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The Rockford basketball team reached heights that nobody probably expected them to reach in 2012. That run took them all the way to the Breslin Center and the Class A State Finals on Saturday afternoon. All year long Rockford found a way to win games against more talented teams but in the end Saginaw High proved to be the straw that broke the back of the Rams 54-42. Rockford leaned on their defense as they had all year long and it held up for 3 quarters of this game but in the end the final stanza did the Rams in.

The game began with a 7-0 Saginaw run but was promptly answered by an 18-0 run by the Rams to blow this one open. The lead would be short lived however as the Trojans would answer back with a 12-0 streak right back to take the lead at 19-18 and we had a game on our hands. Rockford used some timely shooting and a sagged in defense to clog the lane and force Saginaw into bad shots. He headed to the break with Saginaw clinging to a 25-24 lead. Chase Fairchild was 1-2 from deep in the first half but caught fire in the 3rd quarter, a trio of 3-balls kept the Rams alive in this one as we had a see-saw game entering the 4th with the Trojans up 2. Rockford would take back the lead however at 40-37 after another long ball by the Rams. With Saginaw clutching a 1 point advantage the Trojans went on a 7-0 run as we rolled past 2 minutes to play blowing this game away 50-42.

Quick Hitters

Saginaw

• The Trojans were strong and athletic and used that to their advantage all night long. Travontis Richardson and Julian Henderson led the way with 13 and 12 respectively and did all they could to find holes in the Rockford D. The outside shots were not falling and Rockford was preventing against the drive which was cause for the low score but in the end Saginaw found just enough on the offensive end.
• The pressure Defense of Saginaw was they key here as they implemented a full court press the entire game and forced Rockford into 15 turnovers. That pressure slowed Chad Carlson for much of the night and led to many easy buckets in the end for the Champs.

Rockford

• Rockford battled hard all year to get here and overcame a ton of adversity along that path. To come up just short was crushing for the kids as you can imagine but they should hold their heads high and be proud of what they accomplished. The post game interview says it all.

• Chase Fairchild was on fire yet again today as he led all scorers with 14 including 4 triples! The Rams would knock down 10 long balls in all and that total kept them in a game that could have been much worse on the scoreboard. Saginaw attempted 9 more shots and shot 17 free-throws to Rockford’s 0 attempts.

Muskegon Heights came to the Breslin Center looking to build upon last year’s championship game loss.  Although their plans were not fulfilled, the Tigers can still be proud of being one of the four best Class B teams in the state.  Matt Philpott brings you a gallery of shots from tonight’s spirited game…

Please be sure to visit Matt’s website, to learn more about services he offers, or to contact the photographer to purchase prints!

Rockford took on a talented Romulus squad in today’s state semifinal game, and the Rams once again did what they’ve done all year– found a way to win.  Matt Philpott Photography was proud to bring you this selection of photos from this afternoon’s victory!

Be sure to visit Matt’s website to learn more about the services he offers, or to make contact if you’d like to purchase a copy of a picture seen here!

The Muskegon Heights Tigers are an independent team who is forced to play very tough competition from all around the state just to fill out a schedule. That schedule is set to prepare the Tigers for the title run that they have made frequently in recent years. 2012 was no different and unfortunately neither was the result for Heights. The Tigers fell 61-48 to Stevensville Lakeshore and were forced to do so without top scorer and team leader Juwon Martin. The Tigers found out yesterday afternoon that Martin would not be able to go and Coach Keith Guy described the news as “a crippling blow.”

The Tigers kept this game close early as they only trailed by 3 at the half and had it cut to two mid-way through the 3rd. What appeared to be a made lay-in plus a foul was reversed and pretty much ended Muskegon Heights’ night. The Tigers appeared to unravel after that and the game slowly got away from them. Lakeshore blew it open with their length and rebounding ability leaving the Tigers unsatisfied with another trip to the Breslin Center.

Quick Hitters

Stevesville Lakeshore

• The Lancers are a very deep and long team. They ran a number of guys at the Tigers and many of them snatched rebounds with ease. Lakeshore appeared to struggle at times with Heights’ athleticism but once they figured that out they took off leaving Muskegon in their dust. Loren Johnson is a great facilitating point guard who also chipped in 13 points while handling the ball with a graceful ease all night.
• Ryan Avery led the Lancers with 20 points and seemed to have a knack for making the big bucket when needed. Avery drew contact when he got inside and knocked down 7 of 10 free-throws to help his scoring total swell. Lakeshore now looks ahead to either Detroit Country Day or Lasing Sexton and either will be a brutal match-up.

