Marian Wins Rematch of Top-Ranked in A
March 20, 2015
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
EAST LANSING – Bloomfield Hills Marian is the reigning Class A girls basketball champion.
But sophomore guard Samantha Thomas admitted Friday the Mustangs were nervous the first time they faced Detroit Martin Luther King this season, on Feb. 26.
Marian didn’t see always-powerful King during its championship run. The Mustangs did win that first meeting this winter, but by only one point.
Nerves aside for their Class A Semifinal rematch, the story unfolded much differently – but with a similar ending.
Top-ranked Marian never trailed after the first five minutes and furthered its already-impressive body of work this season by downing the No. 2 Crusaders 57-37 at the Breslin Center.
“I think today we were ready for them. We actually played with confidence,” Williams said. “The last game we were nervous. We’d never played them. Today we went out and played the best we could.”
On Saturday, the Mustangs can prove for the second straight season that no other team in Class A can play better. They’ll take on DeWitt in the noon Final at Michigan State.
Marian’s surge in confidence was just one change from the first meeting. Coach Mary Cicerone made some adjustments to the Mustangs’ stingy man-to-man defense designed to make life a little harder on King senior point guard Janae Williams, who had 17 points in February.
Williams scored a game-high 18 points this time, but eight came on free throws as she had a tougher time driving to the basket against additional defensive attention.
“In this particular game, they were a little bit more aggressive,” King coach William Winfield said. “They took us out of what we wanted to do, which was good on their part. We did the same thing when we played them (the first time).
“They put a lot of pressure on my point guard, and that was it. Any time you have a situation when they take my point guard out of the game, now we have problems.”
Thomas scored with 36 seconds left in the first quarter to launch an 11-2 run that put Marian ahead 20-11 three minutes into the second. The Crusaders cut the deficit back to seven points three minutes later, but never got closer.
Thomas had 12 points and a game-high eight rebounds, plus three blocked shots. Senior guard Jaeda Robinson led Marian with 15 points and senior forward Brittany Gray added 14 as the team made 50 percent of its shots from the floor.
Senior center Malaysia McHenry added 12 points and eight rebounds for the Crusaders (24-2); she and Williams both were four-year varsity players for Winfield and led this first King run to the Semifinals since 2006.
Marian (25-1) is undefeated against in-state competition, its only loss to Chicago Whitney Young. The Mustangs are 50-3 over the last two seasons – and beat the team that handed them their 2013-14 losses, rival Farmington Hills Mercy, in last year’s Semifinal.
Four starters from last season’s championship game likely will be in the lineup Saturday, and Robinson was the team’s top sub a year ago.
“This is what we planned for. Nothing else would’ve been satisfactory,” Cicerone said. “I’m sure you’d see a lot of tears if we weren’t here. But they came to play today, and I’m very proud of them.”
Click for the full box score and video from the press conference.
PHOTOS: (Top) Marian’s Samantha Thomas works to get past King’s Leah Mathis during Friday’s Class A Semifinal. (Middle) King’s Janae Williams starts the offense; she finished with a game high 18 points. Bailey Thomas defends for Marian.
New-Look Kent City Blazing Same Successful Playoff Path
By
Tom Kendra
Special for MHSAA.com
March 7, 2022
Taryn Preston doesn’t see why the “in-between” year can’t be the magical year when Kent City wins its first MHSAA Finals girls basketball championship.
Preston scored 10 points and grabbed five rebounds as the Eagles stayed unbeaten with a hard-earned 36-33 victory over host Morley Stanwood in Friday’s Division 3 District Final.
“Our experience pulls us through in games like this,” explained Preston, one of just two seniors, along with post Emma Geers.
“We are a different team than last year, but everyone knows what they have to do when they step on the floor, and that’s really important.”
Last year, Kent City made it all the way to the Finals at the Breslin Center before losing to top-ranked Grass Lake 52-50 in the championship game.
Most outsiders expected a letdown this winter as the Eagles graduated two of the state’s best 3-point shooters in Kenzie Bowers (Illinois State) and Jenna Harrison (Siena Heights), and the team’s two best players this year are underclassmen – sophomore Maddie Geers and junior Lexie Bowers.
