New Cast Maintaining Marian's Success
By
Tom Markowski
Special for Second Half
January 28, 2016
BLOOMFIELD HILLS – When word leaked out last April that sisters Bailey and Samantha Thomas would be moving to Nevada and not returning to Bloomfield Hills Marian for the 2015-16 school year, reporters and basketball fans alike did a quick math equation.
Marian would graduate three seniors who started plus its top reserve and, with this news, would lose its top six players from a team that won the program’s second consecutive Class A title.
Everyone outside of Marian anticipated a changing of the guard. No longer would the Mustangs be the team to beat in the Detroit Catholic League, and any thoughts of a third consecutive title were dismissed.
That’s not all. Senior McKenna Landis, who would have been a three-year varsity player and the starting point guard, suffered a season-ending knee ligament injury in a non-basketball incident.
Mary Cicerone is in her 33rd season as head coach, and she’s uncertain whether she’s entered a season before where experience, and the amount of seniors, was at such a premium.
But as far as assessing coaches, Cicerone is at the top in maintaining a competitive edge, and thus, a positive outlook.
“Most of my players play more than one sport,” Cicerone said. “Many (five) play soccer. Another plays volleyball. For the first time, basketball is second fiddle to most of my players.
“We’re going to show up. I thought we’d be competitive. What are we, 9-3 now? I thought we should be 10-2. I’m competitive. I have some good athletes. We’re figuring out what they’re good at.”
Marian is 9-2 and, at 6-1, in first place in the league’s Central Division. Its lone division loss was at Warren Regina, 35-33, on a shot at the buzzer. Few would have thought this before the season but, at this point, Marian is the favorite to win the league title. Should the Mustangs win the title, it would be Cicerone’s 13th.
If it happens, it’s not a fluke. Like all of Cicerone’s teams, this one plays defense – and few teams, at least in Metro Detroit, play defense with more intensity than Marian.
Take the Regina game as an example. Marian trailed by 11 points late in the third quarter. The Mustangs forced 10 turnovers in the fourth quarter and nearly shocked the Saddlelites.
Maria Hickey and Elizabeth Grobbel are the only seniors on the team and quite possibly Cicerone’s hardest workers.
Hickey said it’s up to her and Grobbel to set an example for the younger players. Last season they earned valuable experience during and more so in practice going against the state’s best.
“We returned four players,” Hickey said. “We didn’t know McKenna would be out. We were very underestimated. We adjusted well. We had a target on our back. Everyone wants to say they beat the defending state champs.
“Defense has to be above the offense. Defense takes up 60, 70 percent of our practices. Maybe more. We press some. Our favorite is the man-to-man, full court. We never play zone. (Cicerone) laughs when we bring it up. We also run the 1-2-2 zone press. We call it the mustang. It’s risky. When it works, it works great. It changes things up.
“Experience? Every player has experience in the program. But not everyone has experience playing this type of defense.”
This team doesn’t have a go-to player. Grobbel, a 6-1 forward, might be the team’s top 3-point shooter. Lauren Montalbano, a 5-5 junior, is one of the best at going to the basket. And at point guard, Olivia Moore is a fine ball handler, but she’s a freshman still gaining varsity experience. Uche Ike, a 5-11 sophomore, is a strong and athletic post player but didn’t start playing basketball until the eighth grade and is still learning the fundamentals.
“I told the kids in the beginning that we’re not going to win because we’re great basketball players,” Cicerone said. “It’s our defense that will carry us. Many of them don’t pick up a basketball until November. I ask them, why shoot? You haven’t touched a basketball in months.”
Cicerone is all for her players to play other sports. And it’s these other sports that are their main ones. But it does try her patience when some compete in travel leagues or AAU events so much so they miss a practice here or there, and a game now and then.
On the other side of the coin, playing the other sports does contribute to their athleticism. For a team like Marian that relies heavily on defense, having good, all-around athletes is a plus.
Cicerone knows her team will have a challenge competing with Class A powers like Saginaw Heritage and Southfield-Lathrup in the MHSAA Tournament. But it’s not a stretch to forecast the Mustangs winning another league title, possibly a District title, and pulling off an upset in the Regionals.
Whatever the opposition, no matter how talented they are, Cicerone refuses to give in. Marian has won six MHSAA titles with her on the bench, and a coach doesn’t win that many by taking anything for granted.
“I’ve had my day in the sun,” Cicerone said. “I go up and down with my team. I don’t expect much on offense. But we can play defense.
“We’re not going to do what we’re not good at. We want them to do the things they are good at."
Tom Markowski is a columnist and directs website coverage for the State Champs! Sports Network. He previously covered primarily high school sports for the The Detroit News from 1984-2014, focusing on the Detroit area and contributing to statewide coverage of football and basketball. Contact him at [email protected] with story ideas for Oakland, Macomb and Wayne counties.
PHOTOS: (Top) Marian's Uche Ike works to move the ball upcourt against Farmington Hills Mercy. (Middle) Hannah Redoute works to corral a loose ball. (Below) Elizabeth Grobbel moves to the basket with a pair of Mercy players defending. (Photos courtesy of the Bloomfield Hills Marian athletic department.)
Summer Strides, Preseason Confidence Showing in Escanaba's Excellent Start
By
John Vrancic
Special for MHSAA.com
January 27, 2023
ESCANABA — So far, so good for the Escanaba girls basketball team. The Eskymos are 13-0 after rolling to a 65-36 triumph at Bark River-Harris last Friday, with three more wins already than all of last season.
