When Shots Don't Fall, Arbor Prep Turns to Defense to Lock Up Latest Title
By
Dean Holzwarth
Special for MHSAA.com
March 23, 2024
EAST LANSING – Ypsilanti Arbor Prep experienced one of its worst shooting performances of the season in Saturday’s Division 3 Final.
But instead of dwelling on missed opportunities, they relied on the one thing they know they do well – play defense.
Arbor Prep held Niles Brandywine to its lowest scoring output of the season in earning a gritty 33-30 win at Michigan State University’s Breslin Center.
“We have very good athletes and every single one of these girls is tough,” Gators coach Scott Stine said. “And they are committed to playing defense. They are committed to doing what we do as a system, and we don't win this game without defense.
“These kids are special, and even on our worst offensive day, they stuck to the Arbor Prep way. They played defense and rebounded the ball, and they are state champions.”
Arbor Prep (25-4) won its second Division 3 Final in the last three seasons despite shooting a dismal 25 percent (12-48) from the field, including 11 percent (2 of 19) from 3-point range.
Senior Taylor Wallace struggled to find her shooting touch, but had four steals to go with eight points.
“I had good looks and they just didn't go in, so I knew I had to find other ways to help people out,” Wallace said. “I started anticipating and got some pretty good steals on defense. People say defense wins championships, and as you can see defense won us a championship.”
The Utomi twins, seniors Stephanie and Stacy, combined for 16 points and 15 rebounds to lead the Gators. Stephanie Utomi had nine points, five rebounds and a game-high six steals, while her sister grabbed a game-high 10 rebounds and chipped in seven points.
“We knew this was our last game in our high school career, and the whole message from Coach was ‘be tired tomorrow,’” Stacy Utomi said. “Be tired later, because this is it. I just wanted to make sure I gave my team extra possessions.”
Added Stephanie Utomi: “We took a deep breath before the second half and just took what was there. It was about trusting our teammates, and we had a few key plays here and there. It took all of us to win.”
Stine was pleased with this team’s ability to value each possession. The Gators registered only seven turnovers.
“They took care of it against a very good defensive team, and if we don’t do that then we don’t win the game,” Stine said. “We forced 18 (turnovers), and that’s the stat I was looking at. We won that battle.”
Arbor Prep’s shooting woes had a lot to do with Brandywine, according to Stine.
“We didn’t shoot the ball well, but I’m going to give them credit for that,” he said. “They have good athletes, and they play sound man-to-man defense. I truly believe it was the two best teams in Division 3 that got to play today.”
Brandywine held a slim 7-6 lead after the first quarter despite four turnovers and giving up five offensive rebounds.
Back-to-back steals and ensuing layups by Wallace gave the Gators a 10-7 advantage early in the second quarter.
Wallace knocked down a corner 3 during the final seconds of the first half to help Arbor Prep to a 15-9 edge at the break. It was the Gators’ first 3-pointer of the half after 12 straight misses.
Arbor Prep extended its lead to 18-9 early in the third quarter, but Brandywine closed the gap to 21-19 later in the quarter after five straight points from junior Adeline Gill.
The Bobcats wouldn’t get any closer, though, and a 9-1 run by Arbor Prep and stout defense during the final quarter gave them a cushion late.
The Gators led 31-21 with 58 seconds left before Brandywine made three consecutive 3-pointers over the final 32 seconds.
Poor free throw shooting (2-10) and turnovers led to the Bobcats’ demise. They also allowed 13 offensive rebounds.
Their previous low for points was 38 against Vicksburg in their only other loss of the season.
“It was a defensive slugfest,” Brandywine coach Josh Hood said. “We had our opportunities, and you got to be able to make free throws, and I have to do a better job of putting our players in situations to be able to score.
“I’m really proud of our girls and their effort against a really good Arbor Prep team that has been here five times since their coach arrived there.”
Junior Adelyn Drotoz knocked down three 3-pointers for Brandywine and finished with nine points, while senior Kadence Brumitt added seven points and nine rebounds.
PHOTOS (Top) Arbor Prep’s Taylor Wallace (5) brings the ball upcourt Saturday with Brandywine’s Ellie Knapp (1) applying pressure. (Middle) Gators coach Scott Stine presents the championship trophy to his team. (Below) Stacy Utomi (24) tries to get up a shot over the Bobcats’ Adeline Gill. (Photos by Hockey Weekly Action Photos.)
Breslin Bound: 2022-23 Girls Report Week 12
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
February 20, 2023
The seeds for this season’s District brackets are set as nearly 700 Michigan girls basketball teams are finishing up their regular seasons this week in advance of the playoffs beginning Feb. 27.
Brackets were seeded and filled Sunday, and published here for all four divisions:
Division 1 | Division 2 | Division 3 | Division 4
This will be the last of our regular-season “Breslin Bound” reports, as next week we switch the format up a bit while previewing several of the strongest Districts across the state.
“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. Ann Arbor Gabriel Richard 41, Farmington Hills Mercy 27 The Irish (17-3) won the season series with Mercy (17-3), following up their league schedule split with this victory in the Detroit Catholic League Bishop championship game.
2. Grosse Pointe North 36, Utica Ford 28 A Feb. 7 matchup was canceled, but these league champions met after all as North (17-2) claimed the Macomb Area Conference Red/White Tournament title against the Falcons (17-2).
3. Dansville 43, Fowler 38 (OT) The Aggies (17-1) clinched a share of the Central Michigan Athletic Conference championship in memorable fashion by completing a regular-season sweep of the two-time reigning Division 4 champion Eagles (13-7).