Adding to the question marks, 12-year head coach Scott Carlson resigned in October and took an assistant coaching job at Western Michigan University, turning the reins over to his former player and five-year junior varsity coach Aleah Holcomb, who is just 26 years old.
The final hurdle was injuries, as both of the team’s seniors missed extended time with injuries – Emma Geers six weeks with a knee injury and Preston three weeks with an Achilles strain.
Despite all of that, the Eagles have found a way to win every game to maintain their lofty No. 2 state ranking, winning their fifth-straight Central States Activities Association Silver title and now their fifth-straight District title.
Kent City (22-0) will face Muskegon Western Michigan Christian (17-4) in Tuesday’s 5:30 p.m. Division 3 Regional opener at Grand Rapids NorthPointe Christian.
“I am amazed by the determination and drive of these girls – that never changes,” said Holcomb, who is assisted by Mikayla Loew, another former Kent City player. “We have a great system in place here. We just had to tweak a few things, the way we do every year, and these girls have made it an easy transition.”
Holcomb’s calm sideline demeanor and respect for her players has helped with the coaching transition, to be sure.
Holcomb and her team kept their cool in Friday’s District title game, even after Morley tied the game at 32 with four minutes remaining, bringing the upset-minded home crowd to its feet.
The first-year coach actually went to a four-corners offense, keeping the ball away from the Mohawks and eventually drawing fouls. The Eagles made 4-of-6 free throws down the stretch to pull out the win.
“We were in foul trouble, so the more time we could spend on offense, the better,” explained Holcomb. “I believe in our girls’ ability to handle the ball. It was a risky call, but it worked out.”
Kent City made a statement during the first month of this season, registering a huge, season-opening road win at Muskegon, then downing Ada Forest Hills Eastern and Grand Rapids Christian to capture the Cornerstone University Holiday Tournament Gold division title. Maddie Geers won the tournament Most Valuable Player honor.
While Carlson’s KC teams were known statewide for their 3-point shooting prowess, this year’s team is more diverse in its attack.
Maddie Geers and Bowers are excellent at slashing to the basket, while the senior duo of Emma Geers and Preston have proven their toughness inside.
“We can still knock down the 3s, but we revolve more around our inside game,” said Holcomb, who played college basketball at Davenport University in Grand Rapids. “Having girls that can get inside and make tough shots is just another asset that we have on this team.”
One of those girls is Preston, a three-sport athlete who is the star on her other two teams and more of a role player on the basketball court.
Preston, who is near the top of her class academically, is an all-state hurdler who signed in December with Cornerstone University, where she will run track and study nursing. She was also the leading hitter for the Eagles’ volleyball team, averaging 4.5 kills per game last fall.
She credits her teammates with helping her improve on the hardcourt.
“The girls on the basketball team have pushed me, and this year I’m a lot more confident in myself,” said Preston. “I don’t have a sister of my own, but I consider every single one of them to be a sister.”
Preston is a versatile player who is willing to do all of the little things the team needs to win, according to Holcomb.
The senior nailed two crucial 3-pointers Friday night, and when the team went cold from downtown, she drove to the basket and made a pair of key buckets. Kent City had one of its poorest shooting nights of the year, making just 4-of-25 shots from behind the arc.
Preston knows the team will have to shoot better if it hopes to win another Regional title – but she believes in her team.
“We are very versatile this year, so we can overcome a bad shooting night,” Preston said. “We have the skills and we have the mindset, so I really believe that we can get back (to the Breslin).”
Tom Kendra worked 23 years at The Muskegon Chronicle, including five as assistant sports editor and the final six as sports editor through 2011. E-mail him at [email protected] with story ideas for Muskegon, Oceana, Mason, Lake, Oceola, Mecosta and Newaygo counties.
PHOTOS (Top) Kent City celebrates its Division 3 District title win Friday against Morley Stanwood. (Middle) Lexie Bowers (23) begins making her move toward the basket. (Photos courtesy of the Kent City athletic department.)