Coach Tracy Hudson said everything started in a cornfield in Carney during the summer.
“We lost to Ewen-Trout Creek, West Iron County and Bark River-Harris in summer tournaments,” he added. “We were taking a step back and a step forward. We kind of found ourselves in a small gym at Carney-Nadeau. We had to go through some growing pains, but played real well at Michigan Tech and Marquette. We came out of the summer feeling we could be all right.”
They’ve been outstanding.
Coming off a 10-10 finish last season, Escanaba has won nine of its games by double digits under Hudson, who took over the girls program this season after leading the varsity boys from 1997-2022.
The Eskymos improved to 5-0 in the Great Northern Conference with a 62-46 triumph over Menominee on Jan. 16 and have a two-game lead in the league standings with three GNC games to play.
“It feels great to be where we are,” said senior forward Mari Bink, who averages 15.1 points a game. “We were confident coming into the season, but you never know what can happen. We enjoy playing together, and we’re having fun. It’s crazy, but we get excited.”
Hudson is happy with all the success as well but knows the Eskymos will be tested in the days to come. They visit Calumet (10-2) tonight and Houghton (12-1) on Feb. 3.
“The teams in the Keweenaw are very good,” he said. “We’re going to have to bring our A game. Our team motto is ‘All In.’ Coach (Lisa) Maki and the girls came up with it. We have to bring it every day. I think we still have a lot of room for growth.”
Still, Escanaba will enter those games having handed the lone loss to another of the elite teams from the Keweenaw. Sophomore center Grayson LaMarche scored the game-winner on a layup in the final 12 seconds of a 50-49 win over Hancock (11-1) on Jan. 13.
“They definitely have some good teams in the Copper Country,” said senior point guard Carney Salo, who was forced out of that game after hitting her head on the floor late in the third quarter. “I had a rough couple days, but it felt good playing in the Menominee game (three days later).
“I didn’t have any hesitation. We were able to take away (Menominee’s) passing lanes. Defense is the one thing you can control.”
Escanaba is giving up just under 46 points per game against a schedule that’s included wins over four teams with at least 10 wins and eight teams .500 or better. Rival Marquette would be a ninth over .500 if not for a sweep by the Eskymos.
Salo, who didn’t play last season due to an ACL injury, is averaging 7.3 points, 3.5 assists and 2.4 steals per game.
“A personal highlight is just getting a chance to play after missing last year,” she said. “I think that makes me more motivated, although you always want to give it your all.”
Junior forward Keira Maki, a 49-percent field goal shooter, scored 24 points and LaMarche added 13 at BR-H.
“That has become a good rivalry,” said Maki. “They’re quick, and they put a lot of pressure on you. They don’t give up. They’re definitely well coached.”
Maki is averaging 17.8 points, 9.9 rebounds, 1.9 blocked shots, four steals and 2.8 assists per game. She went down with an ankle injury during a 49-33 triumph at Alpena on Dec. 13 but returned in time to help the Eskymos post a 74-44 triumph at Gladstone two weeks later.
“Gladstone definitely has a good freshman (Lillie Johnson), but we put it all together and got the ball moving a lot,” said Maki. “They had a few other players we also had to stop. I felt I wasn’t as well prepared as I could have been if I hadn’t gotten injured at Alpena.”
The Eskymos opened this season with a 65-50 triumph at Marquette, then defeated Gaylord St. Mary (60-45) and the host Ramblers (50-42) in the McBain Invitational.
“We felt we needed to get a win at Marquette,” said Hudson. “Gaylord St. Mary and McBain were polar opposites and got on a little bit of a roll after that. The game with Sault Ste. Marie (a 62-57 victory) was a very big game here. That was similar to Hancock. We couldn’t relax for a moment.
“We’ve separated from the rest of the GNC teams a little and found a way to win the close games. We’re excited about where we’re at. It’s like whipped cream right now, but we’ve told the girls to keep the eye of the tiger and keep improving.”
Junior guard Saylor Henderson has provided timely shooting from outside, hitting 37 percent of her shots from 3-point range and 44 percent inside the arc. She’s averaging 7.2 points.
“The 3-point shot is a big part of our game, and Saylor is a green-light shooter for us,” said Hudson. “Because we play uptempo, we get good looks in transition. We’re also a good free throw shooting team (averaging 67 percent).”
Hudson said he also appreciates the help from the assistant coaches.
“Coach Maki has done a real good job,” he added. “She understands the girls, and our younger coaches (C.J. Barron and Darren Landis) absorb everything like a sponge.”
John Vrancic has covered high school sports in the Upper Peninsula since joining the Escanaba Daily Press staff in 1985. He is known most prominently across the peninsula for his extensive coverage of cross country and track & field that frequently appears in newspapers from the Wisconsin border to Lake Huron. He received the James Trethewey Award for Distinguished Service in 2015 from the Upper Peninsula Sportswriters and Sportscasters Association.
PHOTOS (Top) Escanaba's Keira Maki (12) leads a break against Menominee during a Jan. 16 victory. (Middle) Eskymos coach Tracy Hudson talks things over with his team during last Friday's win over Bark River-Harris. (Photos courtesy of RRNSports.com.)