Class B Champions - Lansing Catholic
Lansing Catholic 54 Flint Powers Catholic 53
After each team warmed up a bit and before they went back into the locker room for final instructions, both catholic schools gathered around the S at midcourt and said a prayer together. The game hadn’t even started and they were showing good sportsmanship towards each other. Lansing won the tip and Powers blocked it out of bounds. Powers struck first with a three by Shane Moreland. Max Gover was called for kicking the ball and he didn’t like that, saying he didn’t kick it. It’s much louder for this game than it was for the Class A game…maybe because Lansing Catholic is in town. The score was tied on Austin Nichols three point shot and LC took the lead on Michael Murry’s three pointer, but the game was tied up again by Power’s Patrick Lucas-Perry. Both teams ran a half court offense and didn’t contest anyone until they were almost to the three point line. With 39 seconds left in the first, Moreland made a reverse layup and was fouled, and made the free throw. Another three point shot by Moreland ended the scoring in the first quarter with Powers ahead 18-14. You know how long the first quarter lasted? 13 minutes including a TV time out!
It took almost a minute and a half for anyone to score in the second quarter, a short two foot shot by LC, followed quickly by a three point shot from Power’s O’Brien 10 seconds later. Powers finally picked up their first team foul at the 5:27 mark of the second quarter. It’s a clean game and no one is getting too physical. LC pulled within one at the 4:30 mark but that was quickly answered by Moreland. Lucus-Perry from Powers is an excellent ball handler. He lost control of the ball but was still able to dribble it away from a few people…and he’s only a freshman! The game kept close through the 1:30 mark and it was tied at 27 with 1:10 on the clock. Nichols hit a three with less than a minute to take a slim advantage. Powers hit a short shot to pull within one and LC’s final shot, a one foot put back, gave them a 32-29 halftime advantage.
Coming out of halftime, Powers turned the ball over on an illegal screen. A steal lead to a Lucus-Perry layup. He’s showing a lot of composure for a guy who probably doesn’t even have his driver’s permit yet. Powers regained the lead at the 6:32 mark on a layup but it didn’t last log as LC coming right back with a short shot of their own. The lead kept exchanging hands. Past the half way point in the third quarter the lead was only one point for Lansing Catholic. Gover came through with a big block on O’Brien at the three minute mark. Repovz had a fantastic game for LC through the end of the third quarter. O’Brien drove the lane, hit the shot, and drew the foul to give Powers the lead again. The officiating was fantastic all day with the exception of a few questionable calls, but they had a better vantage point than I did. Powers got the largest lead I could remember in the game with a 44-40 advantage going into the fourth quarter.
The fourth quarter began without scoring in the first minute and Powers took a time out to talk about everything. Two minutes in and still no one had scored until LC’s Gover made a shot with 5:30 to play. Neither team was giving an inch and the fourth quarter reached its half way point as LC took a two point lead on a Murry layup. Powers answered right back. Repovz kept his great game going through the fourth quarter, but picked up his third foul. Powers hit both free throws, tied the game, stole the ball twice and took a four point lead. Lansing scored to make it a two point game again with less than two minute to go. Powers began their stall and the Cougars responded by fouling. Another foul put both teams into the bonus. Yet another foul put Moreland at the line for a one and one try. He missed and LC took the ball to the hoop for two to tie the game. Another foul put O’Brien at the line. He missed the first shot and made the second to give Powers a one point advantage. Moreland stole the ball for Powers and was fouled on the way to the hoop. His first attempt, with 32.4 seconds missed and his second missed as well. LC took the ball down the court with 30 seconds, stalled a bit, and Gover hit a 15 footer with 10.5 seconds left. Powers immediately calls a time out. Powers inbounds, drives, and missed the shot. Lansing Catholic pulls down the rebound and wins 54-53. The game lasted a total one hour and 33 minutes, after a very slow fourth quarter.
This concludes my prep section on the blog for the year. I hope you’ve enjoyed reading my columns as I’ve enjoyed writing them. A special thanks to Hondo for giving me this opportunity.
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