D1 Preview: Powers Ready to Prevail
March 21, 2019
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
This weekend’s Division 1 girls basketball bracket is filled with stars and storylines.
All four semifinalists have won at least 20 games, and none has lost more than four. Last season’s Class A champ is back, as is another semifinalist and a semifinalist from two years ago – while the fourth team is playing this late for the first time.
Two semifinalists feature Miss Basketball Award finalists. All four teams have at least one player who earned all-state recognition last season.
Division 1 Semifinals – Friday
Saginaw Heritage (23-2) vs. Wayne Memorial (24-2), Noon
Southfield Arts & Technology (23-1) vs. Muskegon (21-4), 2 p.m.
Division 1 Final – Saturday, 12:15 p.m.
Tickets cost $10 per pair of Semifinals and $10 per two-game Finals session (Divisions 4 and 1). All Semifinals will be streamed live on MHSAA.tv and viewable on a pay-per-view basis. All four Finals will be broadcast live on Fox Sports Detroit and streamed live on FoxSportsDetroit.com and the FOX Sports app. Free radio broadcasts of all weekend games will be available on MHSAANetwork.com.
Below is a glance at all four semifinalists. Click on the name of the school to see that team’s full schedule and results from this season. (Statistics are through teams' Regional Finals.)
MUSKEGON
Record/rank: 21-4, No. 10
League finish: First in Ottawa-Kent Conference Black
Coach: Rodney Walker, fifth season (72-20)
Championship history: Has not played in an MHSAA Final.
Best wins: 53-51 over No. 5 DeWitt in Quarterfinal, 67-46 over East Kentwood in Regional Semifinal, 52-47 over honorable mention Grand Haven in District Quarterfinal, 55-50 over Division 3 No. 8 Kent City.
Players to watch: Alyza Winston, 5-6 sr. G (24.5 ppg, 39 3-pointers, 3.2 apg, 3.3 spg); Brianna Alexander, 5-2 sr. G (8.7 ppg, 2.6 spg, 2.5 apg).
Outlook: Muskegon reached the Quarterfinals last season for the first time and now will play in its first Semifinal. Winston was a Miss Basketball Award finalist and will continue her career at Michigan State, and the lineup is bolstered by three more contributors averaging at least 6.8 ppg. Four seniors and a junior start and have led the team to 17 straight wins on the court, with the East Kentwood victory avenging a season-opening loss.
SAGINAW HERITAGE
Record/rank: 23-2, No. 3
League finish: Second in Saginaw Valley League Red
Coach: Vonnie DeLong, sixth season (130-16)
Championship history: Class A champion 2018 & 2002, runner-up 2001.
Best wins: 49-34 over No. 4 Midland Dow in Regional Final, 55-53 over No. 7 East Lansing, 45-43 over No. 1 Southfield Arts & Technology, 65-52 over Division 2 No. 9 Harper Woods Chandler Park, 51-31 over Division 2 No. 7 Freeland.
Players to watch: Moira Joiner, 5-9 sr. G (18.8 ppg, 40 3-pointers, 3.2 apg); Shine Strickland-Gills, 6-1 sr. F (12.8 ppg, 8.4 rpg, 1.3 bpg).
Outlook: Last season’s Class A champion returns to Van Noord with Joiner, Strickland-Gills and senior guard Mallory McCartney (10.5 ppg, 40 3-pointers, 3.1 apg) again leading the way. Joiner was a Miss Basketball Award finalist and also will play next at MSU, while Strickland-Gills was a star of last season’s championship game and will continue at Central Michigan. She and McCartney earned all-state honorable mentions last season while Joiner was the Class A Player of the Year. McCartney will continue her career at Ferris State.
SOUTHFIELD ARTS & TECHNOLOGY
Record/rank: 23-1, No. 1
League finish: First in Oakland Activities Association Red
Coach: Michele Marshall, 24th season (417-133)
Championship history: Has not played in an MHSAA Final.
Best wins: 67-36 over No. 9 Grosse Pointe North in Regional Final, 57-25 over Detroit Mumford in District Final, 50-30 and 60-47 over Royal Oak.
Players to watch: Alexis Johnson, 5-10 sr. F (19.2 ppg, 8.4 rpg); Cheyenne McEvans, 5-10 jr. G (17.1 ppg, 11.9 rpg, 3.5 apg, 3.5 spg).
Outlook: Southfield A&T will play in the Semifinals for the second time in three seasons and three years as a school (made up of the former Southfield High and Southfield-Lathrup). Johnson – who will continue her career at Marshall University – made the all-state first team last season and McEvans earned an honorable mention, and senior guard Soleil Barnes (11.4 ppg) adds another double-digit scoring boost. The Warriors’ lone loss came by two to Heritage on Dec. 8, and they could meet again Saturday.
WAYNE MEMORIAL
Record/rank: 24-2, No. 6
League finish: First in Kensington Lakes Activities Association East and overall
Coach: Jarvis Mitchell, fifth season (79-37)
Championship history: Has not played in an MHSAA Final.
Best wins: 50-28 over Temperance Bedford in Quarterfinal, 53-35 over Ann Arbor Pioneer in Regional Final, 61-48 over Brighton, 61-33 over Division 2 No. 6 Williamston.
