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 9
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
January 31, 2022
As February begins, some key dates should be on your girls basketball calendar:
In two weeks, Feb. 14, the MHSAA will announce the formula for drawing this season’s District tournaments.
On Feb. 20, Districts will be posted with the top-two seeded teams on opposite sides of those brackets.
On Feb. 28, those Districts will begin play and the MHSAA Tournament will be underway.
For a more detailed explanation of the seeding process, click here. Otherwise, sit back and enjoy – league tournaments for those playing them begin over the next few weeks, and the rest are rolling into the second runs through conference play with plenty of major matchups anchoring the calendar’s shortest month.
“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. Farmington Hills Mercy 46, Dearborn Divine Child 43 With a week left in the league schedule, the Marlins (11-2) are back tied for first in the Detroit Catholic League Central after a Jan. 11 loss to Divine Child (12-1) had left them chasing the last few weeks.
2. Detroit Cass Tech 62, Detroit Renaissance 61 (OT) The Detroit Public School League schedule also finishes this week, and this shook up the Blue standings as Renaissance (9-2) hadn’t lost in league play.
3. Dexter 43, Saline 39 The Dreadnaughts (10-2) closed the first half of the Southeastern Conference Red schedule in first after handing Saline (11-1) its first loss.
4. Rockford 47, Holland West Ottawa 20 The Rams (12-1) kept pace a game back of leader Hudsonville in the Ottawa-Kent Conference Blue, while also knocking West Ottawa (10-3) out of a tie for first.
5. Escanaba 56, Calumet 50 The Eskymos (7-5) have won five straight and with this victory handed Calumet (11-1) its lone defeat, with a rematch coming up Feb. 11.
Watch List
With an eye toward March, here are two teams in each division making sparks:
Division 1
Macomb L’Anse Creuse North (13-1) The Crusaders have put together four straight winning seasons and are playing for a third-straight league title this winter – plus likely much more. LCN is a combined 31-2 over the last two seasons after reaching the Division 1 Quarterfinals last year, and the only loss this winter came in mid-December to Grosse Pointe North (10-1) – a possible Quarterfinals opponent this March.
Wayne Memorial (11-1) After falling to Division 3 contender Ypsilanti Arbor Prep in its season opener, Wayne Memorial has not been defeated and rarely challenged. The Zebras are in first in the Kensington Lakes Activities Association East and own a 40-point win over the second-place team, and their first win this winter was by 17 over 2021 Division 1 runner-up Detroit Renaissance. Wayne had fallen to Renaissance 75-72 in last year’s Semifinal.
Division 2
Detroit Edison (5-1) The Pioneers are again considered the top team in Michigan regardless of division, with their lone loss in double overtime to Indiana power South Bend Washington on Dec. 11. Edison has had four games canceled, but finally had an opportunity to play a full week and defeated Division 1 East Lansing (8-4) and Parma Western (11-1), to go with an earlier win over reigning Division 1 champion Hudsonville. Edison makes a trip to Illinois this weekend, but has intriguing back-to-back games with Farmington Hills Mercy and Arbor Prep coming up.
Portland (11-1) The reigning Division 2 champion made a couple of loud statements last week, adding the best wins of a big start 45-21 over Division 1 East Lansing and 40-34 over Haslett (10-2). The only loss this winter came to league rival Lansing Catholic by three on Jan. 14 – and the Raiders host the rematch Feb. 18, with dates against Detroit Renaissance and Division 4 contender Fowler also coming up.
Division 3
Bloomingdale (11-1) The Cardinals are lined up well to win at least 15 games for the third season over the last four (and after going 11-4 during last year’s abbreviated winter). They also control their destiny as they look to repeat in the Southwest 10 Conference, thanks to an assist from third-place Mendon, which defeated co-leader Hartford last week. Hartford won the first round against Bloomingdale by six Jan. 11, with the rematch at Hartford in the regular-season finale Feb. 22. Bloomingdale defeated Mendon (10-2) by six Jan. 19.
Brooklyn Columbia Central (10-2) The Golden Eagles moved into first place alone in the Lenawee County Athletic Association last week by completing a season sweep of former co-leader Blissfield (10-4). Columbia Central then hung on to first by avenging its lone league loss with Thursday’s 51-46 win over third-place Onsted (9-5). Next up is last season’s Division 3 champ Grass Lake, and Division 4 contender Adrian Lenawee Christian will provide a solid challenge heading into the playoffs.
Division 4
Bay City All Saints (7-2) The Cougars opened their current four-game winning streak with a 33-28 win over Carsonville-Port Sanilac, the second-place team in the North Central Thumb League Stripes. Thanks to that victory, All Saints leads the division as it looks to add a second title in three seasons; the Cougars were second last year while getting in only seven games total. The team’s two losses this winter were to contenders in the NCTL Stars.
Pickford (7-1) The Pirates finished the first half of the Eastern Upper Peninsula Conference schedule undefeated in league play and won those five games by an average of 27.6 points per. But the most telling result might have been the team’s lone loss; Pickford’s 2018-19 and 2019-20 seasons ended with District losses to St. Ignace, but the Pirates fell only 58-56 to the Saints (11-2) on Jan. 19 and see them again Tuesday.
Can't-Miss Contests
Be on the lookout for results of these games coming up:
Tuesday – Portland St. Patrick (13-0) at Fowler (11-1) – The Central Michigan Athletic Conference title and a top District seed may be on the line as Fowler looks to avenge a 53-49 loss in the first meeting Dec. 17 between these Division 4 contenders.
Wednesday – Lansing Catholic (13-0) at Ypsilanti Arbor Prep (11-0) – The Cougars are No. 5 in Division 2 MPR, and Arbor Prep is No. 1 in Division 3.
Thursday – Traverse City St. Francis (10-3) at Harbor Springs (12-1) – The Gladiators have a half-game lead atop the Lake Michigan Conference thanks to a 54-37 win in these teams’ Jan. 12 meeting.
Friday – Morley Stanwood (11-1) at Kent City (13-0) – Kent City won the Dec. 17 meeting 65-55 and can move within a game of clinching the Central State Activities Association Silver title by completing a sweep.
Friday – Sault Ste. Marie (10-3) at St. Ignace (11-2) – These are considered among the best in Divisions 2 and 3, respectively, and sit tied for first in the Straits Area Conference with St. Ignace winning the Dec. 16 meeting 51-29.
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 Fowler, here against Bath, will face Portland St. Patrick this week in one of the season’s most anticipated rematches. (Photo by Christine McCallister.)