East Lansing Rallies to Play 1 More Day
March 16, 2018
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
GRAND RAPIDS – East Lansing found itself playing in the Semifinals again Friday for the first time since 2010.
But the Trojans also found themselves in an unfamiliar situation with potentially only 16 minutes left in their season.
East Lansing entered halftime trailing Wayne Memorial by three points – the first time it hadn’t led at the end of the first half this season.
“That really gave us a shocker and gave us a reality check that we needed to come out and play hard,” Trojans senior Aazhenii Nye said. “This wasn’t how our season was going to end. We worked so hard to get here. And that’s what we did – we just picked each other up and knocked down some big shots.”
And advanced, thanks to a big third-quarter push, with a 60-52 win over the Zebras.
East Lansing (26-0) will play Saginaw Heritage at 12:15 p.m. Saturday at Van Noord Arena hoping to lock down its first Class A title since that 2010 run.
That team featured a Miss Basketball Award winner in Klarissa Bell, who went on to play at Michigan State. The Trojans entered this weekend fresh off the celebration for senior guard Jaida Hampton, this year’s winner.
But they also faced the challenge of taking on another finalist in Wayne senior guard Camree’ Clegg, who over the last three seasons had led a team that didn’t win a game before her arrival as a sophomore to its first Regional title and Semifinals this winter.
Clegg had 16 points, six rebounds and five assists Friday, while Hampton had seven points and nine rebounds. But the matchup was never as much about them individually as it was about East Lansing’s scrappy defense against a Zebras offense that had put up 73 on Detroit Country Day at the start of the season and 81 against a Plymouth team that finished second to Wayne in their league.
During the deciding third quarter, East Lansing made 9 of is 13 shots from the floor – including its first three – and held the Zebras to 3 of 13. The Trojans went on a 23-11 run and got up by as many as 12 before Clegg hit three free throws to close the period.
“I thought those kids played as hard as just about any team we’ve played against,” Wayne coach Jarvis Mitchell said. “Every film that we’ve watched; we’ve seen them live, we’ve seen them on tape. They’re always competing.”
“Going into the third quarter, sometimes we let off a little bit,” Hampton said. “But the last few games we’ve come out really strong because the beginning of the third quarter is the most important. That’s where you see how you’re going to play the rest of the game. … I’m really happy we did make our first few shots, because that gave us a boost of energy to push through and let it keep going through the third and fourth quarter.”
East Lansing pushed the lead to 14 a minute into the fourth quarter before Wayne fought back to get it to the final margin.
Junior guard Sammiyah Hoskin added 11 points and nine rebounds for the Zebras (22-5), who graduate only Clegg off this history-making team.
“Wayne, four years ago 0-20, and now we have the whole community coming out to see us,” Clegg said. “Especially driving two and a half hours (to Calvin), it’s a great feeling. We just wanted to keep it going.”
Senior Amelia McNutt led East Lansing with 20 points and four steals, while Nye added 11 points and six rebounds and junior sister Aaliyah Nye had 16 points and 10 rebounds.
East Lansing had peaked in the Quarterfinals three times since its 2010 title, most recently in 2016 when these seniors were sophomores.
“We’ve been together for four years and it started off pretty rough in terms of how we worked together, with our chemistry,” East Lansing coach Rob Smith said as he sat for the press conference with Hampton, McNutt and Aazhenii Nye. “And in the last four years, these ladies have grown up big-time. They’re three of the most amazing seniors I’ve ever coached. … Right from the get go, we’ve been speaking about this moment all season long.”
PHOTOS: (Top) East Lansing’s Sanaya Gregory pushes the ball upcourt as Wayne’s Jeanae Terry defends. (Middle) Wayne’s Camree’ Clegg works to get space against the Trojans.
Grand Blanc Starts Fast, Finishes Strong in Advancing to 1st Title Game
By
Dean Holzwarth
Special for MHSAA.com
March 22, 2024
EAST LANSING – The formula for Grand Blanc’s success in Friday’s Division 1 Semifinal was simple.
Start the game fast, and finish the same way.
The Bobcats built an early double-digit lead, but had to stave off Belleville’s second-half comeback attempt to pull out a 54-45 win at Michigan State University’s Breslin Center.
Grand Blanc (23-4) scored 14 of the game’s final 17 points to advance to the program’s first Final.
“We thought it was going to be easier than it was after the way we started because we got off to a great start, but then momentum went the other way,” Bobcats coach Bob Taylor said. “We got off to a nice comfortable lead, and then they charged back in the third quarter.
“It was give and take after that, and we were fortunate enough to make some plays in the end.”
Grand Blanc sprinted out to an early 10-0 and increased it to 19-6 by the end of the first quarter.
Senior Kate DeWitt, who played all 32 minutes, made a pair of 3-pointers to ignite the fast start.
“We started out well, but after they came back we just needed to stay calm, cool and collected,” DeWitt said. “We didn’t want the season to stop, and it’s just basketball. It’s a simple game.
“We just had to play our game (at the end), and there’s no words to describe how this feels right now. All I can do is smile.”
Despite the rocky start, Belleville, which didn’t arrive until 11:30 a.m. due to the snowy weather conditions, didn’t waver. The Tigers slowly chipped away at the early deficit.
A 3-pointer by SeCrette Carter and a lay-up from Jordan Petersen during the final minute of the second quarter cut the Grand Blanc advantage to 25-15 at the half.
Belleville freshman sensation Sydney Savoury then led a furious third-quarter surge.
The 6-foot forward scored 11 of her game-high 24 points in the third and drained a 3-pointer at the buzzer to give the Tigers their first lead of the game, 37-35.
Belleville outscored the Bobcats 22-10 during the period.
“We started off in the first quarter real slow, but we kept our tempo and we knew we would make a run and we did that at the end of the third quarter and into the fourth,” Tigers coach Jason Wilkins said. “Our shots weren’t falling at first, but then they started falling and our defensive intensity picked up.
“But credit to Grand Blanc. They didn’t give up, they fought hard and made the clutch plays when they were needed.”
The Tigers led 42-40 with six minutes left, but managed only three points the rest of the game as Grand Blanc’s defense tightened.
“The mindset was to keep their key players from shooting,” said Grand Blanc senior Chelsea Bishop, who had 13 points and four steals.
“They started to get hot in the second half, so it was just keeping them from shooting and driving.
Grand Blanc junior Rayven McQueen, who finished 6 of 9 from the field for 12 points, scored back-to-back buckets to cap a 10-0 run and put the Bobcats ahead 50-42 with 2:28 remaining in the game.
Friday’s was the first trip to the Semifinals for Belleville (24-3) after the team won its first Regional title since 2001.
“Grand Blanc was the better team today, but I’m proud of my team and getting here was a great accomplishment.”
Starting guard Parc Liggins led Grand Blanc with 14 points and was 5 of 6 from the free throw line.
PHOTOS (Top) Grand Blanc’s Rayven McQueen (21) makes a move toward the basket during Friday’s first Division 1 Semifinal at Breslin Center. (Middle) Malaya Brown (24) looks to get to the lane with Belleville’s Sydney Savoury (31) defending. (Photos by Hockey Weekly Action Photos.)