Players to watch: Jeanae Terry, 5-10 sr. G (20.3 ppg, 51 3-pointers, 7.0 rpg, 8.0 apg, 3.2 spg, 1.8 bpg); Sammiyah Hoskin, 5-8 sr. G (12.5 ppg, 7.6 rpg, 3.8 spg).
Outlook: Wayne graduated a Miss Basketball finalist off last season’s Semifinals team, but brings back the other four starters and top sub from the most successful team in program history. Terry earned an all-state honorable mention last winter and will continue at Illinois. Both of Wayne’s losses were to Division 2 power Detroit Edison. Senior forward Jayah Hicks adds 10.2 points, 7.4 rebounds, 4.2 steals and 3.4 assists per game, and total seven players average at least 6.8 ppg.
PHOTO: Southfield’s Alexis Johnson is defended by a pair of St. Clair Shores Lakeview players during Tuesday’s Quarterfinal. (Photo courtesy of C&G Newspapers.)
Bussell Bolstering All-Around Game to Go with Stellar Scoring Skills
By
Doug Donnelly
Special for MHSAA.com
December 27, 2022
Sophia Bussell doesn’t want to be known just as a shooter.
But it’s hard to ignore her shooting talents.
The Monroe High School sophomore recently set two single-game records for the Trojans – most 3-pointers made in a game with 10 and most points in a game with 36. She’s off to a great start in her career with a lot of games – and shots – to go.
“I personally just love to shoot,” Bussell said. “But I am glad that this season I get to show that I’m more than just a shooter.”
Bussell burst onto the Monroe County basketball scene last season when she joined her sister Olivia, a senior, on the Trojans varsity. Sophia started gaining local attention right from the opening tip. In January, she etched her name in the school record book when she scored 29 points and made a school-record eight 3-pointers at Ypsilanti Lincoln.
This season Lincoln was once again the opponent when Bussell went on her hot streak Dec. 13. Her 3-pointer with six seconds left gave Monroe a 58-56 lead – and a school-record 36 points as her team claimed the victory.
Bussell said Lincoln was in a zone defense, something she rarely sees.
“In the previous games, teams were face-guarding and double-teaming me,” she said. “This was the first team this season who played zone on us. As a shooter, when you see a zone defense, you get excited because it opens up a lot more shots and opportunities to score.”
Bussell didn’t waste any of them.
“My first couple shots went in, which helped build confidence to keep shooting from deep,” she said.
Her teammates kept feeding her the ball, and she kept shooting. She made 10 of 18 3-point attempts that night.
Bussell was aware of how many 3-pointers she had made because Monroe’s team manager, Emily Eshenroder, was tracking every shot.
“She let me know every timeout,” Bussell said.
It’s been an adjustment this season for Bussell. Last year as a ninth grader, she had her older sister with her every step of the way.
“Being able to play my first year of high school basketball with my sister meant the world,” she said. “It took a lot of pressure off me because the defense focused in on her.”
This year, she’s the leader of the team.
“At first it was kind of difficult not having my sister around, because the defense started focusing on me, but it’s only going to make me a better player over time,” she said.
Monroe head coach John Mason, who took over the team mid-season last winter, said Bussell continues to improve, both as a shooter and as an all-around player.
“It is definitely hard not having big sister around, but she is learning how to deal with it by just playing,” he said. “Our practice environment has a great group of kids that enjoy each other. It’s only a matter of time before this group takes off.”
Monroe is 2-6 and off until January when the Trojans resume play in the rugged Southeastern Conference Red.
Bussell is already a veteran on the court. She started playing basketball in the third grade, going to camps in the Monroe area.
“Whatever camps were doing something (I’d go),” she said.
By the fifth grade, Bussell was playing travel basketball. She joined the Michigan Mystics out of Clio when she was in the seventh grade and continues with them during the offseason.
Mason said Bussell is always in the gym and always shooting.
“Her and a few others stay late after practice and work on their game,” he said. “We work on getting extra shots up that resembles what she will have in games. And before she leaves practice, she hits about 20 makes from the volleyball line.”
Bussell, who also plays volleyball for Monroe, said basketball has always been a big part of her life. She has long dreamed of playing college basketball, something the 5-foot-7 guard seems to be well on the way toward achieving.
“I have many goals in basketball, including becoming a strong mental player and a good teammate,” she said.
For now, she’s not worried about setting more records or how many shots she faces. She also knows defenses will focus on her more and more as her numbers grow.
“I just need to keep working hard,” she added, “and everything will slowly fall in place for my next two seasons.”
Doug Donnelly has served as a sports and news reporter and city editor over 25 years, writing for the Daily Chief-Union in Upper Sandusky, Ohio from 1992-1995, the Monroe Evening News from 1995-2012 and the Adrian Daily Telegram since 2013. He's also written a book on high school basketball in Monroe County and compiles record books for various schools in southeast Michigan. E-mail him at [email protected] with story ideas for Jackson, Washtenaw, Hillsdale, Lenawee and Monroe counties.
PHOTOS (Top) Monroe’s Sophia Bussell reaches for a loose ball last season against Temperance Bedford. (Middle) Bussell, with the ball, considers her next move. (Top photo by Dana Stiefel; middle photo by John Discher.)