King Rises Again to Reach Class A Final
March 18, 2016
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
EAST LANSING – Micaela Kelly was a big fan of the Detroit Martin Luther King football team in November when it won its first MHSAA championship since 2007.
Now she and her teammates are receiving that support in return as they pursue a first Class A title since 2006.
The Crusaders earned the opportunity for the first time since that championship season with a 56-48 Semifinal win over St. Johns on Friday at the Breslin Center.
King will next face Warren Cousino in the noon Final on Saturday seeking a sixth MHSAA championship – but first in nine seasons.
“It’s my last year of high school and I’ll never get this chance again. And I want to go to college with something,” said Kelly, who will continue her career next season at DePaul University. “(The football players) talk to me all day. They said, ‘We’ve got one. You should get one too.’ I look up to them; they worked hard.”
King (24-1) entered this postseason ranked No. 4 and always is in the conversation of the state’s elite. The Crusaders have made Quarterfinals four of the past five seasons and advanced to the Semifinals a year ago before falling to eventual Class A champion Bloomfield Hills Marian.
But they looked tough to beat Friday.
Kelly said because she’d never played St. Johns, she hoped her team would get off to a quick start – and she played a big part, making two 3-pointers as junior Tia Tedford drilled a third to give the Crusaders a quick 9-6 lead after their first three shots from the floor.
King ended up making half of its 3-pointers – nine total, and kept a 7 to 10-point lead most of the third and fourth quarters until St. Johns made a last run late to get as close as six during the final minute.
The Redwings had defeated three other top-10 teams during the tournament run and another twice during the regular season.
“We’ve played a lot of different styles, but King was a little different in the fact they shot really well from the perimeter consistently,” St. Johns coach Mark Lasceski said. “And shots that normally went in for us the past three weeks went off the front of the rim, rattling out, those types of things. In a game like this against a top-10 team like that, they have to go down for you to have a chance to win.”
Kelly led King with 18 points, hitting 5 of 7 shots from the floor including a pair of 3-pointers. Junior guard Alicia Norman made all three of her 3-point attempts and finished with 14 points, and sophomore guard Erica Whitley-Jackson also made three 3-pointers and finished with 10 points.
“If you’re a 3-point shooting team, you’re always going to have those highs and those lows. We always expect that, and hopefully our defense would hold up until we started hitting again,” 33-year King coach William Winfield said. “We wanted to make sure they were taking good shots, and that was the difference. They played with poise, very sure of themselves.”
St. Johns – playing in its first Semifinal since 1997 – got offensive contributions from a number of players. Sophomore guard Maddie Maloney led with 12 points and six assists, but five others scored at least five points.
Junior forward Jamie Carroll and junior guard Erika Ballinger each added eight. Senior Brooke Mazzolini had seven points, six rebounds and six assists, and with forward Jessica Hafner was one of only two seniors on the team.
“I felt we had a chance to win all game long,” said Lasceski, who completed his 20th season leading the program. “They hit shots, and we struggled at times.
“These kids … made this an outstanding season, for the St. Johns community, for the basketball program and for them. … Through this run, they grew together, as I would say, family. They’ve been one of the closest group of kids that I’ve coached.”
The Girls Basketball Finals are presented by Sparrow Health System.
PHOTOS: (Top) Detroit Martin Luther King’s Alicia Norman drives past a St. Johns defender Friday. (Middle) St. Johns’ Jessica Hafner looks for an open teammate as Jasmine Flowers (55) and Micaela Kelly defend.
Breslin Bound: 2021-22 Girls Report Week 10
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
February 7, 2022
Things may be winding down on the girls basketball regular season – but only in the fact that there are three weeks remaining until the playoffs begin.
Parma Western earned one of the most eye-popping wins of the winter last week, and this week may well feature two of the top matchups of this entire regular season.
“Breslin Bound” is powered by MI Student Aid and based on results and schedules posted for each school at MHSAA.com.
Week in Review
The countdown of last week’s five most intriguing results:
1. Parma Western 56, Ypsilanti Arbor Prep 55 The Panthers (14-1) handed Division 3 powerhouse Ypsilanti Arbor Prep (12-1) its lone defeat and just second game decided by single digits.
2. Portland St. Patrick 58, Fowler 51 (OT) The Shamrocks (14-0) strengthened their status as Division 4 contenders by completing a regular-season sweep of league rival and reigning Division 4 champ Fowler (11-2).
3. Harbor Springs 57, Traverse City St. Francis 47 The Lake Michigan Conference has four teams within two wins of each other at the top of the standings, and Harbor Springs (14-1) has a slim lead on the field after this win over the Gladiators (10-4).
4. Grass Lake 61, Detroit Renaissance 57 The reigning Division 3 champ Warriors (9-4) would have been excused for falling back after losing their top player to a season-ending injury in December, but this win over the 2021 Division 1 runner-up Phoenix (10-4) reaffirmed Grass Lake as a challenger.