4. Frankenmuth 46, Freeland 39 (OT) The Eagles (17-2) ran their Tri-Valley Conference 8 winning streak to 41 in clinching a share of a third-straight league title, with their last TVC loss coming in 2020 to the Falcons (15-5).
5. Rockford 50, Haslett 36 This matchup of league champions saw Rockford move to 19-1 in handing Haslett (20-1) its only defeat.
Watch List
With an eye toward March, here are two teams in each division making sparks:
DIVISION 1
Coldwater (19-1) The Cardinals made a jump from three wins just two seasons ago to 12-10 last winter and now near-perfect and in position to at least share the Interstate 8 Athletic Conference championship. Coldwater avenged that lone loss, 50-46 to Jackson Northwest on Jan. 10, with a 57-51 victory Feb. 7. Those two are tied for the league lead with two games left to play for both. Coldwater also earned the top seed at the Battle Creek Lakeview District.
North Farmington (20-0) The Raiders are another notable story of a quick turnaround as they’ve gone from six wins two seasons ago to 12-9 last winter to undefeated. They lead the Oakland Activities Association White by a game over Oxford and face the Wildcats on Tuesday with an opportunity to clinch the championship outright. North Farmington also earned the second seed in the District it will be hosting next week.
DIVISION 2
Marysville (16-4) The Vikings have won 11 of their last 12 games, along the way clinching the MAC Blue championship and winning the MAC Blue/Gold Tournament last week with a 41-22 victory over Marine City (15-4). Marysville also avenged an early loss to St. Clair (14-6) in the tournament semifinal, and earned the top seed in the District hosted by Armada as the Vikings seek to build on last year’s Quarterfinal run.
Wayland (17-3) The Wildcats had averaged nearly 14 wins over the last three seasons, so they’ve grown accustomed to being in the mix. But this winter has seen another step forward, as Wayland has won 13 of its last 14 games and clinched a share of the Ottawa-Kent Conference Gold title with a 46-39 victory Friday over Grand Rapids South Christian – which had handed the Wildcats their most recent defeat, 54-48 on Jan. 20. Wayland also earned a top District seed, at Hopkins, with its only other losses to Byron Center (17-3) and Grand Rapids West Catholic (19-0).
DIVISION 3
Ithaca (17-3) The Yellowjackets have bounced back from a two-game stumble near the end of January to earn a chance to clinch a share of the Tri-Valley Conference 10-2 title Friday. They’re tied atop the league with Saginaw Valley Lutheran – with which they split their regular-season series – and Ithaca earned the second seed in one of the strongest Districts in Division 3, at Bath. Ithaca is up to No. 9 overall in Division 3 MPR, with wins over Valley Lutheran (17-3) and Standish-Sterling (17-3) among 10 total over teams with winning records.
Watervliet (16-4) The Panthers finished a perfect run through the Southwestern Athletic Conference Lakeshore last week with a second win over Bridgman (15-4), with that pair and another over SAC Central champion Martin (15-4) among the most notable victories next also to strong losses to Buchanan (18-1), Benton Harbor (13-8), Kalamazoo Christian (17-3) and Stevensville Lakeshore (14-5). Watervliet will be the top seed next week at Bloomingdale.
DIVISION 4
Ontonagon (15-5) The Gladiators have won 15 games for the second-straight season and at least 13 for the fifth consecutive, and they’ve clinched a title share of the Porcupine Mountain division of the Copper Mountain Conference. Ontonagon is the top seed at next week’s District at Bessemer and is 9-0 this season against the other teams in the bracket, with a pair of wins over second seed Ewen-Trout Creek part of the team’s best work. The Gladiators also have a sweep of Lake Linden-Hubbell (15-5) and notable losses to Baraga (16-4) twice, Hancock (17-1) and Calumet (15-4).
Petersburg Summerfield (18-2) A 46-28 win over Morenci on Thursday avenged a 48-41 loss from Jan. 17 and locked up a shared Tri-County Conference championship between the two. Summerfield also sits No. 15 overall in Division 4 MPR and is the top seed at next week’s District at Britton Deerfield. The Bulldogs’ only other loss this season was to Division 2 Ida, 50-42 on Dec. 6, and they defeated Manchester and East Jackson at the end of that month to win Adrian College’s holiday tournament.
Can’t-Miss Contests
Be on the lookout for results of these games coming up:
Tuesday – Holt (17-3) at DeWitt (18-2) – The Rams own a share of the Capital Area Activities Conference Blue title thanks to a 55-53 win over the Panthers from Jan. 31, but DeWitt still has a chance to earn a share as well.
Thursday – Lake City (19-1) at McBain (16-4) – Three teams still have a chance to earn a piece of the Highland Conference title, with this matchup determining if Lake City claims it outright or shares it with McBain and Evart.
Thursday – Wixom St. Catherine (19-1) at Riverview (18-2) – These two will get some more valuable postseason prep with Riverview No. 16 in Division 1 MPR and St. Catherine No. 7 in Division 2.
Thursday – Detroit Renaissance (18-0) at Ann Arbor Father Gabriel Richard (17-3) – The champions of the Detroit Public School League and Catholic League Bishop tournaments, respectively, meet in the annual Operation Friendship game.
Thursday – Farwell (16-4) at Sanford Meridian (18-1) – Should both win (or both lose) Tuesday, this will determine if Meridian wins the Jack Pine Conference title outright or shares it with the Eagles.
MHSAA.com'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 North Farmington's Penelope Creary (3) brings the ball upcourt during her team's Feb. 16 win over Rochester Adams. (Photo courtesy of the North Farmington athletic department.)