Muskegon Heights

• The loss of Juwon Martin hurts, there is no question about that but as coach Guy mentioned in his post game comments, this team has battled all year given the situation with the school and tonight was just another hurdle.

• Mike Davis and Deshaun Thrower stepped up large for the Tigers in Martin’s absense. The two sophomores totaled 28 of the 48 Tiger points with Davis tallying 21. 15 of Davis’ points came in the 1st half after which Lakeshore denied him the ball with greater aggressiveness which also slowed the Tiger attack. Here Davis shows off that 1st half scoring run.

The Rams of Rockford always seem to find a way. They did just that Friday at the Breslin Center in the Class A State Semi-Finals against a 22-3 Romulus team. The Rams had less athleticism and probably less talent as they have for much of the post season but found a way yet again to pull out the W. Rockford fell behind early, only to come back. And then fell behind again early in the 2nd half, only to come back. This team is deep and talented and it’s defense alone will make it a close game all night. Four players reached double digits in points and 8 players recorded ten plus minutes of playing time.

The Rams shot 2-9 from deep in the first half and quickly turned that around going 4-9 from 3 in the 3rd to stay within striking distance. After cutting the lead down to 2 on a nice give and go between Ivy Johnson and Chase Fairchild, it was Chase again with a lay-in plus the foul to give Rockford the lead with 2:38 to play. After the Rockford D stepped up it was Chad Carlson who took to the line on back-to-back possessions knocking down all 4 freebies (his only points of the game) to propel Rockford ahead 59-54 with 1:39 to play. Romulus would battle back however and tied the game with 12.4 to play and Rockford holding possession with a timeout called. Rockford had shot a perfect 11-11 from the line in the 4th quarter and Ivy Johnson would be fouled out of the timeout. Johnson would split the pair to put the Rams up 1. Mitch Caywood stole the ensuing inbound pass which then sent Scott Nikodemski to the line following another Romulus foul with 4.6 to play. Nikodemski would miss both. A Romulus attempt would glare off back iron as the horn sounded and Rockford would hold on. Yet again. 62-61, Final.

Quick Hitters

Romulus

• The Eagles are a very talented and deep team as well and on paper this game would seem to go in their favor. Romulus seemed to knock down big threes at crucial moments all night long and did finish with 7 long balls (Rockford wold have 6). Elbert Matthews and Aveon Simmons would each score 15 to lead the Eagles. Romulus seemed to struggle with the intense pressure of the Rams defense and it showed in crucial moments of the game.
• Romulus Head Coach Nate Oats drew up a questionable game-plan at the end of the game where with about 5:30 minutes to play in this one the Eagles played keep away and tried to run the clock down. Throw in a turnover, a 3 second call and missed shots and that is a recipe for disaster when you have a lead. The strategy did just that and allowed Rockford right back into this one.

Rockford

• Chase Fairchild had a monster game today as he led all scorers with 17 points behind 4 triples. Fairchild was all over the place on defense and hit huge shots when he had the chance. Nikodemski finds him here for a first half 3 ball.

• Chad Carlson the Rams leader went 0-8 from the floor today and just couldn’t buy a basket despite the good looks he was getting. He did manage the 4 free-throws and the rest of his team stepped up. We expect to see Chad have a big game on Saturday. We will have even more from this game tonight with Matt Philpott’s Photoblog. Here is Coach Allen, Mitch Caywood and Mark Pearson post game.

The Muskegon Catholic Central Crusaders entered the MHSAA playoffs at 11-9 after and up and down year. Sure they had hopes, dreams, even goals but I doubt even they felt they would be playing on the Breslin floor in the Class D Semi-Finals. Tonight they did just that taking on a 22-2 Southfield Christian team that features a pair of familiar names as Lindsey Hunter’s boys play for the Eagles Lindsey III a senior and Lindsey IV a sophomore. The now 17-9 MCC squad cam back after being down 9 after one quarter of play but couldn’t come away with enough stops defensively as Southfeld Christian moves on with a 78-74 victory Thursday evening.

Jason Ribecky put this Crusader team on his back tonight en route to 37 points! In the end it wasn’t enough however as the much deeper and more athletic Eagles team pulled ahead for good shortly after giving that lead away with 3:23 to play. Ribecky was at the line with the game knotted at 66 and a pair of free-throws upcoming. He split the pair giving MCC their first and only lead of the game. Gavin Toma would come right back to drill a 3 ball however to snatch back the lead for good for Southfield and they would hold on the rest of the way to wrap this game up and advance to the State Finals. Ribecky did have a shot late to tie the game with a three-pointer but it rimmed off the left iron.