5. St. Ignace 47, Sault Ste. Marie 36 The Saints (13-2) avenged a 51-29 loss to the Blue Devils (11-4) from Dec. 16 to move into first alone in the Straits Area Conference.
Watch List
With an eye toward March, here are two teams in each division making sparks:
Division 1
Farmington Hills Mercy (12-2) The Marlins enter the final week of Detroit Catholic League Central play tied for first after avenging their lone league loss, to co-leader Dearborn Divine Child (14-1), on Jan. 28. Mercy’s only other defeat came in December to Brighton (9-5), and the Marlins sit second in Division 1 MPR behind only reigning champion Hudsonville.
Rockford (13-1) The Rams are No. 3 in Division 1 MPR, helping to make Friday’s rematch at top-ranked Hudsonville one of the state’s biggest games of the entire season. The Eagles won the first meeting 62-48 on Jan. 14, but the Rams otherwise have piled up impressive victories over Byron Center (11-2), Grand Rapids Catholic Central (11-3), Grand Rapids West Catholic (13-1) and Holland West Ottawa (10-4) among others.
Division 2
Chelsea (11-2) The Bulldogs have a 1½-game lead in the Southeastern Conference White after handing second-place Tecumseh its only loss and with that rematch coming up Feb. 22. Chelsea’s only defeats were to reigning Division 2 champ Portland (13-1) and Marshall (10-5), and it has wins over Freeland (11-4), Riverview (11-4), Stockbridge (10-4) and Grass Lake (9-4) among others.
Redford Westfield Prep (15-1) In its third year as a program, Westfield is a contender with an impressive set of wins and its only loss 54-51 to Arbor Prep (see above). The Warriors defeated Detroit Cass Tech and Kalamazoo Central by double digits most recently, with wins as well over Dexter (12-2), Riverview (11-4), Grand Blanc (10-4), Hart (12-2) and Rochester Hills Stoney Creek (11-4).
Division 3
Kent City (15-0) The Eagles’ only loss last season was by two to Grass Lake in the Division 3 Final, and they haven’t slowed a bit under first-year coach Aleah Holcomb despite also graduating two of the state’s most prolific 3-point shooters of the last few seasons. Friday’s 50-38 win over second-place Morley Stanwood (11-3) put Kent City a win from clinching a share of the Central State Activities Association Silver title. The Eagles also have wins over Grand Rapids Christian (10-4) and Sparta (11-2).
McBain (14-2) The Ramblers are a combined 28-3 over the last two seasons and looking to finish a Highland Conference championship run after sharing last season’s title with Lake City. McBain lost to Lake City 44-42 on Jan. 18 but have a half-game lead in the standings with the rematch with the Trojans (13-1) set for Feb. 17. McBain’s only other defeat was in the season opener to Big Rapids (9-5), and last week the Ramblers finished a regular-season sweep of Northern Michigan Christian (10-3).
Division 4
Bellaire (9-4) Last season’s Division 4 runner-up navigated a rough stretch early, finishing December with three straight losses. But over the last two weeks the Eagles have avenged all three including handing Gaylord St. Mary (13-2) its lone league defeat, 36-25 on Feb. 2. Lake City (13-1) and Mackinaw City (14-1) will present challenges over the next two weeks, and Bellaire also will get a chance to avenge its fourth defeat with a rematch against Johannesburg-Lewiston (9-3) on Feb. 15.
Colon (11-2) The Magi are riding a two-season District title run and have a chance to affect the Southern Central Athletic Association West race this week with a rematch Thursday against Athens – which defeated Colon on Jan. 14. The Magi’s only other loss was two weeks ago to Pittsford (8-3), and they have a slim lead after Athens for the second seed in their District – with an important opportunity to up their MPR at Schoolcraft (12-1) on Feb. 16.
Can't-Miss Contests
Be on the lookout for results of these games coming up:
Tuesday – Howell (11-3) at Hartland (13-1) – Howell won the first meeting 37-31 on Jan. 11 to take its current one-game lead in the Kensington Lakes Activities Association West.
Tuesday – Sparta (11-2) at Belding (12-1) – Both are undefeated in Ottawa-Kent Conference Silver play and will see each other again less than a week later, Feb. 14.
Friday – Rockford (13-1) at Hudsonville (12-2) – As noted above, the Eagles lead the O-K Red and handed second-place Rockford its only defeat.
Friday – Detroit Edison (6-2) at Ypsilanti Arbor Prep (12-1) – These two could make strong arguments to be the favorites in Divisions 2 and 3, respectively, as the postseason approaches.
Friday – Saginaw Swan Valley (13-2) at Frankenmuth (12-1) – The Eagles’ 42-30 win over the Vikings on Jan. 7 remains the difference at the top of the Tri-Valley Conference 8 race.
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.
PHOTO Flint Carman-Ainsworth defenders create a wall near the basket during last week’s 56-40 win over Davison. (Photo by Terry Lyons.)