) at Farmington Hills Mercy (7-2) – A Class A contender regularly comes out of the Detroit Catholic League Central, and these are the best so far of a strong group.
Tuesday – Stevensville Lakeshore (7-1) at Edwardsburg (6-1) – This nonleague matchup could be telling for both Class B hopefuls and likely will be closer than last season’s Lakeshore 19-point win.
Wednesday – Bellaire (6-1) at Gaylord St. Mary (6-1) – These two are tied for first in the Ski Valley Conference and among the north’s elite in Class D.
Thursday – New Boston Huron (7-1) at Monroe St. Mary Catholic Central (6-1) – SMCC, third place in the Huron League, gets the co-leaders back to back taking on Huron after facing Carleton Airport (6-1) on Tuesday.
NOTE: The Clarkston/Detroit Martin Luther King game Monday also would have made this list but had begun before this report was published.
PHOTO: Saginaw Heritage guard Moira Joiner (4) protects the ball during the Hawks’ game last month against Solon, Ohio. (Click for more from HighSchoolSportsScene.com.)
West Bloomfield Hangs On to Edge Rockford, Reach 1st Final since 1989
By
Keith Dunlap
Special for MHSAA.com
March 18, 2022
EAST LANSING – West Bloomfield girls basketball coach Darrin McAllister said his team has played all sorts of opponents and their varying styles this season, but he admitted he hadn’t seen a team like Rockford.
And that included Detroit Edison, a squad that hadn’t lost to a Michigan school since 2017-18 before West Bloomfield won their February matchup.
“We have not faced a team that shoots that amount of threes and has the ability to make them,” McAllister said of Rockford.
Indeed, in Friday’s first Division 1 Semifinal at Michigan State’s Breslin Center, West Bloomfield saw Rockford attempt a whopping 37 shots from 3-point range against the Lakers’ zone, making 13 of them.
In contrast, West Bloomfield made only three shots from behind the 3-point line.
“I do play a lot of different zones, but I was definitely searching for something,” McAllister said.
Despite the barrage of 3-pointers and 30-point disadvantage from behind the 3-point line, McAllister saw his young team overcome and find a way, as West Bloomfield made the winning plays at the end to earn a 66-63 win over Rockford.
The Lakers (24-1) advanced to the championship game for the first time since 1989, when it finished runner-up to Grand Rapids Ottawa Hills.
“I’m happy that we won, but if I had hair I’d probably have pulled it out by now,” McAllister joked.
The big reason why West Bloomfield was able to survive was its sophomore forward duo, Indya Davis and Summer Davis.
Indya Davis had 24 points and eight rebounds, while Summer Davis had 16 points and seven rebounds.
Senior Myonna Hooper added 14 points, and junior Sydney Hendrix had 10 points and 10 rebounds as well for the Lakers.
“I didn’t take it upon myself,” Indya Davis said of her performance. “I took it upon the whole team and doing it for the team.”
With the game tied at 58-58 with 1:02 remaining, West Bloomfield took a 60-58 lead after two free throws by Hooper.
Following a turnover by Rockford, West Bloomfield extended the lead to 61-58 when sophomore Destiny Washington hit the first of two free throws with 40 seconds to go.
Washington missed the second free throw, but Summer Davis got the offensive rebound and passed the ball back to Hooper, who was fouled and drained both free throws to give West Bloomfield a 63-58 advantage with 36.6 seconds remaining.
On Rockford’s next possession, a 3-point attempt by Gabrielle Irwin rimmed out and was rebounded by Indya Davis, who got the ball up to Washington.
After being fouled, Washington split a pair of free throws with 14.1 seconds remaining to give West Bloomfield a 64-58 lead and all but seal the game.
The teams then traded two free throws each before Rockford hit a 3-pointer right at the buzzer to account for the final score.
Rockford saw six different players connect on 3-pointers, led by sophomore Grace Lyons, who drilled five en route to a team-high 21 points.
Rockford coach Brad Wilson admitted his team usually doesn’t shoot that many 3-pointers in a game.
“That’s more than normal, but we are fully capable of doing that,” Wilson said. “Sometimes, you take what the defense gives you. We believe in our kids. It’s a little bit unusual, but all five players on the court have the green light at all times. We just believe in them. We attack gaps and pass where the help comes from. We rep that out all year, so we have confidence that it’s going to go in.”
Rockford was making its first appearance as a program in a Semifinal, and the community certainly followed with a good portion of Breslin Center covered in orange.
“I am so proud of our community and the support they gave,” Wilson said. “Just to be a part of something like that, a sea of orange, was just so much fun.”
Rockford held a 31-26 lead at halftime and was up 36-30 in the third quarter before West Bloomfield went on a 9-0 run to take a 39-36 lead with 5:52 left in the period.
Rockford then got hot from the perimeter again, hitting three more 3-pointers before the quarter ended to take a 49-48 lead into the fourth.
PHOTOS (Top) West Bloomfield celebrates its Division 1 Semifinal win over Rockford on Friday. (Middle) The Lakers’ Sydney Hendrix (5) gets a shot up over a pair of Rams defenders. (Click for more from Hockey Weekly Action Photos.)