Quick Hitters

Southfield Christian

• The Hunter brothers are talented and will draw a lot of attention from teams and fans alike early on as you can’t wait to see them play (especially with dad sitting on the bench). This Eagle team is very deep however and features many other great players and will be a tough out come Saturday. Chris Dewberry a senior guard led the Eagles in scoring with 25 while also chipping in 8 boards while Gavin Toma had 20 thanks to drilling 4 triples on the night.
• Freshman guard Bakari Evelyn will be a name you will know in a couple years if you don’t already. Evelyn had 14 for the Eagles and played much of the point position for the night which speaks volumes to this kids talent at this point in his career.

Muskegon Catholic

• You cannot say enough about Jason Ribecky and his performance tonight! 37 points 7 boards and 4 blocks was his final line but the 32 minutes may be the most important stat of the night and he never left the floor and willed his team to within just one shot of sending this thing to OT. Jason was looked gassed at points during the game and rightfully so, every time he got the ball he found a way to the hoop and took a beating all night to earn every one of those 37 tallies.

• Catholic Central seemed to be out-manned all night they just happened to have the best player on the floor on their side. The point play of Adam Callow was great all night fighting through pressure with the ball in his hands and Jacob Budde’s trio of deep balls were rally starters for MCC at crucial moments. Cari Campbell had 13 pts and 14 boards to help Ribecky on the front line as much as he could but even his valiant effort seemed dwarfed by Ribecky. This team has battled all postseason and took this loss hard, check out what they had to say afterwards.

Our man Don Kok was on hand at Hope College earlier this week to capture Muskegon Catholic Central as they fought for the right to travel to East Lansing.  Don is proud to share this collection of photos with you, the fans!

After you have completed checking these out, feel free to swing by the gallery Don has on Flickr!

The Shelby Tigers put together an incredible season in 2012. Running through the West Michigan Conference as well as the Class C playoffs all the way to East Lansing and the Breslin Center. That run would come to an end after falling to Traverse City St. Francis in the State Semi-Finals 63-54. The Tigers battled all afternoon and managed to come back from an 11 point deficit before actually taking the lead with 36 seconds to play in the 3rd Quarter. That lead wouldn’t last however and too many easy buckets for the Tigers did not fall in the 4th allowing the Guardians to pull away for good.

Quick Hitters

TC St Francis

• Guardian point guard Devin Sheehy ran the floor to perfection all game long and his 12 1st quarter points gave TC early control of this game. Sheehy finished with 18 and 7 assists, that balance of scoring ability paired with passing vision set his Guardians up with easy buckets down the stretch to break this one wide open.
• Sean Sheldon the 6’9″ monster center was a nightmare cover all night for Shelby. He finished with 16 points and 12 boards and controlled the game for periods of time against the smaller Tigers. Sheldon will go on to play at William and Mary next season and he gave Lucas Landis and JR James fits all game long.
• The Guardians applied pressure all game long. Every inbound had Sheldon in front of the passer and a pair of other defenders pressing hard in an attempt to slow Shelby down. It did just that as the Tigers spent a lot of energy getting the ball across half court and were forced into many careless turnovers. This was a great strategy for the Guardians as Shelby can shred a team in transition.

Shelby

• The Tigers scratched and clawed their way back after falling behind early and nearly stole this one after hanging in it with some very nice shooting from outside. That shooting that kept them in it however let them down in the second half, after going 5-8 from deep in the first half they could only connect on 2-8 long balls in the second half.

• The Big Reds of Lucas Landis and JR James fought hard all night against Sheldon but just couldn’t seem to get the shots to fall at the end missing countless bunnies under the rim thanks to the long arms of the TC big man. Landis would finish with 7 pts and 7 boards while James went for 12 and 11.
• The Tigers squandered their first trip here since 1972 but have a strong foundation that Coach Zoulek will look to build upon in 2013 as the Tigers turn their focus on making another run next year. Here is Coach Zoulek, JR James and DJ Beckman Postgame.

WMA is happy and thankful to welcome Rod Schutte in as a guest writer for Hope College’s Class D Quarterfinal coverage.

Holland-  The Class D Quarterfinal matchup between the Bellaire Eagles, who entered the contest with a record of 24-1 and the Muskegon Catholic Central Crusaders [16-9] showed the inside strength of MCCs two talented big men, Senior Center Jason Ribecky and Junior Forward Cari Campbell.  Bellaire had no answer for this combination, as Ribecky and Campbell drove, reversed, and rose on their way to 22 and 20 points respectively. Although no other Crusader finished in double figures, they still contributed enough for the Crusaders to pull out the win.

