MHSAA Basketball Report - Post State Title/Final Edition
It’s all over! Four new Kings of the Court in Michigan have been crowned. This past weekend, the Jack Breslin Student Event Center on the campus of Michigan State University held a tremendous spectacle of the best basketball teams in the state. Two were first time winners of a basketball title. Three were blowouts. Let’s take a look at each section for one last time.
Class A
Detroit Western 62 Saginaw Arthur Hill 59
This was a close game. A third quarter roll by the Cowboys made a comeback very difficult. The Lumberjacks did their best but couldn’t make up all the difference. Leading the way for Detroit Western was Josh McFolley. McFolley was one of two (Gerald Blackshear was the other) transfers from Mount Clemens. He had 19 points, six steals, and five assists for Western. Blackshear scored 16, blocked a shot, and grabbed 12 rebounds in the winning effort. Karim Murray scored 15, had five rebounds, and blocked a shot. For Arthur Hill, Brian Bowen led his team with 21 points, grabbed 11 rebounds, blocked two shots, stole one, and tossed one assist. Eric Davis scored 15, had six rebounds, tossed three assists, and stole one ball before he fouled out late in the fourth quarter. Billy Burton chipped in 10 points, two assists, and a rebound.
Class B
Wyoming Godwin Heights 85 Detroit Henry Ford 68
It was a tough season for Godwin Heights. They lost their head coach to a family crisis, had a JV player killed, and were still able to persevere to win a state title. Delaney Blaylock led GH with 19 points, 10 rebounds, and two blocks. Leon Redd has 13 points and two steals while Michael Williams also scored 13, grabbed nine rebounds, and tossed four assists. Richard Major scored 12 and had five rebounds. For Henry Ford, Josh Davis led the way with 16 points, 11 rebounds, and two assists. James Towns had 15 points, six assists, and two steals.
Class C
Flint Beecher 78 Grand Rapids NorthPointe Christian 52
Beecher won their fifth Class C title in convincing fashion. After the first quarter, it was 28-9. From there on, they never looked back. Leading the way for the Beecher Bucs was Cedric Moten with 24 points, seven rebounds, and an assist. Sammy Toins had 17 points, a rebound, and an assist. Aquavius Burks chipped in 15 points, 11 rebounds, five assists, three steals, and two blocks. For NorthPointe Christian, Kual Nhial scored 16, grabbed 10 boards, had one steal, and one block. Tyler Baker scored 14, had four rebounds, and two assists. Preston Huckaby was somewhat neutralized, but he still scored 10 points, had two steals, one block, and one assist before fouling out.
Class D
Powers North Central 67 Morenci 47
Powers may be a small UP village, but the big lights didn’t bother them. They actually shot better than they did in the regular season when the bright lights came on.  Jason Whitens scored 19 points, grabbed seven rebounds, and tossed four assists. Most of his points came on mid-range shots and jumpers. That’s what Coach Adam Mercier has his teams work hard on. Caleb Martin and Bobby Kleiman each scored 13 and grabbed four and six rebounds, respectively. On the Morenci side, Torin Merillat scored 11, grabbed 12 rebounds, stole three balls, and blocked one shot. Austin Sandusky also scored 11 and had three rebounds, an assist, and a steal. Bobby Black chipped in nine points, three assists, and a steal.
Thanks for reading my column. It’s been fun writing for Spartan Nation for the past eight years. As my situation and interest have changed, this will be my last regular column for Hondo and the website. I’ll still be around in the forum if you ever want to chat. I wish the best of luck to whoever follows me and to my buddy Hondo who is always searching for ways to improve the site and NOT charge a dime for it. Thanks for taking the time to read my columns over my run as the prep sports columnist. I had a lot of fun over the years, but it’s time to let someone else have a crack at it.