The MCC Crusaders led after the first quarter 18 – 13 behind the inside play of their bigs and the outside shooting of Adam Callow and Matthew Clark.  Clark had just checked into the game before knocking down a big 3!  The Eagles of Bellaire hung close, because of the hard work inside by their post Kasey Poel, who scored 6 points in the quarter.  Tyler Thornton also hit a bucket from behind the arc for the Eagles and Gus Meriwether scored on a driving layup just before the end of the quarter.

The Crusader Bigs Dominated.

Bellaire started the second quarter with the ball, but Thornton missed on a 3-point attempt; and Ribecky started where he left off with a bucket on the inside.  The lead grew to 7.  The Eagles turned the ball over, and Campbell followed with a nice reverse move in the lane for another basket.  After another turnover for Bellaire, Clark missed his first shot, but followed hard after it and got the tip.  Following a miss by Bellaire, Ribecky drove baseline for two points, and the lead grew to 24-13.  Cold outside shooting by Bellaire and dominant inside play by Muskegon Catholic Central soon turned the Crusaders lead into 15 with five minutes to go before the half.  With the Crusaders in a zone defense, Bellaire finally got a good look and Meriwether knocked down a 3 to cut the lead to 12.  The Eagles went into a full court press, but after getting the ball into the front court, Callow drove the lane and drew a second foul on Thornton.   Shortly after a driving layup by MCCs Jacob Budde, Poel grabbed an offensive rebound and was fouled by Ribecky.  It was his second foul, and he had to leave the game with two minutes still left before the half.   However, Bellaire couldn’t take advantage of Ribecky finishing the half on the bench, because Campbell took over with a full court drive and dish to Callow for a layup after a Bellaire missed free throw.    He also had a strong block down low on the defensive end.  Meriwether finished Bellaire’s first half scoring with a driving layup.  The end of the first half had Bellaire in an unfamiliar position this year; down by 13 with the score MCC 33 and Bellaire 20.

The third quarter scoring started with a free throw by Bellaire, followed by a pair of made free throws by MCC.  Bellaire again went into their full court press, but the Crusaders were able to break it and get a good shot off by Ribecky.  He missed the attempt but grabbed the offensive rebound and got the put back with a foul.  He missed the free throw but almost made up for it with a strong rebound on the defensive end.  However, after his rebound, he landed off-balance and, as he fell, threw the ball right into the hands of Reece Koepke of Bellaire.  Koepke went up strong for the score and was fouled on the play.  His free throw completed the 3 point play.  The Crusaders lead stood at 37-24.  One of the most exciting plays of the game came off an inbounds play by the Crusaders.  Campbell caught a pass at the top of the key, drove smoothly down the lane, was fouled hard but still tossed the ball high into the air.  As the ball dropped threw the net, the crowd in green jumped and cheered.  A quick 6-point offensive run by Bellaire cut the lead to 39-30, but Ribecky’s reverse layup brought it back to 41-30.  He was fouled on the play but missed the free throw.  Behind their strong man-to-man full court press and the offense of Koepke, Bellaire was able to pull to within 8 at the end of the third quarter.  The Crusader’s lead was   45 – 37.

Bellaire started the fourth quarter in their full court press.  Early in the quarter Ribecky got his 20^th point with a put back on a missed shot.  Koepke continued to work hard and hit an off-balance 8-footer.  A couple of plays later, Meriwether drove the lane but was called for a charge, which was his fourth foul. Following a miss by the Crusaders, Poel pump-faked Campbell into the air, drew a foul, and completed the 3-point play. Just like that, the lead was 48-42, but four quick Crusader points brought it back to 52-42.  MCC scored on a layup and free throw, but Bellaire’s press began to force MCC turnovers; turning them into 8 points.  However, time was not in their favor, and the Eagles were forced to take long threes and foul.  Campbell made four free throws down the stretch, and Ribecky and John Daniel each made one.  As time ran out, Muskegon Catholic Central finished on top by the score of 61-50.

MCC, now 17-9, advances to the semi-finals on March 22 at the Breslin Center on the campus of Michigan State University to face Southfield Christian, who won their Quarterfinal matchup with Saginaw Michigan Lutheran Seminary by the score of 98-84.  Bellaire finishes an outstanding year at 24-2.

Jason Ribecky, who had a double double, led MCC with 22 points and 12 rebounds on 9-of-12 shooting and 4-of-8 from the free throw line.  Cari Campbell followed with 20 points and 8 rebounds, plus 3 blocked shots.  Jacob Budde had 6 points and led the team with 4 assists.

Senior Forward/Center Kasey Poel played an awesome game for Bellaire and finished with a double double; scoring 15 points with 12 rebounds.  He also had 5 steals.  Senior Guard/Forward Gus Meriwether and Senior Guard Reece Koepke each scored 11 points.